Civil War Memoirs

The most famous debates in American history were held over 150 years ago, and today they are remembered and celebrated, mostly because they included future President Abraham Lincoln, one of the nation's most revered men. But in the Fall of 1858, Lincoln was just a one-term Congressman who had to all but beg his US Senate opponent to debate him. That's because his opponent, incumbent US Senator Stephen Douglas, was one of the most famous national politicians of the era.

Honor's Voice provides a revealing look at how Abraham Lincoln became the 16th president of the United States and one of the greatest men of his time. Douglas Wilson traces the development of this great leader from an insecure country boy full of ambition to schoolboy, storekeeper, riverboat man, and, finally, politician. The author returns to original sources, including friends and acquaintances in the Illinois of the 1830s and '40s and exposes truths about Lincoln never before revealed.

We think of Lincoln as a great president, but he was also an eloquent and expressive writer and speaker. The superb performance by George Vail conveys Lincoln's depth of thought and feeling through these extraordinary pieces of literature.

This collection of Lincoln's letters gives us a glimpse into the inner self of a great American president. After a brief autobiography, the letters appear chronologically, beginning with his courtship and early political life and continuing into the presidency.

Jefferson Davis (1808-1889) holds a unique place in American history, as the man best remembered for being the president of the Confederacy during the Civil War. While other famous Confederates like Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson are still celebrated across the reunited country, Davis continues to be the object of scorn, derided over his attempt to flee after the Civil War and criticized as ineffective by historians. Among the Confederates still lauded among some Southerners, Davis is well down the list.

The Kansas-Nebraska Act eliminated the Missouri Compromise line of 1820, which the Compromise of 1850 had maintained. Settlers could now vote whether they wanted their state to be slave-free. The primary result was that thousands of zealous pro-slavery and anti-slavery advocates moved to Kansas to influence the vote, creating a dangerous and ultimately deadly mix. The most famous and infamous of them all was John Brown, one of the most controversial men in American history.

It was a fine day for a battle. Hundreds of spectators from Washington took the day off to tag after the army. They came in buggies and on horseback, riding seven long hours in the hot Virginia sun. Mostly men, a few women, a host of politicians among them Ohio Senator Ben Wade, New York Congressman Alfred Ely, and Illinois Congressman Elihu Washburne. Following the life of Abraham Lincoln. You'll learn about his early days, his loves, his disappointments, his rise to power, and his assassination. And, yes, we will talk about that annoying rumor of Lincoln being gay.

David Dixon Porter: The Life and Legacy of the Distinguished Union Rear Admiral during the Civil War chronicles Porter’s upbringing and how it prepared him for his important service in the Civil War. You will learn about Porter like never before.

On the 12th of April 1865, the Army of Northern Virginia marched to the field in front of Appomattox Court-House, stacked their arms, folded their colors, and walked off empty handed to find their distant, blighted homes. These are detailed and moving first-hand accounts from a number of prominent witnesses to Robert E. Lee's surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia at Appomattox.

One of the most important, and controversial, Confederate generals during the Civil War was Lieutenant General James Longstreet, the man Robert E. Lee called his "old war horse". Longstreet was Lee's principal subordinate for most of the war, ably managing a corps in the Army of Northern Virginia and being instrumental in Confederate victories at Second Bull Run, Fredericksburg, and Chickamauga. Longstreet was also effective at Antietam and the Battle of the Wilderness, where he was nearly killed by a shot through the neck.

This memoir continues the adventures of a living historian as he approaches the golden years of his life. Nearly four decades in the hobby of Civil War reenacting, Robert talks of continued adventures into the 21st century that include several trips east of the Mississippi, as well as into Missouri, Arkansas, and Kansas. Involvement in 150th anniversary reenactments is given special mention as is participation in video documentaries produced by Wide Awake Films. As with the previous volumes, Volume Three is loaded with personal anecdotes and humor.

Clara Barton: The Life and Legacy of the Civil War Nurse Who Founded the American Red Cross chronicles her remarkable life, and the manner in which she changed nursing in America forever. You will learn about Clara Barton like never before.

Over the course of his life, Ely Samuel Parker was a Seneca chief, a civil engineer, a close friend and adjutant to General Ulysses S. Grant, an advocate for the Indian peoples, and the first Native American Commissioner of the Department of Indian Affairs. His marriage to a much younger socialite scandalized Washington, and he made a fortune on Wall Street and lost it all. He ended his life in genteel poverty, working for nearly 20 years in an obscure position for the New York City Police Department.

A lot of ink has been spilled covering the lives of history's most influential figures, but how much of the forest is lost for the trees? In Charles River Editors' American Legends series, listeners can get caught up to speed on the lives of America's most important men and women in the time it takes to finish a commute, while learning interesting facts long forgotten or never known.

Between the Monday after Abraham Lincoln was shot until the following week, Tom Jones hid John Wilkes Booth in the wilds of Maryland and then helped him get across the Potomac River to Virginia.

Discover the young life that shaped a great man. Few famous humans came into the world under such humble circumstances as Abraham Lincoln on February 12, 1809. But it may very well be that the humble and unassuming life he lived actually served to shape him into the solid, moral, honest, decent, hard-working adult that he became. What were those circumstances, the formula so to speak, that molded this future president? This biography looks at the childhood and young adulthood of Abraham Lincoln.

When James Buchanan was inaugurated president in March of 1857, he had inherited a powder keg that was just waiting to explode into the turmoil that was the American Civil War. Buchanan has since been vilified as being the great appeaser who placated the South enough to embolden them to secede from the Union. He is frequently listed as one of the worst presidents in the history of the United States. Buchanan himself, however, always held out the hope that history would vindicate him and the role he played.

This is the true story of an orphaned girl who managed to survive in an unforgiving world. When she grew up, she married a matinee idol. Just as her hardships in life were ending, they began again when her husband assassinated Abraham Lincoln.

Exploration of the early American West, beginning with Lewis and Clark’s transcontinental trek at the behest of President Thomas Jefferson, was not accomplished by standing armies, the era’s new steam train technology, or by way of land grabs. These came later, but not until pathways known only to a few of the land’s indigenous people were discovered, carved out, and charted in an area stretching from the eastern Rocky Mountains to the Pacific Ocean, and the present-day borders of Mexico and Canada.

Remington’s name remains recognizable today, and his work continues to impress viewers more than a century after he was active. From the bronze statuettes of anonymous Western heroes in crisis to large-scale actions set against vast backdrops, his works found their form through mythology and by "merging his experiences and memories." Both commercially and nostalgia-driven, the dualistic personality of Frederic Remington as a person is at times a problem for modern sensibilities.