Unit 10 and 11 Tests
Frayer Models for Civil War |
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The United States Civil War (April 12th, 1861 - April 9th, 1865)
Components of the Civil War
Warm Up Video
The Civil War is the first war in which railroads were a major factor. The 1850s had seen enormous growth in the railroad industry so that by 1861, 22,000 miles of track had been laid in the Northern states and 9,500 miles in the South. The great rail centers in the South were Chattanooga, Atlanta, and most important, Richmond. Very little track had yet been laid west of the Mississippi.
Wars have always been fought to control supply centers and road junctions, but the Confederate government was slow to recognize the importance of the railroads in the conflict. By September 1863, the Southern railroads were in bad shape. They had begun to deteriorate very soon after the outset of the war, when many of the railroad employees headed north to join the Union war efforts. Few of the 100 railroads that existed in the South prior to 1861 were more than 100 miles in length. The South had always been less enthusiastic about the railroad industry than the North; its citizens preferred an agrarian living and left the mechanical jobs to men from the Northern states. The railroads existed, they believed, solely to get cotton to the ports.
Wars have always been fought to control supply centers and road junctions, but the Confederate government was slow to recognize the importance of the railroads in the conflict. By September 1863, the Southern railroads were in bad shape. They had begun to deteriorate very soon after the outset of the war, when many of the railroad employees headed north to join the Union war efforts. Few of the 100 railroads that existed in the South prior to 1861 were more than 100 miles in length. The South had always been less enthusiastic about the railroad industry than the North; its citizens preferred an agrarian living and left the mechanical jobs to men from the Northern states. The railroads existed, they believed, solely to get cotton to the ports.
Questions
Where did most of the railroad lines exist during the Civil War (1861-1865)?
The south used railroads only as a way to 'get cotton to port', therefore, the south did not use railroads to their advantage. How did the North use the railroads as an advantage? (see 2 images below)
Where did most of the railroad lines exist during the Civil War (1861-1865)?
The south used railroads only as a way to 'get cotton to port', therefore, the south did not use railroads to their advantage. How did the North use the railroads as an advantage? (see 2 images below)
One major advantage of the Civil War was Industry. Industries could manufacture supplies quickly and easily using the assembly line methods and when combined with railroad distribution the North could supply weapons and materials to troops on the front lines. The North had a greater advantage of supplies for troops because 90 percent of the nation's manufacturing output came from northern states. The North was able to produce 32 times more firearms! That means that for every 100 rifles the south produced the north could produce 3,200!
Questions
How could industries be an advantage in war times? Who had the advantage of a strong industrial economy?
Questions
How could industries be an advantage in war times? Who had the advantage of a strong industrial economy?
Rifles with Minié bullets were easy and quick to load, but soldiers still had to pause and reload after each shot. This was inefficient and dangerous. By 1863, however, there was another option: so-called repeating rifles, or weapons that could fire more than one bullet before needing a reload. The most famous of these guns, the Spencer carbine, could fire seven shots in 30 seconds.
Like many other Civil War technologies, these weapons were available to Northern troops but not Southern ones: Southern factories had neither the equipment nor the know-how to produce them. “I think the Johnnys [Confederate soldiers] are getting rattled; they are afraid of our repeating rifles,” one Union soldier wrote. “They say we are not fair, that we have guns that we load up on Sunday and shoot all the rest of the week.”
Like many other Civil War technologies, these weapons were available to Northern troops but not Southern ones: Southern factories had neither the equipment nor the know-how to produce them. “I think the Johnnys [Confederate soldiers] are getting rattled; they are afraid of our repeating rifles,” one Union soldier wrote. “They say we are not fair, that we have guns that we load up on Sunday and shoot all the rest of the week.”
British Red Coats Infantry, Revolutionary War
Questions
How does the mini ball's shape and size compare to today's bullets?
How might advances in technology (such as the Gatling Gun) change the fighting style of the Revolutionary War?
How does the mini ball's shape and size compare to today's bullets?
How might advances in technology (such as the Gatling Gun) change the fighting style of the Revolutionary War?
The telegraph was invented by Samuel Morse in 1844, and telegraph wires soon sprang up all along the East Coast. During the war, 15,000 miles of telegraph cable was laid purely for military purposes. Mobile telegraph wagons reported and received communications from just behind the frontline. President Lincoln would regularly visit the Telegraph Office to get the latest news. The telegraph also enabled news sources to report on the war in a timely fashion, leading to an entirely new headache for the government: how to handle the media.
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Questions
How might the North using the telegraph be an advantage over the South, who used horse riding messengers to deliver messages?
How might the North using the telegraph be an advantage over the South, who used horse riding messengers to deliver messages?
Ironclad Warships
At the start of the Civil War the North had a distinct naval advantage as the South didn't have a dedicated Navy. Both recognized the importance of armor-cladding their ships. The first engagement between two iron-clad ships was between the USS Monitor and the CSS Virginia. The first fight between iron clad ships of war, in Hampton Roads, March 9, 1862, in which the Monitor whipped the Merrimac and the whole school of Confederate steamers.
Naval mines and torpedoes
Naval mines were developed by the Confederates in the hopes of counteracting the Union's blockades of Southern ports. Mines and later, torpedoes, were very effective sinking 40 Union ships. The success of these mines led to the creation of land mines and grenades that would be used in later wars.
At the start of the Civil War the North had a distinct naval advantage as the South didn't have a dedicated Navy. Both recognized the importance of armor-cladding their ships. The first engagement between two iron-clad ships was between the USS Monitor and the CSS Virginia. The first fight between iron clad ships of war, in Hampton Roads, March 9, 1862, in which the Monitor whipped the Merrimac and the whole school of Confederate steamers.
Naval mines and torpedoes
Naval mines were developed by the Confederates in the hopes of counteracting the Union's blockades of Southern ports. Mines and later, torpedoes, were very effective sinking 40 Union ships. The success of these mines led to the creation of land mines and grenades that would be used in later wars.
Life in the camps was hard and required food rations to be slim to none. The crackers pictured (above right) were hard, flavorless and a survival food. Unfortunately, if soldiers were to survive during the Civil War they were forced to camp in all sorts of weather, eat a limited amount of bad food, and walk miles upon miles, in addition to fighting in battles.
Advances in medical practices
Jonathan Letterman, Medical Director of the Army of the Potomac, was responsible for creating the first organized transport of the wounded. Ambulance units usually consisted of a ragtag group of soldiers who were otherwise unfit for fighting. Letterman innovated and regimented the process. The ambulances of a division moved together under the direction of a line sergeant, with two stretcher-bearers and one driver per ambulance. They would go into the field, pick up the wounded, deliver them to dressing stations and then to field hospitals. To this day the military bases its ambulance system on Letterman's ideas.
Clara Barton, a female nurse during the Civil War, would help revolutionize the way nurses could be used to help injured troops recover during and after war. Later, she would go on to start the American Red Cross
Civil War medical practices were also advanced by the ability to amputate infected damaged limbs. While this may seem grim to today's standards, it helped save the lives of thousands.
Jonathan Letterman, Medical Director of the Army of the Potomac, was responsible for creating the first organized transport of the wounded. Ambulance units usually consisted of a ragtag group of soldiers who were otherwise unfit for fighting. Letterman innovated and regimented the process. The ambulances of a division moved together under the direction of a line sergeant, with two stretcher-bearers and one driver per ambulance. They would go into the field, pick up the wounded, deliver them to dressing stations and then to field hospitals. To this day the military bases its ambulance system on Letterman's ideas.
Clara Barton, a female nurse during the Civil War, would help revolutionize the way nurses could be used to help injured troops recover during and after war. Later, she would go on to start the American Red Cross
Civil War medical practices were also advanced by the ability to amputate infected damaged limbs. While this may seem grim to today's standards, it helped save the lives of thousands.