The Civil War Book

On this day in the Civil War, Confederate General J. Johnston Pettigrew is mortally wounded in an assault by troops of the Federal Army of the Potomac.

General Pettigrew survived Picketts Charge at the Battle of Gettysburg, only to die 2 weeks later.

Gettysburg Battlefield

On this day in the Civil War, a violent 4 day riot erupts in New York City over the military draft. Over 1,000 people die or are wounded during the riot.

Union troops, back from the Battle of Gettysburg, are called in to stop the rioters.

On this day in the Civil War, Confederate troops under General Early skirmish with Union forces at Fort Stevens outside Washington.

President Lincoln witnesses the battle and is told by a Union officer to, “Get down, you fool!” The quote is attributed to Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., a future supreme court justice.

Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.

(Photo Credit: Library of Congress)

On this day in the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln appoints General Henry Halleck as general-in-chief of the Union army.

 General Henry Halleck

(Photo Credit: Library of Congress)

On this day in the Civil War, Federal troops prepare to assault Battery Wagner, a Confederate fort located on Morris Island in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina.