Recent Posts
Centennial: The Great Fair of 1876 and the Invention of America’s Future by Fergus M. Bordewich
Centennial: The Great Fair of 1876 and the Invention of America’s Future by Fergus M. Bordewich pub. by Knopf (2026) Half a century ago, I…
Interior Department Removed Junior Ranger Booklet From Robert E. Lee’s Home in Arlington For Violating President’s Executive Order
As I had reported back in March, the Interior Department was considering removing the Junior Ranger Program booklet at Arlington House, where Robert E. Lee…
Free Program for Adults and Kids at Fort Stevens in Washington, D.C. on July 11, 2026
Next weekend if you live near Washington, D.C. you may want to go to Fort Stevens to join in the commemoration of that battle. There…
The Irish Regiment that Ended “Pickett’s Charge”: Gettysburg July 3, 1863
On July 3, 1863, as the Confederates of George Pickett’s Division closed on the stone wall near the top of Cemetery Ridge at Gettysburg, they saw…
A Prayer Before Death for the Irish Brigade: Gettysburg July 2, 1863
In the days before the Battle of Gettysburg one soldier reportedly asked another the name of the regiment marching past. He was told “that’s not a regiment,…
An Irish Colonel and the Defense of Little Round Top on the Second Day at Gettysburg
Those who immigrate to the United States are called First Generation Americans. Their U.S.-born children are said to belong to the Second Generation. Sociologists recognize…
The “German” XI Corps at Gettysburg July 1, 1863
After weeks of hard marching, when the “German” XI Corps reached Gettysburg on July 1, 1863, it was suffering from the scorn of many American nativists who blamed the “Dutch”…
Iron Brigade Immigrants Go Into Battle the First Day at Gettysburg
On the warm morning of July 1, 1863, the men of the 6th Wisconsin Regiment of the Iron Brigade were among the closest to danger of the…
Iron Brigade Immigrants Arrive at Gettysburg
On July 1, 1863, the Sixth Wisconsin Regiment arrived in Gettysburg. A battle between a large Confederate force and a Union cavalry division had been waged…
Lee’s Army Moves Towards Gettysburg: Black Refugees Flee
When Confederate troops began slipping west and north of the Union army for their June 1863 invasion of Pennsylvania, no one worried more about the…