Have students pick one battle from the Civil War. Then find a coloring sheet of this battle. One source for coloring pages can be found in:
Story of the Civil War Coloring Book by Peter F. Copeland published by Dover Publication, Inc. New York
View the finished pictures using 3-D glasses.
Show clips from the mini series North and South and North and South Book II.
This series shows:
- Bull Run
- Manassas
- Fort Donelson
- Emancipation Proclamation
- Atietam Creek
- Grant becoming Commander of the Union Army
- Battle of the Wilderness
- Battle of Petersburg
- Linchburg and the End of the War
- Lee surrenders to Grant
The video The Civil War comes in a number of episodes depicting a variety Civil War events.
Ten Interesting Facts . . . .
The American Civil War
1. In August 1963, while Abraham Lincoln was heading home from the White House someone took a shot at him. The bullet went through his hat. Lincoln asked the guards to keep the incident quiet because he did not want to worry his wife.
2. The first confrontation of the Civil War took place on April 12, 1961 when Confederate troops attacked Fort Sumter beginning the war. The war ended on April 9, 1965 when Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox Court House. The begin and end dates were used in creating the title of the Civil War novel Across Five Aprils.
3. Approximately 625,000 men died in the Civil War. This is more me than any other American War.
Major U.S. War |
U.S. Deaths |
Date |
American Revolutionary War |
25,000 |
1775 – 1783 |
Civil War |
625,000 |
1861 – 1865 |
World War I |
116,516 |
1917 – 1918 |
World War II |
405,399 |
1941 – 1945 |
Korean War |
36,516 |
1950 – 1953 |
Vietnam War |
58,209 |
1955 – 1975 |
Gulf War |
258 |
1990 – 1991 |
Afghanistan War |
2,229 |
2001 – Present |
Iraqi War |
4,800 |
2003 – 2011 |
4. The Union Army had 2,100,000 soldiers. This was almost twice the size of the Confederate Army of 1,064,000.
5. Of the 9 million people living in the Southern States, 3.4 million were slaves. Two states actually had more slaves than free people: Mississippi and South Carolina. These slaves were worth more than 2 billion dollars.
6. During the first few battles of the Civil War, the soldiers did not have regular uniforms. This made knowing who was the enemy difficult.
7. More men died from disease than in the actual fighting.
Top Ten Causes of Military Deaths |
| Cause |
Confederacy |
Union |
| 1. Killed in action |
54,000 |
67,000 |
| 2. Dysentery/Diarrhea |
50,000 |
45,000 |
| 3. Wounds |
40,000 |
43,700 |
| 4. Typhoid |
30,000 |
34,800 |
| 5. Prison |
26,100 |
31,200 |
| 6. Pneumonia |
17,000 |
20,000 |
| 7. Malaria |
20,000 |
10,000 |
| 8. Smallpox |
8,000 |
7,000 |
| 9. Tuberculosis |
7,000 |
7,000 |
| 10. Measles |
6,000 |
5,2000 |
8. The bloodiest day in U.S. military history took place at Antietam on September 17, 1862 when more than 5,000 soldiers died.
Top Bloodiest Civil War Battles
Battle /
Date /
Place |
Commanders |
Forces Engaged |
Winner |
Casualties |
Gettysburg
July 1-3, 1863
PA |
Robert E. Lee (S)
George G. Meade (N) |
75,000 (S)
82,289 (N) |
North |
North: 23,049
South: 28,063
Total: 51,112 |
Chickamauga
Sept. 19-20, 1863
GA |
Braxton Bragg (S)
William S. Rosecrans (N) |
66,326 (S)
58,222 (N) |
South |
North: 16,170
South: 18,454
Total: 34,624 |
Chancellorsville
May 1-4,1863
VA |
Robert E. Lee (S)
Joseph Hooker (N) |
60,892 (S)
133,868 (N) |
South |
North: 17,278
South: 12,821
Total: 30,099 |
Spotsylvania
May 8-19
VA |
Robert E. Lee (S)
Ulysses S. Grant (N) |
50,000 (S)
83,000 (N) |
South |
North: 18,300
South: 9,000
Total: 27,399 |
Antietam (Sharpsburg)
Sept. 17, 1862
MD |
Robert E. Lee (S)
George B. McClellan (N) |
51,844 (S)
75,316 (N) |
Draw |
North: 12,410
South: 13,724
Total: 26,134 |
Wilderness
May 5-7, 1864
VA |
Robert E. Lee (S)
Ulysses S. Grant (N) |
61,025 (S)
101,895 (N) |
Draw |
North: 17,666 |
9. The average Civil War soldier was 23 years old. The average size was 5’8” tall with a weight of 143 pounds.
10. Before the Civil War approximately 5,000 slaves tried to escape each year. Once the Civil War began about 5,000 slaves tried to escape each month.
Information Sources
http://www.history.com/news/10-surprising-civil-war-facts
http://www.ducksters.com/history/facts_about_the_civil_war.php
http://facts.randomhistory.com/civil-war-facts.html
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