Tag: Civil War
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A trio of Confederate military surgeons: Samuel Moore, James McCaw and Joseph Jones
Jonathan DavidsonDurham, North Carolina, United States The Civil War between the States took a heavy toll, claiming over 600,000 lives, or two percent of the population. Countless more suffered from injuries and other diseases. Reilly1 has listed some of the advances in medical care that took place during this conflict. For the most part, the…
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Dr. Mary Edwards Walker: A trailblazer for female surgeons
Shabnam ParsaLeshya BokkaLiam ButchartStony Brook, New York, United States Dr. Mary Edwards Walker (1832–1919) was the first female surgeon in the United States—a pioneering educator, clinician, and medical innovator.1 Her academic path was paved by her parents’ dedication to education. Vesta and Alva Walker established the first free school in Oswego, New York, where they…
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Joshua Chamberlain: The last casualty of the US Civil War
Julius BonelloCassandra PalmerPeoria, Illinois, United States “The inspiration of a noble cause involving human interests wide and far, enables men to do things they did not dream themselves capable of before, in which they were not capable of alone. The consciousness of belonging, vitally, to something beyond individuality; of being part of a personality that…
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The decisive influence of malaria on the outcome of Grant’s Vicksburg campaign of 1863
Lloyd KleinEric WittenbergCalifornia, San Francisco, United States The vital importance of controlling the Mississippi River was apparent to Union strategists from the beginning of the Civil War. The river served as a major supply route, facilitated the transportation of men and military supplies, and abetted communication. Union control of the river would deprive the Confederacy…
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Andersonville, Georgia and Elmira, New York: When Hell was on Earth
Howard FischerUppsala, Sweden “Abandon all hope, ye who enter here”— Dante Alighieri, Divine Comedy When the American Civil War (1861–1865) began neither the Union nor the Confederacy gave much thought to housing prisoners-of-war (POWs). Eventually, the two opposing sides had a total of about 120 POW camps.1 The two armies had captured a total of…
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Infectious diseases in the Civil War
Lloyd Klein San Francisco, California, United States The main cause of death during the American Civil War was not battle injury but disease. About two-thirds of the 620,000 deaths of Civil War soldiers were caused by disease, including 63% of Union fatalities. Only 19% of Union soldiers died on the battlefield and 12% later succumbed to…
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Book review: “All manner of ingenuity and industry”: a bio-bibliography of Dr. Thomas Willis 1621–1675
Arpan K. BanerjeeSolihull, United Kingdom Thomas Willis, born four hundred years ago, is still known by students of neuroanatomy today for the eponymous Circle of Willis. Yet most doctors do not know the story of Willis, the seventeenth-century British physician and his remarkable contributions to medical knowledge and literature. This new book, a labor of…
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General Robert E. Lee’s myocardial infarction: Did illness impact the Battle of Gettysburg?
Lloyd KleinSan Francisco, California, United States Ascribing the loss of the Battle of Gettysburg to an illness of General Robert E. Lee became common among historians thirty years ago. The legend of his apparently poor judgment in ordering Pickett’s Charge, when appraised in view of his other outstanding military results, has baffled historians, thus appearing…
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Harriet Tubman, Joan of Arc, and Moses
Faraze A. NiaziJack E. Riggs Morgantown, West Virginia, United States Listen to my words: “When there is a prophet among you, I, the LORD, reveal myself to them in visions, I speak to them in dreams. Numbers 12:6 (NIV) “Harriet and Joan, what topic has your two fine souls so deeply engrossed?” “Moses, we were discussing recent hurtful…