Elijah P. Marrs, Company L, 12th U.S. Colored Artillery, experiences an adventure-filled day in Kentucky. A slave until running away mere months ago, the Union soldier and Baptist layman, his company tasked with recruiting new black soldiers, unexpectedly confronts the prospect of death at the hands of Confederate soldiers. Fortunately, the encounter takes place in…
Not infrequently the Civil War divides families and generates opposing loyalties. As the fourth year of the great conflict approaches and the fortunes of the Confederate States fade, the divisive nature of the war becomes ever more noticeable and personal. Today, in many respects, is like many other days during the war. Men enroll as…
While momentum has shifted to the Confederacy in the wake of the recent, successful repulsing of the Union offensive against the nation’s capital of Richmond, much of Tennessee remains under Union control. In response to the U.S. presence in Tennessee, Confederate Brig. Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest for several weeks has been conducting calvary raids in…