Civil War Drawings Collection. An event in Longstreet's Tidewater Campaign. The Confederate naval blockade off the Carolinas could not prevent the Union supplies and reinforcements arriving by ship. Foster's fortified Union troops overwhelmed Hill's Confederate troops, forcing them to abandon their position at Washington, N.C. and flee the Union advance.

Civil War Drawings Collection. Drawn by a Special Artist assigned to General Buell's Division. Engraved for Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper, 18 January 1862 (XIII:321):132-42[sic, 133] as: "The War in Kentucky--Great Iron Bridge over the Green River, on the Louisville and Nashville Railroad, Partially Destroyed by the Rebels to Obstruct the Advance of the National Army under Gen. Buell--Passage of the National Forces over a Temporary Bridge." The accompanying article on the same page: "The Iron Railroad Bridge Over Green River, Kentucky". In October 1861, Confederate General Sidney Johnson ordered local forces to destroy the iron L&N railroad bridge outside Munfordville, Kentucky, to prevent a surprise attack on the Confederate position at Bowling Green and slow the Union advance across the Green River. The southern end of the bridge was destroyed, dropping the span into the river below. Rebuilding the bridge became a priority for both Grant and Buell, who intended to move south along the Tennessee River and needed the railroad to supply their troops. On 6 December 1861, northern stonemasons began working to repair the extensive damage. On 9 January 1862, the work was completed; the following day the Union began its advance into central Tennessee.

Civil War Drawings Collection. See also 1945.580.57, Position of the 19th Corps at Fisher's Hill. A battle in Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan's Shenandoah, Virginia campaign against Gen. Jubal Early's troops, weakened by his defeat at Winchester (Third). On September 21, the Federal army advanced, driving back skirmishers and capturing important high ground opposite the Confederate works at Fisher's Hill. On the 22nd, Gen. George Crook's Corps, hidden from Confederate view, moved along North Mountain to outflank Early’s line. About 4 p.m. Crook attacked Early’s flank, held only by Confederate cavalry who offered little resistance. As Crook began his assault, Sheridan ordered a frontal attack. Facing overwhelming force the Confederate defenders broke and ran to avoid capture. Early retreated south to Rockfish Gap near Waynesboro, opening the Valley to a Federal "scorched earth" operation. Mills and barns from Staunton to Strasburg were subsequently destroyed in what became known as “The Burning”.

Civil War Drawings Collection. Engraved for Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper, 5 July 1862 (352-3:XIV):220; with the title "The 'Lincoln Gun' at Fortress Monroe." In 1844 Lieut. Thomas Jackson Rodman, a young Ordnance officer only three years out of the military academy, began a series of experiments to overcome the principal difficulty in casting extremely large iron cannon, that actually set a maximum size limit for iron artillery pieces. Over a period of years, Rodman devised a theory and outlined a plan to cast cannon around hollow cores, to be cooled from the inside, rather than externally, by a stream of running water. This would cause the cooling metal to contract toward the bore and increase the density of the metal where it was most needed. The rate of cooling could be controlled by regulating the temperature and rate of flow of the water. Completely satisfied by Rodman's results, in 1860 the War Department authorized the casting of a 15-inch smoothbore Columbiad, a gun bigger than anything the world had ever seen. The first 15-inch gun, "The Lincoln Gun", was made under Rodman's personal supervision at the Fort Pitt Foundry, was sent to Fortress Monroe, Va., where it was tested in March 1861 and became a model for the many Rodman guns which followed. The new gun proved a great success, although its huge size and weight, 49,000 pounds for the barrel alone, made it practical only for fixed positions in forts or permanent batteries.

Civil War Drawings Collection. Engraved for Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper, October 4, 1862 (XV:366):?. Rebel Cavalry under Jeb Stuart burned the bridge over the Catoctin creek under the pretense of slowing pursuit, but in reality to destroy the property of Adam Coogle, a Union Maryland farmer.

Civil War Drawings Collection; see also .25, .51 for views of Lincoln's funerals in Chicago and Springfield

Civil War Drawings Collection. Fort Pickering was a major fortification located along the Mississippi River in West Tennessee. It was constructed by the Federal government in 1862, on top of an earlier 19th century fort, and used to garrison nearly 10,000 Union troops for the defense of Memphis. Built after the First Battle of Memphis (6 June 1862) that resulted in the Union occupation of Memphis, this fort saw little action during the war. It did house commanders Grant and Sherman and served as a staging ground for the eventual conquering of the Mississippi by Union forces.

Civil War Drawings Collection. Reproduced in Phillip Van Doren Stern, They were There: The Civil War in Action as Seen by its Combat Artists (New York: Crown, 1959), pg. 145, pl. 174

Civil War Drawings Collection. On 16 September 1862, McClellan confronted Lee's Army of Northern Virginia at Sharpsburg, Maryland. At dawn September 17, Hooker's corps mounted a powerful assault on Lee's left. Attacks and counterattacks swept across Miller's cornfield and fighting swirled around the Dunker Church. Union assaults against the Sunken Road eventually pierced the Confederate center, but the Federal advantage was not followed up. Late in the day, Burnside's corps finally got into action, crossing the stone bridge over Antietam Creek. At a crucial moment, A.P. Hill's division arrived from Harpers Ferry and counterattacked, driving back the Federal forces. Although outnumbered two-to-one, Lee committed his entire force, while McClellan sent in less than three-quarters of his army, enabling Lee to fight the Federals to a standstill. In spite of crippling casualties, Lee continued to skirmish with McClellan throughout the 18th. McClellan did not renew the assaults, allowing Lee to withdraw the battered Army of Northern Virginia across the Potomac into the Shenandoah Valley.

Civil War Drawings Collection. Engraved for Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper, 31 December 1864 (XIX:483):228, as "Views of Winchester, Virginia--Town Spring". The verso is inscribed with a lengthy description of a unique mechanism in spring house that was destroyed by Union forces.