civil war sites to visit

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On the anniversary of President Lincoln’s 1863 "Gettysburg Address," a volunteer in period dress lights luminarias. The candles illuminate markers commemorating soldiers killed at the Battle of Gettysburg.

Top 10 U.S. Civil War Sites

These ten places will transport you back to the time of the blue vs. the gray.

Fort Sumter National Monument; Charleston, South Carolina The U.S. Civil War began at Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861, when Confederate artillery unleashed a barrage on the Federal fort. Sumter’s Union defenders surrendered after 34 hours; two soldiers (both from the Northern ranks) were killed during the engagement. Unfortunately the following four years would prove far bloodier for both sides.Over three million men fought in America’s brother-against-brother conflict and more than 600,000—2 percent of the entire population—died. The war settled the question of Union versus States’ Rights, ended slavery, and laid the groundwork for a new political and economic order that eventually guided America’s rise to superpower status.Visitors to Fort Sumter, where it all began, can walk the fort’s walls, examine a wide array of artillery pieces, explore the museum, and enjoy the same views the fort’s defenders saw from the harbor of historic Charleston, South Carolina. Naval history buffs will enjoy an added bonus; the famed Confederate submarine H.L. Hunley can be visited nearby in the old Charleston Naval Shipyard.

Manassas national battlefield park; manassas, virginia hopes of a quick and glorious northern victory were dashed at manassas when thousands of idealistic young soldiers and 90-day recruits clashed. the battle of first manassas (first bull run), in july 1861 ended with federal troops—and spectators who had traveled from washington to watch a victory—fleeing the field in a disorganized rout at the hands of confederate forces.the second battle on these fields, during august 1862, ended with another confederate victory, one that set the stage for gen. robert e. lee’s first invasion of the north.the henry hill visitor center, home to a fine museum, stands near a monumental statue to confederate gen. thomas j. jackson, who rallied troops to stop a federal advance here—earning him the nickname "stonewall." henry hill is an excellent starting point for several walking tours (around the smaller first battle of manassas field) and driving tours (around the larger grounds of the second battle of manassas)., shiloh national military park; shiloh, tennessee shiloh was the largest battle in the civil war’s mississippi valley campaign and its terrible cost was shocking to both sides. of the 109,784 men thrown into the fight on april 6 and 7, 1862, 23,746 were casualties (killed, injured, or missing) when the battle ended with a very costly union victory. living history demonstrations here offer a tangible taste of civil war camp life and are capped each year by a large event on the anniversary of the battle.shiloh triggered a titanic struggle for nearby corinth, a bustling railroad junction that for the south once held strategic importance perhaps topped only by richmond itself. corinth was the site of its own battle and an extended siege, which resulted in the loss of this key junction, a major blow to the confederate cause. today the site is within shiloh national military park and home to the corinth civil war interpretive center., richmond, virginia as capital of the confederacy, the south’s industrial heart, and the ultimate target of northern armies, richmond is rich with civil war historic sites. many of them are grouped under the auspices of richmond national battlefield park in and around the city itself.richmond was the target of several invasions by both land and sea. defensive positions and battlefields include several from the seven days campaign as well as new market heights (scene of the u.s. colored troops’ legendary charge), and drewry’s bluff, where confederate guns foiled an attack by a u.s. naval fleet.much of the city burned during evacuation and occupation in april 1865, but numerous historic structures remain. the national battlefield park’s main visitors center is located in the tredegar iron works, where many confederate munitions were produced. the site of the former chimborazo hospital, where countless wounded from virginia’s many battlefields were treated, is now a museum to the war’s medical history., antietam national battlefield; sharpsburg, maryland the setting sun of september 17, 1862, ended the bloodiest one-day battle in u.s. history. some 23,000 soldiers, from both sides, were killed, wounded, or missing in action after the battle of antietam near sharpsburg, maryland. that terrible cost was more than nine times as many americans as were lost on d-day, the bloodiest day for the u.s. in world war ii.though the battle did not result in a convincing victory for either side (northern troops were able to turn back lee's maryland invasion), antietam had a major effect on the course of the war—and on the lives of millions of people.declaring the slaves free meant total war between north and south. no negotiation or reconciliation would be possible save one side crushing the other by force of arms. as union armies moved south, about one of every seven slaves escaped to the northern troops, and many african-americans served under the union banner.today, battlefield visitors can explore landmarks like burnside’s bridge, the cornfield, and dunker church. a walk down bloody lane is a bit like stepping into a civil war photograph. that spot saw some of the war’s fiercest fighting, and the first graphic photos of the war’s appalling casualties were shot here., gettysburg national military park; gettysburg, pennsylvania a trip to gettysburg enables visitors to walk some of america’s truly sacred soil. the well-preserved battlefield is dotted with legendary combat sites such as devil’s den and little round top, which appear now much as they did in the fateful days of july 1863.no trip to gettysburg is complete without walking the route of the war’s most famous assault. pickett’s charge, named after flamboyant gen. george pickett, who lost much of his division in the desperate charge against the union forces on cemetery ridge, was one of the war’s most poignant moments. it was also the end of lee’s hopes for victory in pennsylvania. visitors to gettysburg's focal point, the angle, can stand at the high-water mark of the confederacy, the point from which the southern cause slowly ebbed away to defeat.the gettysburg battlefield looks much as it did in july 1863 though now marked with many monuments to remember the three-day battle’s 51,000 casualties. more memorials can be found in the soldiers national cemetery, which was the site of president abraham lincoln’s now famous gettysburg address on november 19, 1863., vicksburg national military park; vicksburg, mississippi the city of vicksburg, mississippi, was the scene of a civil war siege from may 18 to july 4, 1863. the 47-day standoff for the city was also waged for control of the mississippi river. vicksburg’s surrender effectively split the confederacy in two by giving the union control of the critical waterway. “vicksburg is the key,” abraham lincoln once said. “the war can never be brought to a close until that key is in our pocket.”today, vicksburg national military park essentially circles the city. a 16-mile tour road parallels the union and confederate lines and features 15 designated stops at places from artillery battery sites to the vicksburg national cemetery—final resting place of some 17,000 dead. the ironclad gunboat u.s.s. cairo, sunk in 1862 and not raised until 1964, has been restored and, together with an adjacent museum, offers a fascinating glimpse of civil war naval life..

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Andersonville National Historic Site; Andersonville, Georgia The fighting was over for Union soldiers who made the long trip to confinement in Andersonville, Georgia—but the danger had hardly ended. More than 45,000 Northerners were held at Camp Sumter during the 14 months that this most notorious of Civil War prisons was operational. Nearly 13,000 men died from disease, malnutrition, exposure, and other ills during 1864 and 1865.Walking the grounds of the 26.5-acre prison, now delineated with white posts, it’s hard to believe how many men were packed into the area. Sections of reconstructed stockades and gates stand in the fields, and living historians often illustrate what life was like under the camp’s brutal conditions. Providence Spring, a water source that emerged during an August 1864 storm, was thought by some prisoners to be a gift from above and can still be seen today.Andersonville is also home to the National Prisoner of War Museum, which commemorates those who served as POWs in all of America’s subsequent conflicts.

Chickamauga and chattanooga national military park; fort oglethorpe, georgia/lookout mountain, tennessee for those who like to see the big picture, chickamauga and chattanooga national military park offers a chance to view a theater of war at the macro level. from the heights of lookout mountain, visitors can gaze over miles of surrounding landscape and trace the movements of both armies during the epic campaign for chattanooga.the 5,300-acre chickamauga battlefield was the site of the south’s last major victory, in september 1863. by november of that year union forces had prevailed in the larger campaign, however, and were in control of chattanooga.lookout mountain battlefield is well worth a visit, not only for its historic treasures but also for its breathtaking views. the fight on these slopes was nicknamed the “battle above the clouds,” and james walker’s massive painting depicting the struggle is on display in the visitors center here..

Appomattox Court House National Historical Park; Appomattox, Virginia The first step toward healing a nation was taken on Palm Sunday, April 9, 1865, when Gens. Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant sat down in the parlor of the McLean House and signed surrender terms. Lee’s surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia essentially ended the war and sealed the South’s fate, though formal Confederate resistance did not end until May 26, when Gen. E. Kirby Smith surrendered the Trans-Mississippi Department in New Orleans.Today visitors to the park, the site of the Battle of Appomattox Court House, can see a reconstruction McLean House, meticulously built by the National Park Service and opened to the public in 1949. Other historic buildings here date to the fateful days of 1865. The dirt road that victorious Union troops once lined in salute to their Confederate counterparts after their surrender has been preserved, as has the spot where Lee’s army finally folded its flags and laid down its arms. Appomattox is also home to a Confederate cemetery and a museum of artifacts that includes the pencil used by Lee on the surrender terms.

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• AMERICAN CIVIL WAR

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Best Civil War Sites

No matter how compelling a Ken Burns documentary can be, nothing beats standing on a Civil War battlefield for bearing witness to those four bloody years. “Antietam’s the most evocative and scary battle site I’ve ever been to, and the only place I’ve ever felt a ‘presence,’” says John Barton, a Virginia photographer and Civil War junkie. “Much is the same as that day: there are still surrounding farms and unspoiled views of the Blue Ridge, so seeing the famous landmarks—the Cornfield, the Sunken Road—has a devastating power.” Millions of Americans seek out that kind of visceral connection at Civil War sites annually, and the next few years are the time to visit as special events commemorate the conflict’s 150th anniversary. The National Park Service set up a dedicated website and launched a Twitter feed, @CivilWarReportr , that tracks the war’s development (“June 27, 1862: Our line gives way! We flee for the bridges to our rear as the cavalry attempts to stop the advance and save our artillery”; “July 7: A found newspaper reports the Federals have levied a tax on income above $600. Someone must pay for this war”). For play-by-play commentary on the battlefield, you can hire an NPS-licensed guide at Gettysburg or Vicksburg to ride along for two-hour car tours. Parks also typically offer self-guided tours and orientation films and, on summer weekends, invite reenactors to stage skirmishes, decked out with muskets and wool uniforms. Check park websites to schedule your visit to coincide with the reenactments (or not—a few lonesome hours spent walking the battlefields can be at least as instructive). The savagery leading up to the war demands revisiting, too: the Slave Trail in Richmond, VA, goes past slave markets, burial grounds, and the Devil’s Half-Acre, a jail for “uncooperative” slaves (operated by a man married to a free African American wife!). In Harpers Ferry, WV, the righteous anger of those who opposed slavery is palpable at John Brown’s Fort, where a band of abolitionists held federal troops at bay. You don’t need to be a history buff to get caught up by these vivid stories. So whether you’re planning a road trip dedicated to the Civil War, or just detouring on the way elsewhere, be warned: you may be in for a lifelong obsession.

Gettysburg, PA

Don’t let those Abe Lincoln bobbleheads or other gift shop kitsch distract you from the meaning of those three historic days in July 1863. Focus on the battle, the turning point of a war that had up until then been the Confederates’ to win. After a quick orientation at the Gettysburg National Military Park Museum and Visitor Center, set out with an NPS-licensed battlefield guide for a two-hour drive around the park (book in advance, $65). Such a historian will make vivid sense of all the advances and retreats, the personalities, and the mayhem. The park frequently hosts “living history” weekends, when volunteers, in full costume, re-create skirmishes—check the NPS site for the current calendar .

Don’t Miss: The 250-year-old Fairfield Inn , eight miles to the west of the battlefield, re-creates a three-course meal eaten here by Robert E. Lee during a pause in the Confederate retreat from Gettysburg.

Washington, D.C.

You won’t find battlefields (unless Congress is in session), but Washington’s vital role in the Civil War—from the initial rupture of the Union to President Lincoln’s assassination just five days after the surrender at Appomattox—still looms large. First stop: the Lincoln Memorial, engraved with the texts of the Gettysburg Address and the 16th president’s second inaugural speech. More than a mausoleum for Lincoln’s ideals, the memorial continues to serve as a site for civil rights rallies. Ford’s Theatre and Petersen House, sites of Lincoln’s assassination and death, retain a more funereal hush. A less-visited but emotionally charged monument honors the United States Colored Troops and stands across the street from the African American Civil War Museum , which chronicles the war from the perspective of the African American soldiers, spies, nurses, and families.

Don’t Miss: Lincoln’s Cottage at Soldiers’ Home , where Lincoln and his family retreated each June through November. Though he commuted in to the Oval Office daily—past encamped Union troops, field hospitals, and cemeteries—Lincoln felt most at home here, four miles from the White House.

Antietam, MD

“The slain lay in rows precisely as they had stood in their ranks a few moments before. It was never my fortune to witness a more bloody, dismal battlefield,” wrote Major General Joseph Hooker. In just 12 hours, 23,000 soldiers were killed, wounded or missing—making that September day in 1862 the bloodiest in U.S. history. Devastating casualties and the nighttime retreat of Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia back across the Potomac spurred Lincoln to write the initial Emancipation Proclamation. Pick up a map for a self-guided driving tour of the battlefield, and be sure to climb the observation tower for an overview of the 8.5–mile site. Guides are available (and recommended) for walking tours that trace individual skirmishes.

Don’t Miss: Pry House, a medical museum on the park grounds, merits a visit for its chilling look at battlefield medicine (when supplies ran low, field surgeons bound wounds with corn husks). Clara Barton was here!

Harpers Ferry, WV

In 1859, two years before the war, John Brown, the righteous, Bible-thumping, angry, and awesome abolitionist, raided the federal arsenal in Harpers Ferry , attempting to rouse a slave rebellion and the conscience of the nation. He failed to incite revolt, but arguably hastened the path to war. Harpers Ferry changed hands eight times, a sought-after prize for its strategic position at the convergence of the Potomac and the Shenandoah rivers (providing passage from the east to the Shenandoah Valley). John Brown’s Fort, which was a firehouse occupied by Brown’s raiders, was the scene of several skirmishes, including a three-pronged siege by Stonewall Jackson that captured more than 12,000 Union soldiers garrisoned here—immediately preceding the Battle of Antietam, up the road in Sharpsburg.

Don’t Miss: The extraordinary natural beauty. Hike the two-mile Cliff Trail loop from the Visitor’s Center up past Jefferson Rock. In warm weather, float downstream in an inner tube for a cool perspective.

Richmond, VA

Richmond’s rich and accessible Civil War history surpasses that of any other city. While the southern white history of the Civil War has always been well preserved in the heroic statues along Monument Avenue and in institutions like the Museum and White House of the Confederacy (moc.org), the city has recently taken pains to better document the African American experience, most significantly with the Slave Trail . The walking tour includes the sites of slave markets, the notorious Lumpkin’s Slave Jail (called the Devil’s Half-Acre for its brutal treatment of inmates), the still-active farmers’ market at Shockoe Bottom, and streets where a visiting Lincoln was met by hundreds of cheering freed slaves. Stop at the American Civil War Center in the former Tredegar Iron Works , which clad Confederate ships and forged artillery. A nearby pedestrian bridge crosses the James River to eerie Belle Isle, site of a prison where captured Union soldiers were held.

Don’t Miss: Hollywood Cemetery is the final resting place of American presidents (James Monroe and John Tyler) and Civil War luminaries like Jefferson Davis, George Pickett, and J.E.B. Stuart. A rough-hewn pyramid marks the graves of unknown Confederate soldiers.

Shiloh National Military Park , 120 miles from Memphis, seems a million miles from anywhere, just as it did back in 1862. The battlefield is now a quiet rolling landscape beside the Tennessee River, but landmarks named during those clashes (Hornet’s Nest, the Bloody Pond) evoke the soldiers’ experience—so profound that much of the acreage was donated by veteran groups, both northern and southern, who bought land and erected monuments to fallen comrades. After a 12-mile car tour, trace the path of the Confederates’ retreat to Corinth Crossroads , 22 miles south of Shiloh in Mississippi. The railroad crossroads was the junction of north/south railroads and east/west railroads, so whichever army held the town controlled troop and artillery movement along the rails. The desire for control drove both sides to the battle of Shiloh.

Don’t Miss: Hagy’s Catfish Hotel , a glorified fish shack near the Shiloh park, is worth a stop for a meal overlooking the river.

Mobile Bay, AL

A Confederate admiral hailing from the North faces a navy led by a Union admiral born in Tennessee and raised in New Orleans. This unlikely scenario played out in Mobile Bay, the only Gulf Coast port still controlled by the Confederates, which provided southern troops with supplies, via railroad from Mobile. Admiral Farragut used four new ironclad ships to lead his attack through the straits between fortresses on Dauphin Island and Mobile Point—and followed with 14 wooden ships, lashed in pairs so that if one got hit, it would not be lost. You can stand at the preserved ruins of Fort Morgan for views of the bay and take the 40-minute scenic ferry trip across to tour the Dauphin Island’s Fort Gaines . Another Confederate defense, the fort has self-guided tours, a blacksmith demonstration several days a week (in season), and a rather astounding 10-man latrine.

Don’t Miss: Dauphin Island Sea Lab/Estuarium , a marine research lab, seemingly offers tours as an afterthought, but the information about the ecology of these barrier islands is fascinating and worth the short hop from Fort Gaines.

Fredericksburg, VA

The beautiful farmland around Fredericksburg seemed especially attractive during the war because of the city’s position midway between D.C. and the Confederate capital of Richmond. Horrible and decisive battles were fought in the area. Begin at the Visitor Center at the Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park to get oriented with the several separate units of the park complex. Walk the trail at Marye’s Heights, where Confederate infantry, shielded by a four-foot-high stone wall, mowed down wave upon wave of assailants, leaving 9,000 Union dead before General Burnside gave the order to retreat. Salem Church, surrounded by decidedly nonhistorical development, is a satellite of the national park. The Wilderness portion, where the armies met in the overgrown and gnarled woods, is now mostly manicured, but peaceful paths are punctuated by historic markers and still surrounded by dense thickets.

Don’t Miss: A macabre side trip to Ellwood Farm, where Stonewall Jackson’s amputated arm is buried in its own marked grave (open weekends, 11 a.m.–5 p.m.; on weekdays, pick up a pass at the Chancellorsville Visitor Center). Jackson was famously shot by his own troops when returning from a reconnaissance trip at dusk. His wounded arm was amputated, and Jackson lived for another eight days before succumbing to pneumonia.

Vicksburg, MS

Vicksburg was not just the location of individual battles but also endured a painful 47-day siege. Pemberton’s Headquarters (1018 Crawford St.) and the Old Courthouse Museum reflect the town’s wealthy antebellum period as well as wartime life. The low-key museum is a treasure trove of artifacts, costumes, and fascinating historic photography (formally attired citizens pose outside cave-bunkers carved into hills during the siege). The military park can be walked or hiked, but the preferred method is driving the 20-mile loop with frequent stops. The on-site USS Cairo Museum is named for a federal ironclad ship that sank during the siege and was preserved in the Mississippi silt and mud until being dredged up and restored a hundred years later. A visit makes it clear why these monitor ships, with angled defenses to deflect shelling and the ability to carry heavy artillery, changed naval warfare forever. (For grim novelty, look to Cedar Hill Cemetery : find the grave marker of a camel kept as a mascot by Mississippi infantrymen and, sadly, killed in action.)

Don’t Miss: At Rusty’s Riverfront Grill (901 Washington St.; 601-638-2030) , a little time off from somber history really hits the spot. Order the po’ boys (oyster or shrimp) and fried green tomatoes, and grab a table with a view of the levee and river to watch the ships go by.

Petersburg and Appomattox, VA

At Petersburg National Battlefield , the horrors of the nine-month-long siege can be seen in the field as well as in the reproduction of a massive cannon, known as the Dictator. As Union troops lobbed shells into Petersburg, Pennsylvania soldiers who’d been miners before the war dug a tunnel beneath the Confederate defenses, packed its end with four tons of gunpowder, and blew it sky high. Union troops made the error of charging into the resulting crater and were fired upon from above until they surrendered. In spite of this tragic gaffe, the Union drove the Confederates from the city, and Robert E. Lee’s army began a retreat west. Follow that route from Petersburg to Appomattox by driving to Appomattox Court House National Park . Lee surrendered here at the reconstructed McLean House (the original structure, which had withstood the long war, met its demise, piece by piece, at the hands of souvenir hunters). Wander the charmingly restored village—costumed actors portray citizens of the era throughout the summer—and imagine the relief of an end to the war at last.

Don’t Miss: Poplar Forest , Thomas Jefferson’s escape from the crowds that visited Monticello after his presidency. The hilltop octagonal house is still in the last stages of restoration, and frequent programs allow visitors to participate in the archaeological process.

Chickamauga, GA and Chattanooga, TN

After an almost six-month standoff, the Federal Army was badly routed at Chickamauga in September 1863 and retreated to nearby Chattanooga. The Confederates promptly cut off most supply lines, took positions on the surrounding high ground, and began to shell the city mercilessly. While little evidence of fighting remains, the Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park , which spans nearly 10,000 acres, offers prime vantage points for understanding the long campaign. Begin at Lookout Mountain, from where the Rebels lobbed shells at the city and up which the Union soldiers stormed to regain control. Historic markers indicate where the armies changed positions and tormented each other along the Tennessee River. Drive along the crest of Missionary Ridge, where a critical battle was fought, for another view. At the national military park’s Chickamauga unit you’ll find an actual battlefield instead of urban sprawl, plus an excellent, recently refurbished Visitor Center.

Don’t Miss: If you like your cocktails and fried chicken in motel bars with old-school R&B, Christmas lights, and velvet wallpaper, Lamar’s (1018 East Martin Luther King Blvd.; 423-266-0988) is the place for you. Seriously worth it.

Andersonville, Macon County, GA

Brutal death wasn’t limited to the battlefields. Of the 45,000 Union soldiers incarcerated at the notorious Andersonville Prison during its 14-month existence, nearly 13,000 died. Disease and infections were easy to come by in the overcrowded stockade, with its open sewers, little or no medical care, and limited rations. Andersonville National Historic Site recalls not only the misery of those soldiers but, through the powerful design of the National Prisoner of War Museum, the suffering of all U.S. POWs. The National Cemetery beside the park’s entrance has rows of white headstones standing at attention, their order broken by state monuments. Two reconstructed walls of the stockade with posts (and a roadway) mark the 26-acre perimeter of the prison itself. A chilling place to visit, but vital too.

Don’t Miss: Southwestern Georgia is known for peanuts (Jimmy Carter, peanut farmer and president, hails from nearby Plains) and for barbecue (the pigs are fattened on those nuts). Pull over for a sample at one of the boiled-peanut roadside shacks, and if you’re staying in Columbus, seek out Country’s Barbecue .

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The History Hit Miscellany of Facts, Figures and Fascinating Finds

U.S. Civil War Sites

Discover the most interesting civil war locations to visit, from fort sumter to the museum of the civil war soldier and more, includes an interactive map of civil war sites..

History Hit

24 nov 2020.

From the site of the first shot being fired at Fort Sumter to Appomattox County Court where Lee surrendered, there are few more powerful ways to learn about the American Civil War than through the places where it unfolded. There are many fascinating Civil War battlefields, monuments and museums to explore, many of them under the remit of the National Parks Service. A list of some of the prominent sites and monuments of the American Civil War can be found below. Click on the title of each for further information. If you’re keen to visit these locations then this list of US Civil War sites will allow you to find out more information as well as the history behind each location.

What are the most important U.S. Civil War Sites?

1. Fort Sumter

Originally built to defend the coast against the British, Fort Sumter in South Carolina became the site of the ignition of the American Civil War. It was here that, on 12 April 1861, the Confederates fired upon the Union-held fort, signalling the start of the war. Following 34 hours of bombardment, the Union surrendered. They would not recapture it for a further four years.

2. Gettysburg Battlefield

Gettysburg was just a small town until the summer of 1863, when it became the scene of one of the bloodiest battles in the war between General Robert E. Lee and his Confederate Army and General George Meade’s Union Army of the Potomac. The Battle of Gettysburg raged from 1 to 3 July 1863, resulting in over 51,000 casualties and victory for Meade and the Unionists. It marked a significant turning point in the war, followed twenty one months later by Lee’s surrender. Today, Gettysburg National Military Park is brimming with approximately 1,328 monuments, markers and memorials relating to the American Civil War.

3. Appomattox County Court

It was in Appomattox, a village in Virginia, that General Robert E. Lee surrendered to Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant on 9 April 1865, marking the end of the American Civil War. The meeting took place at the home of Wilmer and Virginia McLean and lasted approximately an hour and a half. Appomattox County Court National Park now offers visitors a myriad of experiences and exhibits relating to the Confederate surrender. You can visit the Mclean House where the surrender took place as well as the Appomattox County Court Visitors Centre, which houses a number of exhibits relating to the event.

4. Arlington National Cemetery

Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia is both a military burial site and an iconic monument to fallen soldiers. Initially, the site of Arlington Cemetery began as a house – Arlington House – built in memory of President George Washington. The house, which still stands today, then became the property of Mary and Robert E. Lee. After the Union crossed the Potomac River and took the land around Washington, Arlington House became a Union army base. It’s use as a burial site started unofficially, but by the end of the conflict it had been declared a national cemetery. By the end of the war, Arlington housed the graves of over 5,000 soldiers.

5. Shiloh Battlefield

Shiloh Battlefield was the site of a Union victory in April 1862. Known as the Battle of Shiloh and also as the Battle of Pittsburgh Landing, this clash saw the Confederates, led by General Albert Sidney Johnston mount an initially successful surprise attack on the Union army of Major General Ulysses S. Grant, only to be defeated the next day. Johnston was killed during the battle. The Battle of Shiloh, which raged from 6 to 7 April 1862, was an attempt by both sides to secure strategic crossroads in the area, resulting in a total of 23,746 casualties. Today, Shiloh Battlefield is part of the National Parks network and offers visitors a range of tours and exhibits to explore the area’s history.

6. Ford Theatre

On 14 April 1865, five days after the surrender of Robert E. Lee, it was in Ford Theatre that well-known actor John Wilkes Booth shot President Abraham Lincoln in an attempt to revive the Confederate cause. Lincoln, who had led the Union through the war, was the first US president to be assassinated.

7. Chickamauga Battlefield

In the fall of 1863, General William S. Rosecrans’ Union army fought General Braxton Bragg’s Confederates for control of Chattanooga, a key rail centre and what was considered the gateway to the South. Nearby Chickamauga became the scene of the first battle for Chattanooga and in which the Confederates emerged victorious. In fact, this was the last major victory for the South in the Civil War. Chickamauga Battlefield is filled with historical tablets and monuments related to the American Civil War.

8. Richmond National Battlefield Park

Richmond National Battlefield Park in Virginia is a collection of several historic battlefields, representing some of the fiercest fighting in the American Civil War, including the Seven Days’ Battles. Richmond was the capital of the Confederacy, meaning that, between 1861 and 1865 Richmond and its surroundings were at the centre of a bloody tug of war between the Union and Confederate armies. Richmond National Battlefield Park spans 1900 acres of Civil War sites, including famous battle sites such as Cold Harbor , Drewry’s Bluff and Gaines Mill, as well as the Chimborazo Medical Museum, which commemorates the work done at Chimborazo Hospital.  This was one of the largest hospitals of its time, treating over 76,000 Confederates during the war.

9. Lookout Mountain Battlefield

Lookout Mountain Battlefield is the site where General Ulysses S. Grant led the Union Army to victory over the Confederate forces of General Braxton Bragg in what some know as the “Battle in the Clouds”. This battle formed part of the campaign to control nearby Chattanooga, considered to be the gateway to the South. The Lookout Mountain Battle followed the Battle of Chickamauga, which the Confederates had won and this latest victory was essential to secure Union control of the South. The site forms part of Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park, which is brimming with monuments as well historical trails and markers.

10. Antietam Battlefield

Antietam Battlefield was where, on 17 September 1862, General Robert E. Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia met Major General George B. McClellan and the Army of the Potomac in what became the most brutal battle of the American Civil War. In fact, the Battle of Antietam remains the USA’s bloodiest single day of battle to date. Part of the Maryland Campaign and the Confederate Army’s first incursion into the North, the Battle at Antietam raged for twelve hours and ended with a Confederate withdrawal, though only after a long, inconclusive, mutually destructive day’s fighting. The total cost to both sides was estimated to be upwards of 23,000 casualties. Although not a conclusive victory for the Union, it did provide enough political cover to allow President Lincoln to move forward with his preliminary Emancipation Proclamation. Antietam Battlefield National Park commemorates this battle and is a goldmine of information about the War.

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Top american civil war sites to visit today.

• American Civil War

The American Civil War was one of the bloodiest wars fought on American soil. Many of the war sites found throughout the eastern half of the United States have been very well preserved and are still easily visitable today.

In fact, many of these sites are large tourism draws for the various towns and states where they reside. If you’re planning a visit to the U.S., check out a few of our favorite Civil War sites below.

1. Gettysburg, Pa.

Of course, when most people think of the Civil War, they automatically think of Gettysburg. The important destination is only a short drive away from Philadelphia, making it an easy day trip if you’re already visiting the historic city.

Gettysburg was the site of not only President Abraham Lincoln’s all-important Gettysburg Address, but also remains a crucial turning point in the war, effectively making it very clear that this would not be one the Confederates would win. The spot is also a great one to visit if you’re interested in haunted history or paranormal travel, as it’s said that a large amount of ghosts of fallen soldiers reside on, near and around the battlefield.

2. Fort Sumter National Monument

The history books will tell you that the American Civil War began at Fort Sumter, when the Confederates first attacked. Now, the Union fort is located within Charleston, South Carolina, a great U.S. southern city to visit regardless of your travel itinerary.

Visitors not only walk the walls of the Fort, following in the footsteps of soldiers long before, but also come to see the museum and the sites nearby. One of those additional sites is a Confederate submarine that’s on display for those with an interest in historic naval combat.

3. Manassas National Battlefield Park

Manassas was the site of not one, but two Civil War battles, both of which were won by the Confederate troops under Stonewall Jackson. In fact, it was here that he actually earned his nickname. You can visit the battlefield, which has been very nicely preserved, as well as the on-site museum.

The staff are extremely helpful and very knowledgeable about the events which took place, from detailed troop movements to the spectators who came to watch the event from Washington, D.C., expecting an interesting skirmish, but receiving a bloody slaughter instead. Nearby are other interesting Civil War sites to visit, though none as major as the battlefield. These include plantations and war hospitals, which are still worth a visit.

4. Antietam, Md.

In Maryland, Antietam stands as a reminder of the single bloodiest day on American soil, during which thousands upon thousands died. The national battlefield is strikingly beautiful, however, whichever time of year you visit, and ‘living historians,’ as they call themselves, abound, dressed in Civil War garb and introducing visitors to the site’s tale.

Also visit the adjacent Antietam National Cemetery, which took the place of miles of temporary graves constructed right after the battle.

5. Richmond, Va.

Richmond, Virginia, is known as a quintessential southern city in the States, and War buffs will find quite a lot to keep them occupied when visiting the city. The area does a very good job of showing all sides of the war but places a special emphasis on the experience of African Americans during the time, something which the other sites on this list may not do as well.

Richmond is also home to Belle Isle, a war prison used by the Confederacy, a great place to visit for those interested in sites that maintain a creepy feel.

6. Andersonville National Historic Site

Along the same lines is the Andersonville National Historic Site and Camp Sumter, located in Georgia. This was basically the South’s POW camp, where they shipped all of their Northern prisoners during the war. In fact, the prison camp was filled with almost 50,000 soldiers over the course of the little more than a year that the prison camp was operational.

You can walk the camp’s almost 30 acres and explore the cramped conditions, harsh treatment and the small spring that gave prisoners hope in the midst of a very hopeless situation.

7. Appomattox Court House

This was the site that saw the inevitable defeat of the Confederacy and the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia. A refurbished McLean House represents exactly where the surrender happened, although the original structure no longer stands, unfortunately. Souvenir looters actually tore the place apart in search of historic gems to take home.

However, you’ll still enjoy your visit, as you learn about the area and enjoy reenactments of the surrender by actors dressed as Generals Lee and Grant. Other buildings make up a village mimicking the way it would have looked at the time of the surrender.

8. Battle of Glorieta Pass

Believe it or not, there actually was one lone battle which took place on the western half of the United States, and why exactly it happened is something that still annoys historians to this day. It’s a great stop if you’re traveling in the American Southwest, and don’t have time to make it to the East’s Civil War sites. The Battle of Glorieta Pass took place in New Mexico, in what is now Pecos National Historical Park.

Basically, the Confederates wanted to take the West for themselves, ranging from New Mexico and Texas, up to Colorado and then further out to California, where they would gain both wealth and more land to extend slavery. Some say they even wanted to invade Mexico. It was an ambitious undertaking, to say the least. The Union was alerted to the fact that Confederates were on the move out west, and skirmishes ensued, after which the Confederates, of course, evacuated New Mexico.

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The Best Civil War Battlefields to Visit

The Best Civil War Battlefields to Visit. America has a lot of history. Ever since we were founded in 1776, it’s felt like we’ve been in a constant state of war. Out of all of them, the Civil War was one of the most brutal. Out of every war ever fought, the Civil War saw the highest loss of American lives. Granted, this is because only Americans fought in the war, but it still doesn’t change the fact we lost a lot of men during it.

Regardless of sides, the Civil War is an integral part of American history, and it’s one we should all learn about. One of the best ways to do that is to visit the places where battles were fought. These locations often have plaques and museums dedicated to sharing the history. It’s a lot better than reading a book because you can see uniforms, cannons, and gravestones. Overall, it puts everything in perspective about how brutal the battles actually were.

If you want to learn about the Civil War by visiting battlefields, we have a list of places you have to hit up first. These battlefields were historically important and saw a major loss of lives. What we’re saying is that there’s history in the soil, and we can’t wait to share that with you. 

Fort Sumter

Go to Fort Sumter to stand where it all started. Tensions had been leading to war for a long time, but the Battle of Fort Sumter is the act that tipped the scales from "really tense situation" to "full-on war." After seven states declared secession from the U.S., South Carolina demanded that the U.S. Army abandon its facilities in the state.

South Carolinian soldiers captured all federal lands save one fort and began bombarding it. In the end, the U.S. Army agreed to leave it, and nobody was killed during the fighting. The standoff was the first crisis faced by President Lincoln, just a month after his inauguration. His call for volunteers to suppress the rebellion afterward caused another four states to leave the Union.

Spotsylvania County

Spotsylvania County had a couple of horrifying battles. The first is dubbed “The Battle of the Wilderness.” This was the first major battle of the Overland Campaign. Grant pushed Lee’s army toward Richmond in an attempt to destroy it, and on May 5th, it all came to a head. This bloody battle left over 3,700 soldiers slaughtered due to heavy assaults and vicious fires. Neither side won.

The second battle is known as The Battle of Spotsylvania Courthouse and occurred soon after the Battle of the Wilderness. Both the Union and Confederates mounted assaults over 14 days. The bloodiest battle occurred on May 12th, when Grant attacked “Mule Shoe” with 20,000 troops. The fighting lasted for 20 hours, which caused this area to be called “Bloody Angle.” Both sides declared victory despite massive losses.

Located near Sharpsburg, Maryland, the Battle of Antietam was the first major battle to take place on Union soil in September of 1862. It was also the bloodiest single-day battle in any war in all of American history. Overall, 22,717 Americans wound up dead, wounded, or missing.

It was here that George B. McClellan routed an attempt by Lee to invade Maryland, while Joseph Hooker attacked Lee's flank. The battle covered a great deal of ground, which you can see hour-by-hour via an atlas at the Library of Congress's website. Or you can actually stand where soldiers stood, and see it for yourself.

General Lee rallied his forces and made a second attempt to invade the North. Circumventing his failures in Virginia, he hoped to make it as far as Harrisburg or Philadelphia. Instead, he was roundly defeated by George Meade in a battle that marked a turning point in the war.

Over the three days of the battle, anywhere from 46,000 to 51,000 Americans were killed. Part of the site became the Gettysburg National Cemetery, and President Lincoln's speech dedicating this cemetery, known now as the "Gettysburg Address," is the reason most people know this place.

Few sites have more Civil War history than Richmond, Virginia. During the Civil War, Richmond served as the capital of the Confederate States of America almost during the entire event. It was vital the Confederacy keep it because it provided their side with weapons and much-needed supplies thanks to it being the terminus of five railroads. The Union made many attempts to invade Richmond and only did so in 1865 during a long siege. 

Grant captured Petersburg and Richmond in early April 1865. The fall of Petersburg caused President Davis, his Cabinet, and the Confederate defenders to abandon Richmond and flee south. The retreating soldiers set fire to everything. The fire spread out of control and went unchecked. Civilians retreated and surrendered while Union troops put out the raging fire. One week after the evacuation of Richmond, Robert E. Lee surrendered to Grant.

Harper's Ferry

Harper's Ferry has a strong place throughout much of American history. Here, Robert Harper set up passage over the Potomac, helping settle the Shenandoah Valley. Here, Washington proposed the site for the second armory and arsenal in the country. Here in 1859, John Brown raided that arsenal, attempting to initiate an armed slave revolt.

Because of its strategic location and railroad, the Union and Confederacy battled for control, with the town changing hands eight times between 1861 and 1865. It was a staging ground for Lee's attempted invasion of Maryland that led to the battle of Antietam, but it was also hotly contested in the years that followed.

Andersonville National Historic Site

Located in Georgia, this is the site of the infamous Camp Sumter, also known as Andersonville Prison. This Confederate prison was stuffed to four times its intended capacity, with prisoners living in filth and precious little food or water. Of 45,000 Union soldiers held here, 13,000 died of diseases like scurvy and dysentery.

With many Civil War prisons, there are lingering questions over whether the horrible conditions were a result of malice or simply a lack of necessary supplies. There's not much question, though, at Andersonville. While the guards did suffer supply shortages here, it was nothing compared to the skeletal survivors. The commander, Henry Wirz, was ultimately killed for war crimes, and today the camp serves as a stark reminder of some of the ugliest horrors to happen in a war full of them.

Shiloh is located in southwestern Tennessee. In April of 1862, a massive two-day battle was fought here when General Grant was ambushed by Generals Johnston and Pierre G.T. Beauregard, who wins the award for "most Confederate-sounding name ever."

The Confederates were unable to stop the Union from advancing into Mississippi, but they did make this two-day fight one of the bloodiest battles in American history. At the time, this single two-day battle saw more casualties than all of America's previous wars combined.

The Battle of Appomattox Court House is widely considered to be, effectively, the end of the Civil War. Lee had been caught up in the "Siege of Petersburg," a war of attrition surrounding a crucial Confederate supply center that lasted for nine and a half brutal months.

He finally fled the city, hoping to meet back up with the Army of North Carolina, but was cut off. The house where the surrender took place was dismantled to be used as an exhibit, but that never happened. It has since been reconstructed and serves as part of the Appomattox Court House National Historical Park.

Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park

Chickamauga and Chattanooga, located in Georgia and Tennessee respectively, is home to a six-month standoff. The Federal Army was routed to Chickamauga in September 1863 but was forced to retreat to Chattanooga. There, the Confederate Army cut off supply lines and began to shell the city. It went down in history as being one of the most significant Union defeats, and the second-highest number of casualties, only after the Battle of Gettysburg.

It’s estimated that over 1,600 Union soldiers and 2,300 Confederate soldiers were killed during the battle. On top of that, 24,430 soldiers were wounded on both sides. Historic markers indicate where armies changed positions to torment each other along the Tennessee River and Missionary Ridge, where a critical battle was fought.

Mobile Bay is an inlet of the Gulf of Mexico, located in Alabama. It's also the site of one of the biggest naval battles of the war. It was here that the Union's 18 ships engaged four from the Confederacy. This was the battle of the ironclads, a weird, high-tech battle that saw both sides lose one of their naval behemoths.

This battle shut off a major supply route for the Confederacy. Combined with the taking of Atlanta, this pushed the Union to greater morale and helped get Lincoln re-elected.

Bull Run/Manassas

Manassas, Virginia, is the site of two different battles, referred to separately as "Bull Run" and "Manassas" by the Union and Confederacy, respectively, because they apparently couldn't even agree on what to name their fights. The first battle here was in July of 1861.

It routed a campaign to capture Richmond and was perhaps the first indication that the U.S. was actually in for a long-haul fight instead of the quick suppression of a small uprising. The second battle involved an ill-advised attempt to "bag" Jackson, unaware that Lee's army was also present. The Union forces were defeated so soundly that Lee launched his campaign to invade the North.

Fredericksburg

Fredericksburg was the site of a failed Union attempt to cross the Potomac and take the Confederate capital at Richmond. There were nearly 200,000 soldiers present that day, the largest concentration in the war.

It was also one of the most decisive victories the Confederacy had during the war, with Jackson and Lee routing Burnside and causing roughly three times the casualties that they received themselves.

Glorieta Battlefield

Glorieta Pass, located in New Mexico, was a huge battle and is sometimes referred to as the “Gettysburg of the West.” The conflict occurred because the Confederacy hoped to control the West, ranging from New Mexico and Texas, up through Colorado and California. This would give them more wealth and land than before. Some historians even think the Confederacy wanted to invade Mexico. 

The Union already had the West locked down and were alerted to an attack before the Confederates were able to reach them. Confederates managed to push the Union soldiers back, but they were forced to retreat after their supply train was destroyed. This left them without supplies, horses, and mules.

The Battle of Chancellorsville

The Battle of Chancellorsville occurred after Fredericksburg. Following the terrible loss, some of Burnside’s subordinates lobbied Congress for a command change. Lincoln replaced Burnside with Joseph Hooker because he showed promise as a commander. Lincoln told Hooker to attack Lee’s army, and this led to the Battle of Chancellorsville.

Hooker sent his army around Lee’s left flank and behind his positions. Lee and Stonewall Jackson countered, which surprised Hooker as he expected a retreat to Richmond. The two armies went at it until Hooker’s army retreated across the Rappahannock. The battle concluded with 1,606 Union casualties and 1,665 Confederate casualties, including Stonewall Jackson who died of pneumonia a week after being fatally wounded by his own soldiers.

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Civil War Trails site unveiled in North York at Lebanon Cemetery honors Black Americans

Lebanon Cemetery, in North York, became the first Civil War Trails site in York, according to a news release provided by Melissa Beaverson of Explore York . The multi-state Civil War Trails program offers more than 1,500 sites for travelers, enabling them to stand in the footsteps of historic events and people.

The Friends of Lebanon Cemetery and the Lebanon Cemetery Company unveiled the marker during a dedication of headstones for five veterans on April 13. The groups worked with the National Cemetery Association and local office of Veterans Affairs.

More than 100 visitors and volunteers were present for the Military Headstone Dedication.

Samantha Dorm, adviser for the Friends of Lebanon Cemetery, said, “The Cemetery's inclusion in the Civil War Trails program not only honors the memory of those laid to rest here, but also serves as a gathering place of inspiration and learning for current and future generations.”

The new marker was made possible thanks to a partnership between the Friends of Lebanon Cemetery, Explore York, and Civil War Trails, Inc. The Friends provided a wealth of information to help create the new interpretive sign now located just inside the cemetery gates off on North George Street. A grant offered by Explore York covered the initial costs. Explore York will also cover the annual membership fee associated with the Civil War Trails program. This ensures ongoing sign maintenance and promotion of the program, Beaverson said.

The Civil War Trails program has been expanding its footprint into Pennsylvania, the sixth state to join the initiative. There are 12 new sites under development in York County, but this is the first to be added in the city. “We’re thrilled to have this program in York County,” Beaverson added.

More photos at Lebanon Cemetery: Honoring once lost Black veterans (2022)

Lebanon Cemetery, located at 1412 N. George St., is administered by the Lebanon Cemetery Company. Together with The Friends, they work to honor the early African American community members from York County.

To find out more about Lebanon Cemetery, visit friendsoflebanoncemetery.com   For more information about Civil War Trails ,  visit  CivilWarTrails.org .

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Americans need not look abroad for historical comparisons to authoritarian currents in the country today, according to University of Connecticut scholar Manisha Sinha . The post-Civil War U.S. offers plenty.

“We need to pay a lot of attention to the period after 1877 going right up until at least 1900,” Sinha said. “It is a compelling example of the overthrow of American democracy for a significant period in U.S. history, and one that is so pertinent for our own fraught times.”

Sinha’s take on the backlash to Reconstruction was part of a symposium that the Warren Center for Studies in American History hosted on April 4. “The Past, Present, and Future of American Democracy” featured four scholars who highlighted historical forerunners to recent political crises, including efforts to overturn the election of Joe Biden.

“It seemed the right time to host a conversation that brings together historically minded scholars to do what historians do best: use a historical angle of vision to help us understand our contemporary dilemmas,” said moderator Lisa McGirr , director of the Warren Center and the Charles Warren Professor of American History. The symposium was co-sponsored by the Center for American Political Studies , the Hutchins Center for African & African American Research , the History Department, and the American Studies program.

After the devastation of the Civil War, U.S. capitalism was successfully rebuilt even as the country’s newly interracial democracy collapsed, Sinha argued. The demise of Reconstruction’s reforms was followed by decades of what she called “reactionary authoritarianism.”

“Around 4 million enslaved won their freedom and citizenship rights only to be subject to a new regime of racist terror,” said Sinha, who was a 2007-08 faculty fellow at the Warren Center. “Despite the emergence of the suffrage movement, women remained disenfranchised; Asian American immigrants were systematically excluded; and strikes by workers of all ethnicities violently put down.”

The anti-democratic ethos was evident far beyond the Jim Crow South, said Sinha, whose new book, “The Rise and Fall of the Second American Republic,” examines tensions between democracy and capitalism from 1860 to 1920.

“The rapid industrialization of the country and the dismal conditions of labor that followed Reconstruction made a mockery of the free labor ideology of the victorious North,” she said. “New wars and imperial dreams of empire — inspired by the regime of racist apartheid in the post-Reconstruction South and the conquest of western Indian nations — further hollowed American democracy at home and abroad. By the end of the 19th century, a formal U.S. empire would subject people from the Caribbean to the Philippines to colonial rule.”  

To be sure, Reconstruction itself represented “a truly emancipatory moment,” she said, emphasizing the power of the Equal Protection Clause embedded in the 14th Amendment, which was ratified in 1868. But that vision was eclipsed by a new ideology combining racism with suspicions of big government, she said, and the rise of these malign forces would have global ramifications.

“By the early 20th century, the United States was not only the city upon a hill, an unprecedented experiment in democratic republicanism, but it could now serve as a barbaric model of racist oppression,” she said. “The Jim Crow South, the genocide and warfare against Indian nations would inspire the Nazis in Germany as well as the apartheid state in South Africa.”

Also speaking at the symposium was American historian Gary Gerstle of the University of Cambridge, who offered up the New Deal of the 1930s and the triumph of neoliberalism in the 1990s as examples of Democratic progress and regress. African American Studies Professor Carol Anderson of Emory University gave an overview of her newly established Imagining Democracy Lab , with lessons on engaging young people drawn from the Civil Rights Movement and more. Harvard’s Daniel Ziblatt , Eaton Professor of the Science of Government and director of the Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, drew from 2023’s “Tyranny of the Minority” to argue for reforms to the Constitution. The book, co-authored with Professor  Steven Levitsky , includes a chapter on the democratic collapse that followed Reconstruction.

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Alex Garland’s “Civil War” is set in a near-future when the United States is at war with itself and something called the Western Forces, made up of Texas and California, is fighting the federal government.

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It’s mourning again in America, and it’s mesmerizingly, horribly gripping. Filled with bullets, consuming fires and terrific actors like Kirsten Dunst running for cover, the movie is a what-if nightmare stoked by memories of Jan. 6. As in what if the visions of some rioters had been realized, what if the nation was again broken by Civil War, what if the democratic experiment called America had come undone? If that sounds harrowing, you’re right.

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‘in flames’.

In Pakistan, 20-something Mariam, her widowed mother, Fariha, and her younger brother are struggling when Uncle Nasir suddenly becomes very interested in the relatives he had been neglecting.

As the women scramble to save their home, the walls close in on them, and that’s the point: “In Flames,” a confident feature debut written and directed by Zarrar Kahn, is one of several recent films from around the world that frame patriarchy as a nightmare. … When the film finally gives way to full horror, the pace picks up, and we see what the movie’s been doing all along.

Time travel courtesy of a few bops.

‘the greatest hits’.

Since her boyfriend died in a tragic accident, any song Harriet (Lucy Boynton) hears attached to memories of him catapults her, quite literally, back to the moment in their relationship when that song was playing.

“The Greatest Hits” proceeds slowly and repetitively, which doesn’t have to be a problem: The gentleness of the pace and storytelling gives the cast space to breathe and react to each other, to build relationships that feel reasonably authentic. Similarly, the music choices (which are all over the map both in genre and era) are fun and fresh, lacking the on-the-nose quality that a film with more bang-on choices might have provoked. But as it goes on, the movie begins to feel mired in its own high-concept conceit without space to develop it further.

Watch on Hulu. Read the full review .

A movie about sasquatches. Either you’re in or you’re not.

‘sasquatch sunset’.

This tale of sasquatches follows a pack of four of the creatures through a wordless year of mating, childbirth, death and discovery.

A sincere gift to Bigfoot believers or a surreal cinematic prank, “Sasquatch Sunset” mimes the familiar beats of the nature documentary. This may be a one-joke movie, but it’s an oddly endearing jest, the beasts’ resemblance to primates tweaking our empathy.

Like ‘A Quiet Place,’ only not as good.

On a remote farm, Paul (Nicolas Cage) and his teenage sons scavenge during the day; at night they’re besieged by feral beasts, who may be the mutated victims of an epidemic.

From the review:

The director [Benjamin Brewer] builds tension in brief pockets of silence, and when we do see the monsters, they look quite good — sticky and spindly in a tactile way, like the aliens in John Carpenter’s “The Thing.” But a competent director can do only so much with a poor script, and “Arcadian” is littered with shortcuts and screenwriting clichés.

Tutu-wearing street kids meet the ghosts of old wounds.

This trippy ensemble drama set in Kinshasa explores Congolese society through magical realism and four loosely connected stories.

To say “Omen” is ambitious feels like an understatement. The film begins with a mystical interlude in which a woman pours her breast milk into a river, and sustains this vivid symbolism throughout, making details with natural explanations (a birthmark, a seizure) take on an otherworldly heft. In its best moments, a quiet element of absurdity grounds the spectacle.

An earlier version of this article misidentified an organization in the Civil War in the movie. It is the Western Forces, not the Western Front.

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Tour the Atlanta Campaign in Three Days

In three days you can visit all of the important sites of the 1864 campaign to take Atlanta, Georgia.  You can spend as much or as little time as you like at the various sites.  However, you should be sure to allow plenty of time to visit the Atlanta History Center’s excellent Civil War exhibit, Turning Point, as well as the area’s best-preserved battlefields: Resaca, Pickett’s Mill, and Kennesaw Mountain.  If you visit all 15 stops, you’ll cover the campaign’s most important sites from northwest Georgia to the heart of Atlanta itself.

Before you go:

• Print or download the tour map
• Watch the Atlanta Campaign in4 Video .
• Download the Atlanta Campaign Battle App for more detailed tour information, wayfinding assistance, and additional tour stops.
• Learn about the battles of the Atlanta Campaign .
• Read about Atlanta’s lost Civil War battlefields . 
• Watch the Entire Civil War Animated Map to understand the Atlanta Campaign’s significance in the context of the entire conflict.
• Learn about the Atlanta Campaign Pavilion Parks to help navigate the battlefields.

Stop #1: Tunnel Hill

Time:  1-2 hours Details: http://www.civilwarrailroadtunnel.com

This 1,477-foot tunnel through the Chetoogeta Mountain was featured in the Great Locomotive Chase of 1862 and was the site of Union General William T. Sherman’s headquarters at the start of the Atlanta Campaign in May of 1864. 

What to do:

Start your tour at the Tunnel Hill Heritage Center & Museum, 215 Clisby Austin Drive, Tunnel Hill, GA

• Take a guided tour of the Tunnel
• Visit the Clisby-Austin House
• Explore the Tunnel Hill Heritage Museum

Stop #2: Dalton

Time: 3-4 hours

Surrounded by high, rocky mountains, the town of Dalton served as the Confederate army’s winter quarters during from December 1863 to May 1864.  Various portions of the Confederate earthworks—some of which saw heavy action in the opening stages of the Atlanta Campaign—have been preserved and are open to the public.

Start your tour at the Pavilion Park at Mill Creek Gap on US-41 (2415 Chattanooga Road, Dalton, GA)

• Mill Creek Gap – The center of the Confederate line is located along US-41 just outside Dalton.  Confederate earthworks can be found near the Pavilion Park in front of the police station.
• Potato Hill – The Confederate right flank was anchored here during the Winter of 1863-1864 and saw action in February and May of 1864. Climb to the top of the hill to see some excellent earthworks and a spectacular view of the Confederate right flight during the battles for Dalton
• Dug Gap – Union troops climbed the sheer cliffs at Dug Gap in an attempt to turn the Confederate left flank.  Two Medals of Honor were awarded for actions here.
• Visit the Dalton Confederate Cemetery

If you have time:

• Visit Gen. Joseph E. Johnston’s headquarters in Dalton and learn about Patrick Cleburne’s proposal to arm slaves to fight for the Confederacy
• See the monument to Johnston in downtown Dalton, one of only two monuments to one of the Confederacy’s highest-ranking officers.

Insider tip: The Civil War Trust’s Atlanta Campaign Battle App provides great detail and driving directions for these and other Dalton-area sites.

Stop #3: Resaca

Time: 2 hours Details:  http://www.gordoncountyparks.org  

Though heavily damaged by I-75 (which runs through the heart of the battlefield) Resaca is, in many respects, a preservation success.  Key portions of the battlefield have been preserved by both the Trust, the Georgia Battlefields Association, and other local partners.  The Resaca Battlefield State Historic Site now owns and interprets much of the land. 

Start at the Resaca Battlefield State Historic Site (6 GA-136, Resaca, GA)

• Explore the Resaca Battlefield State Historic Site
• Visit the Pavilion Park to learn about the fighting.
• Explore the Confederate Left flank on Chitwood Road—land preserved by the Civil War Trust.

Don’t miss:

• The Resaca Confederate Cemetery – a quiet, secluded place of reflection

Insider tip: Please respect private property and exercise caution when visiting sites outside the state park.  

Stop #4: New Hope Church and Pickett’s Mill

Time: 2-3 hours (3-4 if you like hiking) Details: http://gastateparks.org/PickettsMillBattlefield

As Sherman chased Johnston’s army further into Georgia, the two forces became embroiled in fierce fighting in this thickly wooded region of Paulding County.  Though historical markers dot the landscape, the best sites are the reconstructed New Hope Church, the New Hope Cemetery, and the Pickett’s Mill Battlefield State Historic Site.

• Read “The Crime at Pickett’s Mill” by Ambrose Bierce for an eyewitness’s take on the events here.

Start your visit at the Pavilion Park at New Hope Church (31 Bobo Road, Dallas, GA)

• Visit the reconstructed New Hope Church and nearby Confederate earthworks.
• Walk the four miles of hiking trails at the Pickett’s Mill Battlefield.
• The Ravine and Pioneer Log Cabin at Pickett’s Mill
• Stroll through the New Hope Cemetery to find the graves of Confederate soldiers, including Lieutenant Benjamin W. Pickett, who owned nearby Pickett’s Mill prior to being killed at the Battle of Chickamauga.
• Visit the overlooked battlefields at nearby Gilgal Church and Pine Mountain. (Use the Atlanta Campaign Battle App to find your way to those two sites.)

Note: The roads between Stop #4 and Stop #5 can be especially confusing. At one intersection, three roads named Due West Road intersect with Kennesaw Due West Road. To make matters more confusing, one of those Due West Roads actually runs north-to-south. Please plan your route ibn advance of your visit to avoid confusion and use caution while driving.

Stop #5: Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield

Time: 3-4 hours (more if you enjoy hiking) Details: www.nps.gov/kemo

Located just off I-75 and less than 25 miles away from downtown Atlanta, Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield is the only Atlanta Campaign site owned by the National Park Service. It features miles of earthworks, hiking trails, and unmatched views of the surrounding area.

Start your visit at the National Park's Visitor Center (900 Kennesaw Mountain Drive, Kennesaw, GA)

• Visit the top of Kennesaw Mountain for a spectacular view of Atlanta and the surrounding area
• Stand at Cheatham Hill, scene of intense fighting during the battle.
• Walk the battlefield on the park’s 22 miles of trails.
• Visit the park museum and visitor center to see a collection of artifacts related to the campaign.
• Watch the park’s 35-minute film, Kennesaw: One Last Mountain
• Kolb’s Farm: scene of fighting on June 22, 1864, the Kolb Farm house is only remaining Civil War structure located within the park.
• The Illinois Monument on Cheatham Hill
• The grave of an unknown Union soldier on Cheatham Hill—walk along the earthworks past the Illinois Monument
• Walk the trail connecting Big and Little Kennesaw Mountains to see some incredible Confederate artillery pits.
• Follow the path of the Union assault on Cheatham Hill by parking in the lot on Cheatham Hill Road (not to be confused with Cheatham Hill Drive). Cross the road and follow the trail through the woods to walk in the footsteps of the Union soldiers who fought here. (You’ll also pass a marker noting the departure point of the Union attackers.)

Insider tip: Traffic in this area can be bad, especially on weekdays during rush hour; please plan accordingly.

Stop #6 – Marietta’s Civil War Cemeteries

Time: 1-2 hours

Numerous casualties from the Atlanta campaign were later buried in Marietta National Cemetery or the Marietta Confederate Cemetery, which are located approximately one mile from one another (a 5-10 minute drive) in Marietta, Georgia.

• The monument to General John Geary’s Second Division, Twentieth Corps, in the National Cemetery, surrounded by veterans of Antietam and Gettysburg who later fought in the Atlanta Campaign.
• Visit St. James Episcopal Cemetery (also a 5-10 drive) to find the grave of famed Civil War sketch artist, Alfred Waud.

Stop #7: The Atlanta History Center

Time: 2-4 hours Details: www.atlantahistorycenter.com

Home to one of the most extensive collections of Civil War artifacts, the Atlanta History Center is a must-see site for Civil War enthusiasts of all stripes. 

• Walk through “Turning Point,” the museum’s premier Civil War exhibit.
• Visit the Smith Family Farm
• Walk through the Swan House, a 1928 home which was also used for several scenes in  The Hunger Games  films.
• Explore the museum’s many other, non-Civil War exhibits, including its collection from the 1996 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta.

Stop #8: Peach Tree Creek

Time: 45-60 minutes

Frustrated with his inability to stop the Yankees, Confederate President Jefferson Davis replaced General Joseph E. Johnston with General John Bell Hood.  Hood immediately went on the offensive, striking his first blow against an isolated portion of Sherman’s army at Peach Tree Creek on July 20, 1864.  Though most of this battlefield has been paved over, there are a few sites that can still be seen to day. 

Start your visit at the Pavilion Park at Tanyard Creek Park (Collier Road and Overbrook Drive, Atlanta, GA) 

• Walk through the park and traverse some of the battlefield’s only publicly accessible open space. 
• Read nearby historical markers to learn about the battle that raged through this neighborhood.
• Drive to bridge over Peach Tree Creek to read about the Union crossing of the creek and the early phase of the battle.
• Visit “Cardiac Hill,” site of today’s Piedmont Hospital to find markers and monuments related to the fighting on this part of the battlefield.

Insider tip: For more info, check out our Atlanta Campaign Battle App .

Stop #9: The Battle of Atlanta

Time: 1 hour

Hood attempted another offensive attack against Federals under the command of his West Point roommate, General James B. McPherson on July 22, 1864—a battle now known as the Battle of Atlanta.  What was once the Atlanta battlefield has been almost completely paved over, with an interstate highway (I-20) running through the center of the battlefield.  However, two upturned cannons mark the sites where General McPherson and Confederate General William H.T. Walker were killed.  Numerous historical markers also describe the battle action.  

• Visit the McPherson monument at the intersection of McPherson and Monument Avenue.
• Drive approximately 1.5 miles (about 5 minutes) to see the monument to Confederate General William H.T. Walker, who was also killed early during the Battle of Atlanta.
• Drive to Inman Park to visit one of the few open spaces on the Atlanta battlefield.  Confederate troops under General Benjamin F. Cheatham broke through the Union line here in the vicinity of the Troup Hurt House.  Historical markers at the nearby MARTA Station explain the action further. 
• Visit nearby DeGress Avenue to see the site of the Troup Hurt House and to learn about the struggle for Capt. Francis DeGress' Union battery, which was overrun by Confederates before being recaptured in the melee.  

Stop #10: Oakland Cemetery

Time: 1-2 hours Details: www.oaklandcemetery.com

Established in 1850, this was the principal burial ground for Confederate soldiers during the Civil War.  Between 1867 and 1868, approximately 3,000 Confederates were disinterred from the surrounding battlefields and reinterred here.

• “The Lion of the Confederacy,” an 1894 monument to the unknown Confederate dead
• The grave of famed Confederate General John Brown Gordon , later governor of Georgia

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