Sumner Building, Sept. 2, 1872
/Julia Wilbur attended the dedication of the Sumner School on September 2, 1872. Here's some background.
Read MoreGeorge Seaton, a Free Black of Standing
/When Julia Wilbur first came to Alexandria, she boarded at the home of George Seaton.
Read MoreAlexandria Gazette, Online in Arlington
/Check out the Alexandria Gazette, available online through the Arlington County Public Library.
Read MoreJohn Babcock, Secret Agent
/In the Manuscript Room at the Library of Congress, I came across the papers of John C. Babcock, who enlisted with Sturgis Rifles in 1861.
Read MoreJulia Wilbur Diary Transcriptions
/Transcriptions of Wilbur's diaries are now online as a searchable PDF.
Read MoreTV Topic: Civil War Alexandria!
/Just learned the following: PBS has commissioned at least a six-part series, based on an abolitionist and a "secesh" in Alexandria.
Read MoreBook Topic: Civil War Washington
/In 1942, Margaret Leech won a Pulitzer for her book Reveille in Washington 1860-1865. The book was one of the first--maybe the first?--to describe Washington as a living, breathing, and, it would have to be said, smelling place, filled with characters large and small.
Read MoreFrance in the U.S. Civil War
/Although officially neutral, France (along with England) was lurking as a possible supporter of the Confederacy.
Read MoreThe Capitol Dome
/When Julia Wilbur first came to Washington in late 1862, a dome to accommodate the expanded Capitol was under construction.
Read MoreDiscovering Alexandria
/WETA, the local PBS station, broadcast Discovering Alexandria, its 90-minute (that is, 2 hours, with breaks for pledges) documentary on the history of Alexandria, VA, from its early years through the end of the 1800s.
Read MoreLiving Hell
/A few weeks ago, I spent an unseasonably warm and sunny Sunday afternoon hearing about Living Hell.
Read MoreThanksgiving, 1862
/Thanksgiving, November 1862, a rollicking time for officers and guests at the Parole Prisoners' Camp. The prisoners? Not so much.
Read MoreJulia Wilbur project
/Julia Wilbur traveled from Rochester, NY, to Alexandria, VA, in 1862, ready to help the Union cause how best she could. Her diaries (one example shown here, part of the Quaker Collection at Haverford College) reveal her successes and disappointments, friends and foes. I will use this site to highlight some of what I have learned about her, Civil War Alexandria and Washington, and the many people and events she came in contact with. Also, I hope this website finds those of you working on similar projects so we can share information and answer each other's questions.