Wednesday, September 22nd

image of Grant (left) and Lee (right) at Appomattox courtesy army.mil

Advanced American History

After beginning class with a reading of the Gettysburg Address, we finished our discussion of the Civil War with an analysis of the war after Gettysburg and Vicksburg.  Lee and Grant are engaged in a brutal war of attrition in northern Virginia, while Sherman's March to the Sea marks a shift to the strategy of "total war."  Finally we examined the tone and events surrounding the surrender at Appomattox, as well as the assassination of Abraham Lincoln one week later.

Assignment:  Read text 87-91.  Quiz Friday

American Studies

Our discussion of the battle of Gettysburg continues today.  While breaking down the events of this high water mark in the Civil War, special attention was given to the second and third days of the battle.  After confederate flanking maneuvers on July 2nd on Little Round Top and Culp's Hill, the battle culminates with Pickett's Charge, the failed confederate advance at the center of Union lines on cemetery ridge.  We viewed scenes from the film Gettysburg related to this failed tactic.