Tag Archives: Mississippi River

The decisive influence of malaria on the outcome of Grant’s Vicksburg campaign of 1863

January 19, 2023

Lloyd Klein Eric Wittenberg California, San Francisco, United States   Contemporaneous photograph of the dwellings dug into the hills in Vicksburg to escape the bombardment. Public domain. 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, […]

The Lewis and Clark Expedition: medical ethics in uncharted territory

October 7, 2021

David Blitzer New York, New York, United States Alvise Guariento Toronto, Ontario, Canada Robert M. Sade Charleston, South Carolina, United States   Detail of “Lewis & Clark at Three Forks,” mural in lobby of Montana House of Representatives. Mural by Edgar Samuel Paxson. Via Wikimedia  In 1803, Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, with the backing of […]

The death of Zachary Taylor: The first presidential assassination or a bad bowl of cherries?

June 18, 2020

Kevin R. Loughlin Boston, Massachusetts, United States   Figure 1: Senator Foote pulling a revolver on Senator Benton on Senate Floor. The quote above Benson’s head reads, “Get out of the way and let the assassin fire! Let the scoundrel use his weapon! I have no arm’s(sic) I didn’t come here to assassinate.” Library of […]