Monthly Archives: September 2012

Not surprisingly, other historians are weighing in on the sesquicentennial of the Emancipation Proclamation. Here is what I’ve come across so far. No doubt there is more to come. Readers: feel free to send me links to any other essays … Continue reading →

Tomorrow is the sesquicentennial of the release of the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation on September 22, 1862. It is certainly one of the most momentous events concerning emancipation in the Civil War, demonstrating the Lincoln administration’s embrace of immediate, uncompensated freedom … Continue reading →

Virginia slaves, c. 1862 Shifting military fortunes had significance for emancipation during the American Civil War. Although Union forces tended to occupy more and more Confederate territory over the course of the conflict, at times the Confederates rolled back the … Continue reading →

In early September 1862, William Tecumseh Sherman wrote his brother, John, then in his early years as a U.S. Senator from Ohio. It is a useful letter because it reveals clearly the attitude of Sherman to African-American slaves alluded to … Continue reading →

 Punch (London), August 9, 1862 As we enter September, with the sesquicentennial of the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation only a few weeks away, let us take a last look at August 1862. It was a momentous month in the history of … Continue reading →