Photo of Richard Weld of the 44th Massachusetts Infantry via findagrave.org.

Research Arsenal Spotlight 37: Richard Weld 44th Massachusetts Infantry

Richard Weld was born in 1835 to Aaron Davis Weld and Abbie (Harding) Weld of West Roxbury, Massachusetts. He attended Harvard University and graduated in 1856. After a short…

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Notice how this soldier's letter has torn along the crease where it was originally folded over 150 years ago. Storing it flat and unfolded could have prevented the additional strain on the crease that caused that damage.

How to Store Historical Documents

How to Store Historical Documents This week while scanning some Civil War letters I ran across damage that I’ve seen all too often with old documents that have been folded. T…

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Photo of soldiers from Company E, 47th Illinois Infantry at Oxford, Mississippi taken on December 18, 1862 via Civil War Centennial Commission of Illinois.

Research Arsenal Spotlight 36: David McGowan 47th Illinois Infantry

David McGowan was born in 1838 to James and Eliza (Conn) McGowan in Pennsylvania. His family later moved to Baltimore, Maryland, but David himself was living in Bennington,…

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Image from Harper's Weekly depicting President Lincoln's Thanksgiving Proclamation in 1864. The proclamation was issued on October 3, 1863, making the Thanksgiving of 1863 the first official national celebration of the holiday.

Thanksgiving: A Civil War Call For Unity

Thanksgiving: A Civil War Call For Unity As Americans prepare each year for a festive Thanksgiving dinner, it’s worth remembering how deeply the holiday’s modern identity was …

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Photo of soldiers of the 9th Missouri State Militia Cavalry drilling in the streets of St. Joseph, Missouri, probably taken in 1863 or 1864.

Research Arsenal Spotlight 35: Aaron Wheeler 50th Illinois Infantry

Aaron Wheeler was born in 1830 and resided in Avon, Illinois when he enlisted in Company G of the 50th Illinois Infantry on September 24, 1861. He was married to Fannie…

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Street view of Vicksburg, Mississippi.

Research Arsenal Spotlight 34: Farner Shaw 4th Minnesota Infantry

Farner Shaw was born in Dane County, Wisconsin, in 1844 to Henry W. Shaw and Susan J. (Sunderman) Shaw. The family moved to Freeman, Minnesota sometime before 1860. He…

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William Clemmons 7th Tennessee Infantry Company K.

Research Arsenal Spotlight 33: William Clemmons 7th Tennessee Infantry

William Clemmons was born in 1843 to Edwin and Patience (Harris) Clemmons of Lebanon, Tennessee. He enlisted on May 20, 1861 in “The Blues,” company K of the 7th Tennessee Inf…

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Here is one of the first newspaper bookmarks we found in this Civil War clothing ledger. You can see more scraps of newspaper further into the book. Our angry archivist was not happy to find these....

Angry Archivist: Newspaper Bookmarks

Angry Archivist: Newspaper Bookmarks This week, we were scanning new material to add to our Research Arsenal database. This is always fun because you never know what historic…

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Illustration of Holly Springs, Mississippi from Harper’s Weekly issue dated January 10, 1863 via archive.org

Research Arsenal Spotlight 32: Henry Markham 2nd Illinois Cavalry

Henry Markham was born in 1840 to Lane Markham and Margaret (Griffin) Markham of Laporte County, Indiana. Both of Henry Markham’s parents died when he was quite young and he w…

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A bombproof shelter for the soldiers during the siege of Petersburg, August 10, 1864

Research Arsenal Spotlight 31: Charles Miller 140th New York Infantry

Charles Miller was born in 1843 to Ransom Randolph Miller and Francis “Fanny” Maria (Warner) Miller of Gates, New York. In August, 1862, he enlisted in Company D of the 140th …

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