Civil War Journal Entries

Civil War Journal Assignment• You need:– 5 sheets of paper– Fold hamburger style (3 staples along the side)– Create a cover page which represents you and your side (Union

or Confederate)– Write your name and period on the back page

• Each Journal entry will need to be at least a paragraph entry and an illustration!

Entry #1

• Identify who you are and where you come from. Describe your excitement for joining the war.

Entry #2

• Describe the conditions of camp life. What types of things you see, hear, and smell on a daily basis? Has you enthusiasm changed about going to war?

Entry #3• Identify some of the new technologies that were used

during the war. What was it like to see them for the first time and what kind of an impact did they have on the war?

Entry #4• You have just been involved in your first real major

battle (Battle of Shiloh), explain what happened there. Explain what General Sherman meant when he said, “The scenes on this field would have cured anybody of war.”

Entry #5What was the effect on the South when they lost

New Orleans to the Union? How did that fit into the Union’s plan for war?

Entry #6Describe the battle of Antietam. How did

you feel when you found out about the finding of Gen Lee’s plans? What should Gen McClellan have done?

Battle of Antietam

Entry #7• How did the news of the Emancipation

Proclamation make you feel? Did Lincoln make a good decision by issuing this document? What does this document mean for the war?

Entry #8 What was the 54th Massachusetts

regiment? What did they do that made them famous? What happened to African American enlistment as a result?

Entry #9

• What role did women play in this war? Should they have done more? If so, what could they have done?

Entry #10 You were captured by the opposing

army and sent to a prison camp. Describe your experience. What did you see, hear, smell…

Entry #11What happened at the Battle of

Gettysburg? Comment on the effect of Pickett’s Charge.

Entry #12What did the siege at Vicksburg do for the

Union? What is the possible outcome of the war for your side?

Entry #13Union soldier = you were under the command of

Gen. Sherman. What types of tactics did you use when Sherman marched to the sea? How did you feel about performing those acts?

Confederate soldier = you just heard about what Sherman did in the South, describe how you feel. What concerns do you have?

Entry #14Ulysses S. Grant has just taken over the

Union Army. Describe what you know of this general and how you feel about his new appointment.

Entry #15You just heard about Lee’s surrender. How

do you feel about this news and what do you think is going to happen next?

Entry #16

• The 13th Amendment has just been announced. What did it do and how do you feel about it?

Closing• What does life hold in store for you now?

What are your future plans? Will you be able to put this war behind you?