The American Vision: Modern Times © 2008

"Civil War Letters"

Introduction
In this chapter you learned that conflicts over the rights of states and the issue of slavery propelled the nation into civil war in 1861. North and South rose against one another and sent their sons to engage in a bitter struggle. Perhaps no other words describe the horrors of war and the loss of comrades better than the words written by the soldiers themselves. On the Images of Battle Web site you will find 12 letters written by soldiers during the Civil War. The letters describe the battles, life as a soldier, and events during the Civil War from both Southern and Northern viewpoints. Read the soldiers' descriptions of the Civil War's impact to understand what it was like when Americans fought Americans.

Destination Title: Images of Battle

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Directions
Start at the Images of Battle Web site.

• To read the letters, click on the individuals' names.
• Browse through the letters, taking notes as you go.

1			What does one soldier's account of the first battle of Bull Run reveal?
2			What care was given to the wounded and the dead?
3			What do the writers say happened in Frederick, Maryland, and Fredericksburg, Virginia?
4			How do the soldiers justify the war?
5			On a separate sheet of paper, write a poem that one of these soldiers might have written after hearing that the war was over.