U.S. National Park Service
Launches Civil War Web Site
As part of its commemoration of the Civil War Sesquicentennial and coinciding with events marking the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Shiloh, the National Park Service (NPS) has launched a Civil War themed Web site at www.nps.gov/civilwar.
The site gives an overview of the war and places special emphasis on the Civil War sites administered and preserved by the National Park Service.
The site features a wide range of illustrated content. Visitors will discover stories of the Civil War; biographies of notable individuals, both military and civilian; places within the National Park System that interpret the Civil War; and information on how NPS preserves Civil War battlefields, objects, landscapes and other historic resources.
“More than a quarter of all national parks preserve Civil War sites or tell stories related to the war," said National Park Service Director Jonathan B. Jarvis.
The new website offers a single online point of reference for the National Park Service’s Civil War resources and will be a tool for both students of the Civil War and visitors to historic sites.
Jarvis added: “It also gives the war and events that occurred a century and a half ago meaning to 21st-century Americans.” Among the site features?
Plan Your Visit – Travelers may utilize an interactive trip planning tool. It includes more than 1,700 Civil War sites around the country, including more than 100 national parks with Civil War themes.
With just a few clicks of the mouse, visitors can plan a trip to Civil War sites from northwest Washington state (San Juan Island National Historical Park, where General George Pickett first made a name for himself - http://go.usa.gov/mbU) to the Florida Keys (Fort Jefferson, where Union prisoners were held, today part of Dry Tortugas National Park - http://go.usa.gov/mbP).
Web visitors will also discover more than 1,700 partner sites -- including state and privately administered Civil War-themed historic sites and museums.
The Plan Your Visit tool provides maps, distances, turn-by-turn directions, and a description of and links to additional information about each of the sites.
Timeline – This comprehensive, interactive timeline lays out the causes, events and Civil Rights legacies of the Civil War spanning nearly 400 years of American history, from the foundations of slavery with the arrival of the first Africans in America in 1619 to the present day.
Civil War Reporter – Site visitors may follow the adventures of Beglan O’Brien, a fictional Civil War era correspondent, whose daily reports on events from 150 years ago are streamed to the Web via Twitter.
In addition to the nps.gov/civilwar website, he can also be followed directly on Twitter (search CivilWarReportr) and Facebook (search Civil War Reporter). From the politics of the day to eyewitness accounts of events to fashion of the Civil War, O’Brien’s nose for news promises to deliver fascinating updates, rumor and information of the Civil War era.
Related Resources – The Web site also includes links to other National Park Service Civil War resources. These include the Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System, 100 National Parks that tell the story of the Civil War and its enduring legacies, and Then & Now features.
New content will be added to the Web site regularly, so visitors are encouraged to check back often.