Life
in Civil War America
By
Michael O. Varhola
OH:
Family Tree Books, 1999
Chapter
1: North & South, One Nation, Two Peoples
Chapter
2: Where People Lived: Life in City, Town, and Country
Chapter
3: Education: From Schoolhouses to Universities
Chapter
4: Slang and Idiom: How People and Events Shaped Language
Chapter
5: Religion: What People Believed
Chapter
6: Fun and Games: How People Entertained Themselves
Chapter
7: Wages and Currency: Coins, Greenbacks, and Postal Currency
Chapter
8: Clothing and Dry Goods: What Items Cost and the Impact of Shortages
Chapter
9: Food and Diet: How People Ate at Home and on the War Front
Chapter
10: Technology: Inventions That Changed Life and Warfare
Chapter
11: The War on the Home Front; the Draft and Civil Unrest
Chapter
12: Brothers at War: Billy Yank, Johnny Reb
Chapter
13: Arms, Equipment, and Uniforms: Supplying the Servicemen
Do you want to know more about the Civil War than the
battles? What was happening on the home front? How did everyday life continue
despite shortages? How was life different in the north and in the south? I have
lots of questions about how the lives of our family members were changed by the
conflict. This book answers lots of those questions. It is very interesting and
fun.
Test yourself. Do you know the definitions of these words?
Cashier To
dishonorably dismiss from the military
Calaboose Jail
God’s Flag Term
used by the Union troops to refer to the US flag
Jawing Talking
Pie-Eater A
country boy, a rustic
The Shakes Malaria
Spondulix Money
Tay Tea
Top Rail First
class
Did you know:
The gatling gun, the player piano and
barbed wire were invented during the war?
Doctors did not yet have hypodermic
syringes, blood transfusions or antibiotics.
Most of the nation’s railroad
tracks and rolling stock existed in the north. The south had difficulties
maintaining and repairing the track and equipment they did have.
Confederate
rations, when available, included: bacon, chicory, cornmeal, molasses, peanuts,
sugar, tea and vegetables.
That’s just a small sample of the little details
included in this book. Pick up a copy. It is a fun read.
At the top of this blog, click on My Library for many more books that I have found useful for genealogical & historical research.
