Sham Battles – Gary Van Kauwenbergh Private James Northup of Co. H, 2nd Wisconsin Infantry wrote home, on 12/16/1861, that they’d been having division-sized sham battles every few days. Sham battles were apparently common when the war first started. In his recently published journal, “Eye of the Storm”, Private Robert Knox [ » ]
“Fox Lake’s Civil War News and Letters”. A book review by Gary Van Kauwenbergh Fox Lake, Wisconsin’s is center-pieced in this local effort to encapsulate their town’s rich Civil War history. The book is a compilation of newspaper articles and letters from Fox Lake and the surrounding area who sponsored [ » ]
Hero of the Red River – The Life and Times of Joseph Bailey, by Michael J. Goc A Book Review by Gary Van Kauwenbergh The story of Bailey building a dam to save the Union fleet trapped by low water during the Red River Campaign ranks right up there with [ » ]
Book review by Gary Van Kauwenbergh “Drifting to an Unknown Future” is a small paperback book of 100 pages that contains the Civil War letters sent home by James and Samuel Northup of Lodi, Wisconsin. It’s edited by Robert C. Steensma, and published by the Center for Western Studies. James, [ » ]
The Rock Island Arsenal is located on an island in the Mississippi River in the Quad Cities. It is now the largest government-owned weapons manufacturer in the United States, and it’s history predates the Civil War. The museum is the second oldest US Army museum still operating. 31 pieces of [ » ]
The First Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Gray Frock Coat of Corporal Milton Ewen Research Notes On Friday, March 24, 2006, Scott Frank, Marc Storch and Gary Van Kauwenbergh, met with Wisconsin Veterans Museum Curator of Collections Bill Brewster to examine the frock coat belonging to Corporal Milton Ewen of the First Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry. [ » ]
“Confederates in the Attic”, by Tony Horwitz, published by Random House, Inc. Book Review by Gary Van Kauwenbergh If you want to take a break from reading history, but still want to read about the Civil War, this book is a hoot. This book does have a smattering of history [ » ]
Notes from “If This Is War” Gary Van Kauwenbergh I recently reread Alan Gaff’s book, “If This Is War”, and thought I’d share the notes I made on some items I thought were interesting. When reading the notes, bear in mind this book only covers the period of time when [ » ]
“Four Years with the Iron Brigade” The Civil War Journal of William Ray, Company F, Seventh Wisconsin Volunteers. Edited by Lance Herdegen and Sherry Murphy. Da Capo Press. Book review by Gary Van Kauwenbergh. This is the best book of this genre I’ve seen so far. It is neither a [ » ]
Click here to watch a short video on the Underground Railway station located in Milton, WI. There’s a city park across the street is where every year Company K of the Second Wisconsin Infantry Assn, Inc., hosts a School Day event where over a thousand students can visit 25-30 stations [ » ]