Battle of Gettysburg

Dear Diary,
So much has happened over these past few weeks. Recently General Lee's troops have invaded up through Virginia and are currently somewhere around Pennsylvania. It is said that there was a major battle in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Some of the Confederate soldiers were going to seize some shoes from a local shoe factory when they came across a large group of Union soldiers led by General John Buford. The Union soldiers headed to the northwest part of town and called in reinforcements. The battle itself lasted for three days total. On the first day, the Confederate soldiers pushed the Union force back onto higher ground in the south part of town. On the night after the first day, the Union reinforcements arrived. The Union troops dug a trench that was two and a half miles long. The Union used the fact that they now had the high ground to their advantage. The confederate soldiers tried to move against the Union soldiers by dividing into two groups and attacking each end of the line. There was a commotion on Little Round Top (one of the hills at the end of the line). Colonel Joshua L. Chamberlain of the Union army and his men fought against the Confederate army on Little Round Top. When the Colonel's numbers were getting low, he ordered a bayonet charge against the Confederate soldiers. Hundreds of Confederate soldiers had to surrender by the end of July 2, 1863. Lee still thought he could win the battle if they attacked one more time. Lee had an artillery barrage aimed at the center of the Union line thinking it would be the thing to finally break the defenses. When Lee's men finally marched forward, they were plowed down by Union cannon and riffle fire. When Lee ordered General Pickett's division to reposition he had to face the sad fact that there no longer was a division. By the end of the Battle of Gettysburg, more than 50,000 were dead or wounded. Almost a third of Lee's forces were included in that 50,000. This battle made Lee give up on his invasion of the North and go back to the South. Lincoln honored the dead by creating a cemetery for the fallen soldiers. He gave this very inspiring speech that has become known as the Gettysburg Address. In this speech, he talked about all the troubles we have seen in the Civil War. He also stated that all men are equal in this address. This is the last time the Confederate army tried to fight on the North's land. Here is a photo of the dead at the Battle of Gettysburg:

That's all for now Diary,

Rebecca

The Dead at the Battle of Gettysburg. N.d. CivilWar.org. Web. 17 Feb. 2016. 

        <http://www.civilwar.org/photos/galleries/gettysburg/images/dead-at-

        gettysburg.jpg>.

Life As A Soldier and Women in the War

Dear Diary,
About half of the population of eligible men from the Union are fighting in the war. Four out of every five eligible men in the Confederacy had to fight. Many of the soldiers got their first chance to travel when they were traveling with the troops. Soldiers are often homesick being unused to being so far away from home. Soldiers past time between battles by playing games, attending religious revivals, and writing letters home. Some soldiers end up having to be fighting against their own brothers or cousins depending on their family and location. New bullets made killing much more effective in the war. We have never seen so many dead soldiers before. Because the doctors are not aware of the possible infections that come with amputations in the field. There are a lot of soldiers getting amputations nowadays. There is not a lot of clean water and illnesses get passed around very easy. There are also prison camps now. At the prison camps, some soldiers were even outright killed. One camp that I have heard about is in Anderson, Georgia. Currently, in 1864, about 33,000 Union prisoners at the camp in Anderson. Black prisoners in the Confederate prison camps were often killed immediately. There is so much happening lately with the war going on. Here is a photo of one of the camps:

That's all for now Diary,

Rebecca

Civil War Photos. N.d. Web. 15 Feb. 2016. <https://www.archives.

        gov/research/military/civil-war/photos/images/civil-war-072.

        jpg>.

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Dear Diary,

Many of my friends and I have had to take on new responsibilities with the men going off to war. Some have gone off to become nurses in the war. I have had to help my family with our business. Some of my female friends have had to help on the farms and plantations. We even have some within our friend group that have gone on to teach at schools. There are stories told between us of women who have dressed as men and fought in battles for both the North and the South. There are some women in my town who have gone on to do laundry and cooking for the men in the camps. One story that we have also heard about is about a girl named Clara Barton. She assists with helping the sick and wounded on both sides. Clara has helped start the United States Sanitary Commission that allows for women to oversee hospitals. It was signed off by President Lincoln. Here is a photo of Clara Barton:

That's all for now Diary,

Rebecca

Clara Barton. N.d. Web. 15 Feb. 2016. <http://www.uncompromis

         ingcommitment.org/wp-content/sdaolpu/2012/08/clarabar

         ton.jpg>.

Troubles on The Home Fronts

Dear Diary,
I have heard a lot about troubles on the home front from the soldiers passing through town. From what I understand, here are problems on both the North and South's home fronts.
Here is a list of events in the North:

• Problems with the textile industry because they had to drop the southern cotton. 
• Having to pay for the war; creating income tax.
• Legal Tender Act: the treasury creating "greenback" to have more money in circulation. (Fun fact: this is the first time the United States has had a single, common currency.
• Drafter rioters called "Peace Democrats" or Copperheads according to their opponents. Lincoln suspended habeas corpus to deal with the rioters. (I don't think he should be allowed to suspend Habeas Corpus. I believe everyone should be able to report if their imprisonment is unlawful.) 

Here is a list of events in the South:

• Could not keep up with the economic demands, almost to the point of collapse.
• Union blockade of the ports caused the Southerners to have to depend on their own farms and factories. 
• Could not really afford the war that is happening because the products they do have are not worth much. Confederate soldiers stole weapons, supplies, and food from Union soldiers.
• There is an inflation due to the value of the Confederate's money. The inflation has led to some riots already.
• The leaders of the South have been arguing about where the troops should go and just how independent they should be.

Both the Union and the Confederacy are facing problems that have to do with created an economy separate from each other. The United States was able to have a working economy because it had both the factories in the North and the farms in the South. Now the North doesn't have the farms it needs to produce its products, and the South does not have the ability to take its produce into products. Here is a photo of a five dollar greenback:

That's all for now Diary,

Rebecca

Five Greenback. N.d. Web. 14 Feb. 2016. <http://www.moaf

      .org/exhibits/checks_balances/abraham-lincoln/greenb

      ack/_res/id=Picture>.