TOCWOC – A Civil War Blog

Category: Military History

  • How Sherman Won Lookout Mountain

    Yes, you read the title right.  I am going to put forth an alternative argument about the capture of Lookout Mountain. While the dramatic story of Hooker’s advance around the face of the mountain might be well known, I think the cause and effect is not. On the morning of November 23rd the Confederates had […]

  • The Red Legged Devils of the 14th New York

    THE RED LEGGED DEVILS OF THE 14th NEW YORK Here is an excerpt from the History of the 14th Regiment. When revile sounded the morning of July 1st the regiment awakened to a blood red sunrise, the prophecy of a hot summer day.  At 7 A. M. an aide galloped hurriedly to Colonel Fowler’s tent […]

  • First reactions to “The Chattanooga Campaign”

    This week I was excited to get my hands on The Chattanooga Campaign, a collection of essays released by Southern Illinois University Press on August 27, 2012.    Since writing back in May about Walker’s division at Chattanooga, I have wanted to blog some more about the fighting at the north end of Missionary Ridge.  […]

  • Shock Troops on Kindle!

    It’s done, finally. I have had Shock Troops of the Confederacy ported over to Kindle format and it’s now ready for download at only $9.99. It’s a big download but I and my conversion guy spent considerable time seeing that everything made the transition correctly. In spite of what you may hear, it’s not a […]

  • Review: The Massachusetts Andrew Sharpshooters: A Civil War History and Roster

    The Massachusetts Andrew Sharpshooters: A Civil War History and Roster by Alden C. Ellis, Jr. Print ISBN: 978-0-7864-6489-0 Ebook ISBN: 978-0-7864-8820-9 76 photos, glossary, notes, bibliography, index 276pp. softcover (7 x 10) 2012 $40.00 Alden Ellis’ book covers the history and organization of two Massachusetts sharpshooter companies, the so-called Andrews Sharpshooters, named for the state’s […]

  • Short Video Takes

    Some videos that might interest TOCWOC readers: Watch an Australian re-enactor of the Napoleonic-era 95th Rifles fire a Baker rifle in sustained fire. He manages quite a respectable rate of fire, especially for a flintlock. It’s easy to see how the 95th established the superiority of the rifle on the skirmish line. The same lads […]

  • Was Justice Scalia wrong About Citizen Militias Having “Cannon” Under the Second Amendment?

    In a recent interview with Chris Wallace on Fox News, Justice Antonin Scalia, one of the Court’s conservative justices (and one known for his support of citizen gun rights), said: Wallace: You wrote in 2008, the opinion in District of Columbia v. Heller, the majority opinion that said the Second Amendment means what it says, […]