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Civil War Blog

A project of PA Historian

The Last Tango in Carlisle

On 1 March 1905, the Harrisburg Patriot reported the marriage of a “grizzled” Civil War veteran and the sweetheart of his youth: JOINED AT ALTAR AFTER MANY YEARS Romantic Ending of Love affair of T. S. Kaufman, a Grizzled Veteran, and Mrs. Scheaffer A love affair that started many years ago, before the Civil War, […]

Rev. John Quincy Adams – Harrisburg Preacher & Civil Rights Leader Was Once a Slave

From the Harrisburg Patriot, of 13 January 1917: REV. J. Q. ADAMS, ONCE SLAVE, DIES Retired Colored Preacher Was Formerly Coachman to Judge Pearson, and for Years a Conspicuous Figure Here The Rev. John Quincy Adams, retired local colored preacher of the Wesley Union connection, former slave and known to all the older families of […]

African American Population of the Lykens Valley Area, 1860

The African American population as reported in the 1860 Census for selected areas of the Lykens Valley area is presented in today’s blog post. In 1860, African Americans were enumerated in two “free” categories:  (1) Black; and (2) Mulatto.  These categories were combined in a category called “Total Free Colored.” African Americans were not found […]

Victorian Home: How They Lived (part 1 of 10)

This is the first of a ten part series on the “Victorian home,” a general term used to describe the types of houses and home life during the Civil War. Part one is an overview of a variety of topics relating to home life during the period. The remaining posts in the series will each take one […]

Events of the World: January 1863

This monthly column seeks to provide a context for events going on during the Civil War era that are not directly war related. This column will appear around the last  day of the month and will summarize the historically significant events from around the world 150 years ago.   January 1863 January 1: Lincoln issues Emancipation Proclamation January 1: […]