Cobblestone articles from February 2008

Cobblestone archives from February 2008

Editor's note.(Editorial)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Thanks to many artists both in the thick of the Civil War and in the decades following it, we have a strong visual record of that critical event in American history. For example, we have the realistic sketches of the "special" artists who drew...

The weeklies go to war.(weekly newspapers during the Civil War)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] America's Civil War (1861-1865) affected nearly every American. Most families had at least one relative fighting in the war, so news of the various battles and army movements was in high demand. With the telegraph's...

Move over, Homer! Make a Civil War engraving.(Winslow Homer)
February 1, 2008... There were no computer printers during the Civil War. Newspapers and other publications, however, did have a clever way of reproducing illustrations of battles and important events of the war. They used engravings. To make one, a Civil War...

Wanted: good maps.(maps made by soldiers during the Civil War)
February 1, 2008... When the Union army reached Bull Run, a creek in Virginia, in July 1861, the Confederates were waiting on the other side. The problem was how to get at them. Bull Run had steep banks. It would be difficult to get an entire army down and up them...

'Photo by Brady'.(photographer Mathew Brady)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Where did the powerful, rich, and famous go to have their pictures taken? To Mathew Brady's studio, of course. After all, by the 1860s he was the most famous photographer in the United States. Born in 1823, Brady...

The 'what-is-it?' wagon.(horse-drawn darkrooms used by photographers during Civil War)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Mathew Brady spent more than $100,000 on salaries, equipment, and supplies to put his teams of photographers on the road in their offices-on-wheels. Most of these horse-drawn darkrooms were ordinary delivery wagons...

Saint-Gaudens's style: larger than life: "... while men and nations pass away ... the bronze remains.".(Sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens)(Biography)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens spent his life creating works that helped convince Americans of this truth. He made more than 35 public sculptures, as well as numerous portrait reliefs, busts, and coins. But his...

Vinnie Ream: capturing Lincoln.(Abraham Lincoln)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Fourteen-year-old Vinnie Ream was helping to support her family by working at the U.S. Post Office and as a clerk in the office of Missouri congressman James S. Rollins when the Civil War began. One day, Rollins took...

Edmonia Lewis: American sculptor.(Biography)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Free women of color had few choices at the time of the Civil War. They could become teachers or servants, or raise a family. Not Edmonia Lewis. Born near Albany, New York, to a Chippewa mother and an African American...

International artists.(Going Global)(Thure de Thulstrup, Frank Vizetelly, and Theophile Poilpot)
February 1, 2008... Although the Civil War was an American conflict, it made headlines in other parts of the world as well, and artists from other countries were sent to the United States both during and after the war to create images of its events. Attention...

Did you know?(trivia on the Civil War)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Confederate artist Conrad Wise Chapman accidentally wounded himself in the head during his regiment's first battle. After recuperating, he proved to be a much better painter than soldier. To encourage Winslow...

The power of paintings.
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] From devastating suffering and death to glorified heroes and leaders--you name it, Civil war artists have captured it on canvas. But what happens when you look closely and really study the works? The famous paintings...

Mort Kunstler: painting the unexpected.(The Past Is Present)(Interview)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Mort Kunstler is fascinated by America history. Since he first began his art career in the 1970s, Kunstler s paintings have captured scenes from Jamestown to the space shuttle, and he was commissioned by the U.S....

In the thick of it.(Battle of Gettysburg cyclorama)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] If you stand in the center of a building at Gettysburg National Military Park, you can see the Civil War raging all around you--as if you were right in the battle. But this isn't a modern computer simulation or...

Raise the curtain on a toy theater.(myriopticons)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... They look like small TVs--but they don't need electricity. Popular toys during the 19th century, myriopticons were like small panoramic movies of Civil War days. Inside a handheld box was a wound scroll of a series of connected pictures...

Stained glass stories.(stained glass windows that depict Civil War)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Open any history book about the Civil War and you're sure to find photos by Mathew Brady, paintings by Winslow Homer, or Harper's Weekly engravings. But you're not likely to find images of stained glass windows, even...

Ulysses S. Grant.(Your Letters)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Alton Hennessy Canaan, New Hampshire

Smiling soldier.(Your Letters)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Katarina Rather Westminswter, Maryland

Civil War Yankee.(Your Letters)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Alexis Kydon Nyack, New York

Mr. Lincoln.(Your Letters)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Fiona Lane Nyack, New York

Kaleidoscope.(Your Letters)(Poem)
February 1, 2008... Kaleidoscope So bright, lights the night. Tall mountains, too far to see. Bright on the inside, just like out. Dreaming of colors. So bright, so clean. First you have it, happy and all, ...

The Dashing J.E.B. Stuart.(Your Letters)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Daniel Glenn Manassas, Virginia

Hamilton vs. Jefferson Abraham Lincoln Civil War in the West.(Your Letters)
February 1, 2008... Write to us! Draw a picture or write a poem or short essay that connects to one of the above COBBLESTONE themes on which we currently are working. All contributions must be your own, original work. Include your name and address, and a note from...

Your letters.(Letter to the editor)
February 1, 2008... Dear Editor, I read your "Secret Soldiers" article (Women in the Civil War, February 2005). I learned that hundreds of Women fought in the Civil War. They were hiding the fact that they were really women because they Weren't allowed to...

Books to read.(Digging Deeper)(Civil War literature)(Young adult review)(Brief article)(Book review)
February 1, 2008... The Civil War in Photographs by William C. Davis (London: Carlton Books, 2002, www .carlton.com) includes more than 300 of the best Civil War shots, some of which have never been published before and some that previously were misidentified....

Ethan rates it....(Digging Deeper)(Civil War art)(Website overview)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Art has always been one of the greatest ways to experience a historical event. Compelling illustrations in history books often inspire us to seek out more information about a particular event or historical figure. Although...

On the web.(Digging Deeper)(Website list)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... The Library of Congress's Web site includes fascinating information about photography during the Civil War, including a description of the process and a list of known photographers of the day. You may also browse the library's collection of...

Places to visit.(Digging Deeper)(historic sites)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Washington, D.C. Vinnie Ream's statue of Abraham Lincoln can be viewed in the U.S. Capitol's Rotunda. A walk through the city's many circles, squares, and parks will reveal many other statues and memorials honoring Civil War leaders, including...

Photo by Brady: A Picture of the Civil War.(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Photo by Brady: A Picture of the Civil War by Jennifer Armstrong (New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2005, www.simonsayskids.com). Today, in an era of diverse media sources, it is easy to forget that "one...

From the archives.(topics on Civil War)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... The Civil War has been a much-covered topic for COBBLESTONE. Here are some of our more recent issues: Navy and the Civil War (COB0401), Cavalry in the Civil War (COB0212), The Battle of Antietam: September 17, 1862 (COB9710), The Battle of...

The confederate image: art of the Civil War South.(Flashback to ...)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The Civil War was a grueling experience for most Southerners--not only for e tens of thousands of soldiers who were wounded or killed in battle, but also for the women, children, elderly, and infirm left behind to...

Brain ticklers.(Civil War trivias)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Give your brain a little tickle to see how well you read and understood this issue on how the Civil War was portrayed through art. If you believe the answer to be false, give yourself the ultimate test and see whether you can explain why it is...

A final word.(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... This bronze statue of a Civil War soldier at ease (with his gun resting on the ground) is found in Peterborough, New Hampshire. It is believed that scores of copies of this statue by Martin Millmore exist across the United States. Is there a...

Cartoon connection with Ebenezer & the Colonel.(Cartoon)
February 1, 2008... You BIRDS aren't the ONLY ONES with FAMOUS RELATIVES, you know. YEAH! SQUIRRELS have played IMPORTANT roles throughout history! Then how come you don't SHOW UP in any of these PHOTOGRAPH?!! Early Photography simply wasn't FAST...

Mascot mania.(Creature Feature)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] They came in all sizes and shapes, including a camel, a raccoon, a sheep, a bear, a cat, an ox, and a badger. But dogs and a variety of birds were the most common mascots during the Civil War. For many men, the...