Provides a day-to-day chronology of events of the Civil War, describes the weapons used and includes brief biographical information.

Presents a comprehensive reference to the American Civil War, including a chronology of major events, biographical sketches, related articles and a collection of maps.

“In all the vast collection of books on the American Civil War there is no book like this one,” says Bruce Catton. Never before has such a stunning body of facts dealing with the war been gathered together in one place and presented in a coherent, useful, day-by-day narrative. And never before have statistics revealed human suffering of such heroic and tragic magnitude. The text begins in November, 1860, and ends with the conclusion of hostilities in May, 1865, and the start of reconstruction. It is designed to furnish the reader not only with information, but to tell a story. Here, in addition to the momentous events that are a familiar part of our history, the daily entries recount innumerable lesser military actions as well as some of the other activities and thoughts of men great and unknown engaged in America’s most costly war: · May 5, 1864—a private in the Army of Northern Virginia writes at the beginning of the Battle of the Wilderness, “It is a beautiful spring day on which all this bloody work is being done.” · May 6, 1864—Gen. Lee rides among his men and is shouted to the rear by his protective troops. · April 30, 1864—Joe David, five-year-old son of the Confederate President, dies after a fall from the high veranda of the White House in Richmond. · April 14, 1865—President Lincoln’s busy day includes a Cabinet meeting where he tells of his recurring dream of a ship moving with great rapidity toward a dark and indefinite shore; that night Mr. Lincoln attends a performance of a trifling comedy at Ford’s Theatre, “Our American Cousin”.

Provides a chronology of the war, a rundown of the weapons and equipment used in the war, and biographies of military and political leaders

“Help[s] readers to examine this period in history with a more cultural perspective than other books have . . . clear, concise, and crisp . . . fascinating” (San Francisco Book Review). • During the final days of the war, some Richmond citizens would throw “Starvation Parties,” soirees at which elegantly attired guests gathered amid the finest silver and crystal tableware, though there were usually no refreshments except water. • Union Rear-Admiral Goldsborough was nicknamed “Old Guts,” not so much for his combativeness as for his heft—weighing about three hundred pounds, he was described as “a huge mass of inert matter.” • 30.6 percent of the 425 Confederate generals, but only 21.6 percent of the 583 Union generals, had been lawyers before the war. • In 1861, J.P. Morgan made a huge profit by buying five thousand condemned US Army carbines and selling them back to another arsenal—taking the army to court when they tried to refuse to pay for the faulty weapons. • Major General Loring was reputed to have so rich a vocabulary that one of the men remarked he could “curse a cannon up hill without horses.” • Many militia units had a favorite drink—the Charleston Light Dragoons’ punch took around a week to make, while the Chatham Artillery required a pound of green tea leaves be steeped overnight. • There were five living former presidents when the Civil War began, and seven veterans of the war, plus one draft dodger, went on to serve as president. These stories and many more can be found in this treasury of anecdotes, essays, trivia, and much more—including numerous illustrations—that bring this historical period to vivid life.

"A great resource for students of the Civil War. The first half of this volume takes a day-by-day look at the events of the Civil War, looking at what was going on both politically and militarily across the Country on almost every day of the years 1861 - 1865. Following this is an encyclopediac reference to all manner of Civil War-related topics. Most of the entries are brief, but it is a worthy starting-point at least."--Publisher's description.