Military History Commons^™

Memphis Belle, Hot Stuff, Gen Andrews & The Quest To Be First To Complete 25, William Waldock

ERAU Prescott Aviation History Program

Most people know of Memphis Belle, the first heavy bomber to complete 25 missions. But did you know that honor really belongs to a B-24 named Hot Stuff? Learn the true story of this aircraft and its sad ending from ERAU accident investigator Bill Waldock.

Gettysburg’S Faustian Bargain, Kevin P. Lavery

The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History

A question to the reader: have you ever visited Gettysburg? Presumably most of the Gettysburg Compiler’s audience will answer in the affirmative. A follow-up question: have you ever purchased a souvenir from one of the town’s abundant gift shops? Perhaps it was a kepi or a cork gun for your child? Or maybe a bottle of “Rebel Red” wine? Or some tacky trinket or faux antique?

Let’s face it: we live in a consumer society in which there is nothing too sacred to profit from. And, sadly, the Battle of Gettysburg is no exception. [excerpt]

Heroes Of Berlin Wall Struggle, William D. Bowman

History Faculty Publications

When the Berlin Wall fell 25 years ago, on Nov. 9, 1989, symbolically signaling the end of the Cold War, it was no surprise that many credited President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev for bringing it down.

But the true heroes behind the fall of the Berlin Wall are those Eastern Europeans whose protests and political pressure started chipping away at the wall years before. East German citizens from a variety of political backgrounds and occupations risked their freedom in protests against communist policies and one-party rule in what they called the "peaceful revolution." [excerpt]

Valor Finally Honored, Allen C. Guelzo

Civil War Era Studies Faculty Publications

It has taken one hundred and fifty-one years, but finally, 1st Lt. Alonzo H. Cushing is getting his due - which in this case is the Congressional Medal of Honor.

In a ceremony today at the White House, President Obama will award the Medal of Honor posthumously to Cushing "for conspicuous gallantry... while serving as commanding officer of Battery A, 4th United States Artillery, Artillery Brigade, 2nd Corps, Army of the Potomac during combat operations in the vicinity of Cemetery Ridge, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, on July 3, 1863." [excerpt]

Gettysburg Valor Honored At Last, Allen C. Guelzo

Civil War Era Studies Faculty Publications

There is no expiration date on valor. This is the lesson on display today at the White House, as President Obama awards the Medal of Honor to a soldier who died 151 years ago at the climax of the Battle of Gettysburg. Alonzo Cushing was a lowly lieutenant, two years out of West Point at that battle. But he commanded the last two cannon that faced Pickett's Charge, and what he did with them has kept memory alive. [excerpt]

Daniels, Herbert, 1836-1899 (Mss 500), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Collection 500. Letters of Herbert Daniels, serving with the 7th Rhode Island Infantry, to Salina A. (Brewster) Waterson in Worcester, Massachusetts. He reports on camp life in Kentucky, Maryland and Washington, D.C., gossips about other soldiers, and makes candid references to his sexual relationship with Salina.

Bowling Green Civil War Round Table Newsletter (Nov. 2014), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Bowling Green Civil War Round Table Newsletter

No abstract provided.

Close On The Wind: An Environmental Military History Examining Wind’S Influence On The Early United States Navy, Scott J. Beehler

Department of History: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Utilizing General Carl von Clausewitz’s theory of friction in combat, Close on the Wind examines wind’s historical influence on early United States naval warfare, specifically small scale engagements fought during the Quasi War, First Barbary War, and the War of 1812. To accomplish this, the thesis first engages in a scientific discussion of wind, concentrating on how it occurs and what forces dictate its velocity and direction. The examination goes on to also present the types of wind that period sailing vessels encountered, including global, regional, and local patterns, as well as how wind influenced the practice of sailing and …

Henry Wirz And The Tragedy Of Andersonville: A Question Of Responsibility, Albert Winkler

Faculty Publications

Henry Wirz was the most controversial Swiss American. Born in Zurich, Wirz migrated to the United States and joined the Confederacy at the outbreak of the Civil War. He was assigned to oversee the military prison at Andersonville, Georgia, which had a very high death rate. Following the war, Wirz was arrested and tried for war crimes. The trial was a travesty of justice. Many of his supposed crimes were milder punishments than the Union inflicted on its own soldiers. The court allowed hearsay evidence, Wirz was no allowed to call key witnesses for his defense, and many leaders of …

Seduced By The “Dark Turn”, S. Marianne Johnson

The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History

Last year, I attended a Civil War Conference that highlighted what has become known as the “Dark Turn of the Civil War.” Basically, the turn is a shift in focus from the shiny-bugles-and-gleaming-bayonets interpretation of the Civil War to revealing the ugly underside of the Civil War, emphasizing themes of death, destruction, and loss. At the time, I remember thinking, this is a good thing, Civil War history does tend to be overly romanticized as the glorious American tragedy. One panel that bothered me, however, featured a discussion on “Dark Tourism.” I had never heard of Dark Tourism, and I …

The Specter Of Gettysburg, Kevin P. Lavery

The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History

The story I am about to tell is entirely true. Several weeks ago, as I departed Musselman Library after a long night of intensive research, a sudden presence roused me from my intellectual exhaustion. I was chilled to the bone as they appeared before me: shadowy figures silhouetted against the dimly lit façade of our beloved administration building. Now, I had, of course, heard of the campus’ hauntings. Tales of the ghostly field hospital in Penn Hall’s basement, the spectral sentry watching from its cupola, and the Blue Boy of Stevens Hall are well known stories throughout our campus community …

Battlefield Correspondence: Sarah Johnson At The Virginia Monument, S. Marianne Johnson

The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History

In our first Battlefield Correspondence video of the semester, Sarah Johnson ’15 reports on the unusual circumstances surrounding the dedication of the Virginia Monument in 1917. [excerpt]

George Gordon Meade And Barnegat Lighthouse, Brianna E. Kirk

The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History

Tucked away off the coast of central New Jersey on the small stretch of land called Long Beach Island is a little piece of Civil War history. It is here that a largely unknown monument highlights a figure so well known by those four hours away in the small Pennsylvania town of Gettysburg. I have been visiting Long Beach Island since I was young, and yet had no knowledge of this Civil War connection that had been staring me in the face until my mother enthusiastically shouted to me, “Brianna! Gettysburg!” As I climbed the sandy hill towards a monument …

The Right To Be Forgotten... From History?, Kevin P. Lavery

The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History

Some people seek to leave a legacy. They want to be remembered by others for doing something great, whether it be good or evil. But not everyone is alike in this respect. Others want nothing more than to go quietly about their business. They do not want friends or strangers prying into their lives. They do not want their inner, personal thoughts to be read and judged by those around them. [excerpt]

Campbell, John O., D. 1865 (Sc 2866), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid and typescript (Click on "Additional Files" below) for Manuscripts Small Collection 2866. Letter, 9 April 1863, of John O. Campbell, 45th Pennsylvania Infantry, written from Paris, Kentucky to friends. He comments on both the beauty and destruction in the area, on Confederate sympathies, especially among the women, and how they should be punished, and on camping at the Bourbon County fairgrounds. He also comments on local members of the Clay and Bacon families and on U.S. Senator Garrett Davis’s support of reprisals for disloyalty to the Union. Includes associated data on Campbell and his regiment.

Point/Counterpoint: Insidious Cycle, Bryan G. Caswell, Heather L. Clancy

The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History

Heather: In our last post, Bryan and I explored the unique challenges that the reenacting hobby poses to the interpretation and public understanding of the American Civil War. In it, we touched on just a few of the many motivations that inspire individuals to reenact. As we continue our Point/Counterpoint series below, we look to explore the relationship of the reenacting hobby with a particularly complex and problematic ideology–the Lost Cause. [excerpt]

Dowsman, George B. (Sc 2867), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid and full text of letter (click on "Additional Files" below) for Manuscripts Small Collection 2867. Letter, 24 September 1862, of George B. Dowsman, Company H, 75th Indiana Infantry. Writing from camp in Louisville, Kentucky, he describes conditions preceding a possible attack by Confederate General Braxton Bragg’s army, his company’s readiness, and its recent movements in Kentucky.

Vukovar, Siege Of, 1991, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Scholarship and Research

Provides an over view of fhe siege of the Croatian city Vukovar bu the Serbian Military during the Serbo-Croatian war between May-November 1991.

Nato In The Balkans, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Scholarship and Research

This encyclopedia entry examines the contemporary and recent historic role of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in Balkan countries. It also discusses and emerging security concerns affecting these countries.

Yugoslav-Soviet Split, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Scholarship and Research

Describes the political and military split between the Communist countries of Yugoslavia and the Soviet Union in the years after World War II until Yugoslavia's disintegration in the early 1990s.