In the early post-war months the African Zion Baptist Church of Tinkersville, in West Virginia’s Kanawha Valley, has emerged as the area’s “main organization completely owned and controlled by Negroes.” Organized in February 1863, the congregation initially met in the home of Rev. Lewis Rice, a champion of religious and secular education for blacks. Considered…
The war that many thought would end quickly yet rages on. In the North, U.S. President Abraham Lincoln and many other politicians blame U.S. Gen. George McClellan for the prolonged war. In charge of the Army of the Potomac since July 1861, McClellan has proven too timid and ineffectual in campaign after campaign, whereas his…
Upset that his plans to engage the Confederates in Yorktown, Virginia were foiled, McClellan dispatches some 41,000 soldiers to chase the retreating Rebels. The two sides clash today in Williamsburg in an inconclusive battle that results in about 4,000 total casualties. At the end of the day, the Rebels, having bought enough time for the…