Much of our knowledge of Civil War Atlanta comes from the work of the official photographer of the Army of the Mississippi, George Barnard. Assigned to document military camps, fortifications and rail lines, Barnard followed General William Sherman and his troops on their infamous March to the Sea. In the process of completing his assigned […]
Tag: Civil War
Posted inStories of Atlanta
A wartime skill finds new life
One of the challenges of our 21st century lifestyle is trying to process the unprecedented amount of information available at any given moment. We are subjected to so much input on so many different topics that it is hard for us to imagine how people got along before the invention of instantaneous communications. It helps, […]
Posted inSean Keenan
Despite Confederate monument removals, debate over effigies in Georgia still red-hot
Georgia has exorcised some of its Confederate ghosts in recent years, although many still haunt the state’s public spaces, casting shadows in communities that have largely matured since the horrors of the Civil War.
Posted inStories of Atlanta
A dubious first
Being a lawman in Atlanta during the Civil War was challenging enough. It was especially hard for Tom Shivers when he came face to face with the man who wanted his job. It’s a story with an ironic ending that culminates with a dubious first on this week’s Stories of Atlanta.
Posted inStories of Atlanta
A return visit
In November of 1864, having occupied Atlanta for a little over two months, William Sherman left the city to continue his march to the sea. About three miles out, he paused briefly and gazed back at Atlanta. Years later he wrote of that moment, “Behind us lay Atlanta smoldering and in ruins, the black smoke […]
Posted inStories of Atlanta
Worthy of a painting
In Washington, D.C., there is a memorial to Major General James B. McPherson. It was erected after his Civil War death in Atlanta. When McPherson fell, his 2nd in command led the charge. Several years later, John Logan’s wartime exploits were commemorated by Logan himself. The result of his efforts stands to this day and that is the […]
Posted inStories of Atlanta
Thanks to him…we know
Much of our knowledge of Civil War Atlanta comes from the work of the official photographer of the Army of the Mississippi, George Barnard. Assigned to document military camps, fortifications and rail lines, Barnard followed General William Sherman and his troops on their infamous March to the Sea. In the process of completing his assigned […]
Posted inStories of Atlanta
From Prussia to Peachtree
When the Civil War ended in 1865, life, as you can imagine, did not just magically return to normal. There was no “normal.” Chaos was the order of the day and the State of Georgia had been particularly hard hit. Its politics was scattered, the economy was in shambles and in June of 1865 the […]
Posted inStories of Atlanta
Who among us hasn’t made a mistake
Mistakes are a part of life, that’s the way it is and that’s the way it has always been. “Errare Humanum Est,” to err is human. The hope is that our mistakes aren’t too visible and, in general, are of the minor variety and not of the George Custer variety. But it doesn’t always go […]
Posted inStories of Atlanta
Once upon a time
What is it about stories? Myths, legends, folk tales, fairy tales, tall tales, sagas, yarns, it doesn’t matter what type of story. We are captivated by all of them. We always have been. It probably has something to do with the fact that a good story skips the brain and goes right to the heart. […]
Posted inMain Slider, Stories of Atlanta
He had a lot of nerve to come riding into town like that
In November of 1864, having occupied Atlanta for a little over two months, William Sherman left the city to continue his march to the sea. About three miles out, he paused briefly and gazed back at Atlanta. Years later he wrote of that moment, “Behind us lay Atlanta smoldering and in ruins, the black smoke […]
Posted inSubmitted Photos
Photo Pick: Front room at the Atlanta Preservation Center by Chad Carlson
Front room at the Atlanta Preservation Center (APC) on St. Paul. Ave. in Grant Park. The fireplace surround was found buried in the backyard during the rehabilitation of this home which was built by L.P. Grant in the 1850s. One of only a few pre-Civil War homes left in metro Atlanta. L.P. Grant built the […]
Posted inMain Slider, Stories of Atlanta
It was a dangerous place to be and everyone knew it
It is often assumed that during the American Civil War, Atlanta was destroyed by fires set by the Union Army as General Sherman led his troops on to the sea. That is only partially true. Fire did inflict substantial damage on Atlanta, but many of those fires were set, not by Union troops, but by […]
Posted inMain Slider, Stories of Atlanta
The Visitor
If only the residents of Marthasville had known about the future of their young visitor.
Posted inDavid Pendered
Chattahoochee River past, present: Two speakers part of Paddle Georgia
Two local authorities are on deck to talk about the past and present roles of the Chattahoochee River in as part of the annual Paddle Georgia festival.
The speakers are Tom Baxter, a political correspondent with SaportaReport, and Clarke Otten, a Civil War historian who focuses on Sandy Springs and overlooked aspects of the war – such as how the Union army crossed the river.
The free events are scheduled June 23 and 24 along the banks of the river at Riverview Landing, a former industrial tract in Mableton that’s to be retooled into a mixed-use community by the company redeveloping Ponce City Market in Atlanta.
Posted inDavid Pendered
After Civil War, Atlanta’s leaders were ready to return to business, says upcoming speaker at History Center
The way Decatur historian Wendy Venet tells the story, Atlanta residents were weary of the Civil War by the time Union General William T. Sherman advanced on the city and “schmoozed” the Union general who presided over the city during Reconstruction.
“After 1863, loyalty becomes a highly contested issue in Atlanta,” Venet said. “It took a variety of forms including acts of lawlessness, particularly the draft, people hiding horses or mules to keep them from being impressed. So by the time Sherman seized the city in 1864, Atlanta was becoming unglued.”
Posted inDavid Pendered
Chickamauga Battlefield to benefit from “complete streets” project
Visitors to the sacred grounds in the Chickamauga Battlefield in northwest Georgia will enter the park along an enhanced gateway in Fort Oglethorpe once the state completes a project that’s just received a $3 million federal grant
Casualties numbered 34,000 in the three-day Battle of Chickamauga in September 1863. The losses were second during the Civil War only to the 51,000 recorded the previous July at the Battle of Gettysburg.
Today, the main road leading to the battlefield is flanked by towering power lines and disjointed commercial developments. The federal grant will pay for a retooling of 0.8 mile of LaFayette Road to improve its appearance and use by pedestrians and bicyclists.
Posted inMichelle Hiskey, Michelle Hiskey & Ben Smith
War and cornbread make for savory history
Samuel McKittrick’s Civil War correspondence described the food at the front line, and highlights were read last week at “Cornbread Through the Ages,” one of 50 anniversary programs marking the 149th anniversary of the Battle of Atlanta last week.
His great-great-granddaughter Millie Huff Coleman, a dietary anthropologist and lifelong Atlantan, wore a period costume as she read from his letters. She also served up a savory taste for the audience members at the DeKalb History Center from two skillets filled with cornbread made in the style of different historical eras.
Letters and cornbread connected McKittrick's separate worlds of home and combat. From the battlefront near Marietta, he expressed his fears and expectations that he was going to die, instructions on the upkeep of the farm as well as a belief in the afterlife.
