Thenceforward and Forever Free [Rebroadcast]
We look at the narratives surrounding the Emancipation Proclamation and try to unpack its legacy. How can we best understand emancipation – as a moral imperative, a military necessity, a political strategy, or all of the above?
Thenceforward and Forever Free
We look at the narratives surrounding the Emancipation Proclamation and try to unpack its legacy. How can we best understand emancipation – as a moral imperative, a military necessity, a political strategy, or all of the above?
Civil War 150: Empty Sleeves and Broken Hearts
In this interview Ed interviews Megan Kate Nelson about the proliferation of so-called “empty sleeve narratives” in poems, stories, songs, and artworks that glorified amputee veterans returning home after the Civil War.
Civil War 150: Mapping Slavery, Pt. 2
In this interview, Ed speaks with historian Susan Schulten about the map that used U.S. Census data to illustrate the distribution of slave populations prior to the Civil War.
Civil War 150: Mapping Slavery, Pt. 1
In this interview, the History Guys take a look at the famous Francis Bicknell Carpenter painting, “First Reading of the Emancipation Proclamation of President Lincoln,” and talk to historian Susan Schulten about the map featured in the lower right-hand corner of the image.
Civil War 150: Not So Safe Space
In this interview, Ed speaks with historian Jim Downs about how disease devastated populations of escaped slaves in contraband camps behind Union lines during after the Civil War.
Heart of the Stranger that Hovered Near
BackStory correspondent Catherine Moore collects segments of Walt Whitman’s Civil War memoirs, diary entries, and poetry to tell the story of the poet’s extended encounter with America’s wounded.
Civil War 150th: The Road to Civil War
As America launches a multi-year commemoration of the Civil War, it’s easy to overlook the fact that back in the spring of 1861, disunion was anything but inevitable.
“Questions Remain” — Transcript
This is the transcript of “Civil War 150th: Questions Remain,” broadcast in April of 2011. You can listen to the entire show here. Tape: From VFH Radio in Charlottesville, Virginia, this is “BackStory.” Peter Onuf: From weapons of mass destruction to the U.S.S. Maine, each of America’s wars has been accompanied by its own [...]
“Why They Fought” — Transcript
This is the transcript of “Civil War 150th: Why They Fought,” broadcast in April of 2011. You can listen to the entire show here. Tape: From VFH Radio in Charlottesville, Virginia, this is “BackStory.” [music] Peter Onuf: Liberty and union. Liberty and union. That was the refrain across the American North as Civil War [...]
