CIVIL WAR 1850 - 1877

These stories relate to the Civil War Era which occurred between 1850 and 1877. History during this period is defined by causes of the War, the course and character of the Civil War and its effects on the American people and how various reconstruction plans succeeded or failed.

Click on the links below to go to a particular investigation or go back to the Archive.

1856 Mormon Tale

Is this tattered book a true account of female slavery in the old West?...More

Anti-Slavery Flag

What two Michigan brothers believed was an old sheet in a family trunk may have contributed to the end of slavery in America...More

Boarding House Flag

A historical society wants to know if this flag once saved a boarding house from being burnt down...More

Cannon House

Could a Maryland family's home once have been the headquarters for the kidnapper and slave trader Patty Cannon, called "the most wicked woman in America?"...More

Civil War Balloon

A collector may have purchased a fragment of American aviation history. At first glance, it's a simple piece of frayed material in a frame....More

Civil War POW Photos

Were these pictures made in a Civil War prison with a home-made camera? ..More

Civil War Soldier Photo

A Louisiana resident owns a Civil War photograph featuring a finely boned, slight-figured soldier...More

Civil War Submarine

In Louisiana's bustling French Quarter sits a surprising remnant of American warfare—a Civil War-era submarine...More

Confederate Eyeglass

A contributor in Terre Haute, Indiana has a tiny brass eyeglass that, when peered through, reveals an image of Confederate president Jefferson Davis...More

Continental Army Muster Roll

A man owns an old Continental Army muster roll issued by the town of Falmouth, Massachusetts in July 1780. Among the 16 men listed is "Paul Cuffee"...More

Dueling Pistols

A San Francisco bank owns two antique pistols, allegedly used in the last great duel on U.S. soil...More

Dutch Colonial Home

In 1856, the U.S. Army built a fort in Oregon and appointed Lieutenant Philip Sheridan as its head officer...More

GAR Photograph

How did two African Americans come to be part of this photograph of about 20 older white men in Reconstructionist-era America?...More

General Lee Farewell Address

In the archives of a gentleman's club in this rural town is what is believed to be a signed copy of one of the most famous documents in the history of the Civil War....More

Home of Lincoln Assassination Plot

Did John Wilkes Booth, Abraham Lincoln's infamous assassin, spend time in this house?...More

John Browns Letters

A woman in Sacramento, California, has reason to believe she may be a relative of John Brown, the 19th-century abolitionist...More

John Hunt Morgan Saddle

A man in Paris, Kentucky, owns a beautifully preserved, Western-style saddle, believed to have been used by the Confederate general John Hunt Morgan on his famous raid into Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio in July 1863...More

Lee Family Doll

A retired school principal owns a beautiful, antique and rare "Greiner" doll...More

Lincoln Forgery

Could this piece of sheet music have come from Abraham Lincoln's private collection?...More

Lincoln Letter

Does this cryptic letter reveal Abraham Lincoln's secret strategy for winning political power? ...More

Little Big Horn Bayonet

The family home of the famous military hero General Edward Godfrey holds a surprising secret...More

Mark Twain Watch

An Oregon man, Jack Ainsworth Mills, has a watch that may have been a gift to his grandfather from noted American author, Samuel Clemens, otherwise known as Mark Twain...More

Natchez House

On the "Spanish Esplanade" overlooking the Mississippi River, there is a magnificent home that for years was believed to be the original home of one of the Spanish dons who colonized the area. Recently, this story was discovered to be a myth...More

Old Fire Station

Did President Ulysses S. Grant stop by a Morristown, New Jersey, firehouse on the centennial of America?...More

Preston Brooks' Riding Crop

A Long Island man owns a beautiful old riding crop he claims was given to an ancestor by the President of the Confederacy, Jefferson Davis...More

Railroad Station

A local historian calls in the History Detectives to find out if a disused depot was the first railroad station in Texas and if it was responsible for putting Dallas on the map...More

Slave Banjo

A beautiful, worn banjo is purchased by a Chicago resident at an auction a few years ago...More

Snowshoe's Mailbag

While browsing through a Montana antique store, a resident of Modesto, California, discovered an unusual leather satchel...More

Vicksburg Map

The Battle of Vicksburg was vital to the north’s command and ultimate success in the Civil War. Could this map have been used during the seige?...More

Whaling Ship

Might a whaling ship docked in Mystic Seaport, Connecticut hold secrets to the Underground Railroad?...More