You've probably heard it called The Civil War, or the American Civil War. Well, I'm here to correct you. The English Language Definition of "Civil War" is as follows: A war between citizens of the same country. Even historians who take the viewpoint of the Confederacy never being a legitimate country have to admit people living at the time did, to an extent, looking at the evidence. My biggest piece? Look at Belle Boyd's entry.
The stories recounted here were figures who lived (and possibly died) during the war years; 1861 through 1865. They fought on either side of the war, and their stories are just as varied as the rest of American history in general. So, here they are.
Entries:
Confederate:
- Belle Boyd, Confederate Spy
- Belle Starr, Wild West Outlaw
- Helen Longstreet, Widow of General James Longstreet
- James Dunwoody Bulloch, The Confederate Navy's Foreign Spokesman
- James Parks, His Story is Inextricably Bound to that of Arlington National Cemetery
- Jennie Wade, the Only Civilian Killed in the Battle of Gettysburg
- Juliet Opie Hopkins, The Florence Nightingale of the South
- Loreta Janeta Velasquez, Confederate Soldier and Spy
- Captain Martin Van Buren Bates, the Kentucky River Giant
- Mary Anna Custis Lee, Robert E Lee's Wife and SO MUCH MORE
- Mary Bradford Johns, Heroine of the Battle of Nashville
- Mary Surratt, The First Woman Executed by the United States Federal Government
- Oriana Moon Andrews, Confederate Doctor and Surgeon
- Rose O'Neal Greenhow, Confederate Spy Ringleader
- Sarah Morgan Dawson, Author of A Confederate Girl's Diary
- Brigadier General Stand Watie, The Only Native American to Receive the Rank of General During the War
- Varina Davis, First Lady of the Confederate States of America
- Zerelda James Samuel, Ardent Confederacy Supporter and Mother of Jesse James
Union:
- Albert Woolson, the Last Undisputed Surviving Veteran of the War
- Anna Ella Carroll, The First Unofficial Female Member of a US Cabinet
- Anna Kingsley, Slave Owner and Former Slave Herself who Supported the Union Cause
- Ben Thompson, Gunfighter and Protector of Women
- Catherine Davidson, Union Soldier with the Ohio 28th Infantry
- Clara Barton, US Army Nurse and Founder of the American Red Cross
- Clara Harris Rathbone, Murdered by Her Union Veteran Husband After He Suffered From Severe PTSD
- Dorothea Dix, The Woman in Charge of the US Army Nurses During the War
- Elizabeth Bacon Custer, Widow of General George Custer
- Elizabeth Hart Jarvis Colt, Supplied the Union Army with Armaments From Her Weapons Factory
- Frances Clayton, Union Veteran
- Frederick A Aiken, Mary Surratt's Attorney During Her Trial
- George Francis Train, Our Resident Eccentric Businessman
- Hannah Anderson Ropes, Union Nurse in Washington DC
- Harriet Beecher Stowe, the Author of Uncle Tom's Cabin
- Harriet Tubman, Union Spy and Leader of the Underground Railroad
- Hattie Lewis Lawton, Pinkerton Detective Who Worked for the Union
- Heyward Shepherd, The Free African American Man Murdered by John Brown in the Failed Raid on Harper's Ferry
- Ida Remington, Union Soldier Who Fought With the 11th New York Infantry
- Irene Triplett, Her Father was a Veteran and She was the Last Surviving Beneficiary of a War Between the States Pension
- Jessie Fremont, Nicknamed "General Jessie" by Her Husband's Political Detractors
- Private John J Williams, The Last Battle Casualty During the War
- Josephine S Lowell, Her Husband, Brother, and Brother-in-law All Perished During the War
- Julia Grant, First Lady of the United States and Wife of Ulysses S Grant
- Kate Warne, The First Female Detective in United States History
- Colonel Lewis W Washington, The Descendant of George Who was Held Hostage During the Raid on Harper's Ferry
- Dr. Mary Edwards Walker, The First Woman in US History to be Awarded the Medal of Honor
- Mary Galloway, Union Soldier Wounded at the Battle of Antietam
- Mary Todd Lincoln, First Lady of the United States of America
- Brigadier General Ranald Mackenzie, George Custer? Pfft! He's Got Nothing on This Guy
- Rebecca Peterman, Union Soldier with the 7th Wisconsin Infantry
- Private Sarah Edmonds Seelye, The Only Woman to Receive a Federal Pension for Serving in the War
- Susie King Taylor, the First African American Army Nurse in United States History
- Timothy O'Sullivan, You Know Those Haunting War Photographs You See on National Geographic?
- William Cody, aka Buffalo Bill