Life in Battle
Life at Home

Vocabulary
Camp
Home Front
Civilian

Let’s Define

Camp: A group of temporary shelters, such as tents.

Let’s Define

Home Front: The civilian activities of a country at war.

Let’s Define

Civilian: A person not serving in the military.

Build on What You Know
Not only did the war take men from their families, it also divided some families when members supported different sides.
In the Civil War, you literally had brothers fighting against each other.

The Soldier’s Life

Soldiers in the Civil War faced problems other than fighting battles.
Can you think of some problems they faced?

The Soldier’s Life
Many men hoped for excitement and glory, but instead found terror in battle, and boredom in camp.
To help with boredom, soldiers read, sang songs, or wrote letters. Some even put on shows or printed newspapers.
If soldiers got a letter from home, it made them “shout for joy!!!”

Feeding the Soldiers

Union soldiers grew tired of eating the same food almost every day.

Confederate soldiers suffered more because they often did not have enough to eat.

Meet the Soldiers

Civil War soldiers came from many different backgrounds. At first, almost all were white and born in the United States.

As the war went on, the Union allowed African
Americans to join the army.

Meet the Soldiers

Immigrants also joined the Union army. They included people from:
Germany
Ireland
Italy

American Indians fought on both sides.

Meet the Soldiers

Thousands of boys went into battle even though they were too young. (Some served as drummers who sent signals to soldiers in battle).

Hundreds of women on both sides disguised themselves as men and joined the army. Women also worked as spies for one side or the other.

Meet the Soldiers

More than 3,000 northern women served as nurses.

Clara Barton was a Union army nurse. She later founded the American Red Cross.

Southern women also cared for wounded soldiers in hospitals and in their homes.

Casualties of War

The Civil War was the deadliest war in American history.

Disease killed twice as many soldiers than fighting did.

Rifles could shoot farther and more accurately than ever.

Question

What did women on both sides of the war do to help their side?

Answer…

Dressed as men and joined the army

Spied

Cared for the sick and wounded

Let’s Review
What did soldiers do to fight the boredom of camp life?

Answer…

Read

Sang

Wrote letters

Printed newspapers

Let’s Review
The Union army included immigrants from what countries?


Germany

Italy

Ireland
Answer…

Let’s Review
What made the Civil War so deadly?

Answer…

Disease killed twice as many soldiers than fighting did.

Rifles could shoot farther and more accurately than ever.

On the Home Front
The civil War was difficult for people at home, especially in the South.
Why was it especially difficult for people in the South?

On the Home Front

The Civil War was especially difficult for people in the South because most of the battles were fought on their land.

Southerners saw their farms become battlefields.
Their cities, homes, and barns were destroyed.

With the men gone, the women had to take on new tasks such as running farms and businesses.

Inflation
In the South, soldiers and civilians often did not have enough to eat. Inflation, or a rise in prices, made food very expensive.

Inflation

A barrel of flour that cost $6 in 1861 might cost
$1,000 in 1865!

Butter jumped to $25 per pound!

Each Confederate state printed its own money, but inflation made the money almost worthless.

Did You Know?

The Emancipation Proclamation was signed in
1863.

News of the Emancipation proclamation didn’t reach Texas until June 19, 1865.

This day became known as Juneteenth. It is still celebrated in Texas today as the day slavery ended.

Summary

During the war soldiers faced danger in battle and from disease.

Soldiers came from many different backgrounds

The Civil War affected the lives of ALL
Americans, not just soldiers.

Summary

African Americans and immigrants fought in the war.

Children served as drummers.

Women were spies and took on new responsibilities at home. They ran farms and businesses, made uniforms, socks, and bandages.

Question…
Who was Clara Barton?

Answer…
Clara Barton served as a Union nurse and later founded the American Red Cross.

Just so you know…
During the Civil War, Americans lived through some of the hardest years in the nation’s history.

Brave Women
Clara Barton
1821-1912




Volunteered as a Union Army nurse.
Discovered soldiers did not have enough bandages or medicine so she wrote letters to newspapers asking people to make donations.
She risked her life on the battlefield to help wounded and sick soldiers.
Later founded the American Red Cross

Brave Women




Elizabeth Van Lew
1818-1890
Opposed slavery even before the war began.
Lived in Virginia (a southern state) and convinced her mother to free the family’s slaves.
Became a spy for the Union army.
When the Confederate soldiers arrived in
Richmond, VA. she flew the Union flag for all to see.

Brave Women
Mary Chestnut
1823-1886

Kept a diary describing the collapse of the
Confederate government.

She was a wealthy South Carolinian whose husband was a Confederate general.

Opposed to slavery.

Now you know…
This is the end of Chapter 4
Lesson 2
Now go show someone how smart you are!!!