Civil War

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Across
  1. 3. A stretcher which was carried by two people and used to transport wounded soldiers.
  2. 7. Manufacturing goods from raw materials, such as cloth from cotton or machine parts from iron.
  3. 8. Party: A political party created in the 1850s to prevent the spread of slavery to the territories. Eventually Republicans came to oppose the entire existence of slavery. Abraham Lincoln was the first Republican president. Very few Southerners were Republicans.
  4. 12. (pronounced KEH-peeh) Cap worn by Civil War soldiers; more prevalent among Union soldiers. See image»
  5. 14. Also called the Confederacy, the Confederate States of America, or (by Northerners) the Rebel states, the South incorporated the states that seceded from the United States of America to form their own nation. Southern states were: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.
  6. 16. A crushing defeat where, often, the losers run from the field.
  7. 17. Promoting the interests of a section or region (such as the North or the South) instead of the entire country.
  8. 19. The basic unit of the Civil War soldiers, usually made up of 1,000 to 1,500 men. Regiments were usually designated by state and number (as in 20th Maine). 1 company = 50 to 100 men, 10 companies = 1 regiment, about 4 regiments = 1 brigade, 2 to 5 brigades = 1 division, 2 or more divisions = 1 corps, 1 or more corps = 1 army. See image »
  9. 21. Pork: Salt pork is a pork product similar to bacon that is made by curing pork bellies in salt. This curing process aloud the pork to last a very long time without the need for refrigeration. As a result, salt pork became a common food issued to soldiers by both the North and the South.
  10. 22. Used in letters and reports, "instant" referred to a particular day in the same month. For example, Robert E. Lee's Report Concerning the Attack at Harpers Ferry, written on October 19, 1859, states that Lee arrived on the "night of the 17th instant". The "17th instant" would be October 17th.
  11. 24. Rights: This doctrine held the powers of the individual states as greater than the powers of the Federal government. States rights meant that the Federal government held its power only through the consent of the states and that any powers not specifically given to the Federal government remained in control of the states. See the Declaration of the Causes of the Seceding States »
  12. 25. A type of counter-attack used to disrupt the enemy's attack or siege of a fortification, causing the enemy to divert some of its resources away from the initial attack or siege.
  13. 26. A flag or banner carried into battle on a pole.
  14. 29. A branch of the military in which soldiers traveled and fought on foot.
  15. 30. A slang term for lice, or occasionally an offensive "Yankee" slang term for Confederate soldiers.
  16. 33. To admit defeat and give up in the face of overwhelming odds. Most defeated generals were able to negotiate surrender terms. These might include items like parole instead of prison for the soldiers or letting officers keep their sidearms.
  17. 34. (pronounced si-sesh-uhn ) Withdrawal from the Federal government of the United States. Southern states, feeling persecuted by the North, seceded by voting to separate from the Union. Southerners felt this was perfectly legal but Unionists saw it as rebellion. See the Secession Acts of the 13 Confederate States »
  18. 35. A two-wheeled cart that carried one ammunition chest for an artillery piece. The artillery piece could be attached to the limber, which would allow both to be pulled by a team of horses. Also verb: The practice of attaching a piece of artillery to the limber that holds its ammunition. See image »
  19. 36. A large earthen mound used to shield the inside of a fortified position from artillery fire and infantry assault. Occasionally ramparts might be constructed of other materials, such as sandbags. See image »
  20. 38. Loyal to the Confederate States. Also Southern or Confederate.
  21. 40. Troops: Phrase used to describe soldiers who were either new to the military or had never fought in a battle before.
  22. 41. Roller: A very large, bullet resistant gabion which was used to protect soldiers from enemy fire as they constructed trenches.
  23. 42. A mound of earth used to protect gun positions from explosion or to defilade the inside of a field work or fortification. See image »
  24. 46. A sudden, open, unconcealed attack upon a fortified position with the intent of capturing it before its defenders could mount an effective defense.
  25. 47. Bacterial disease causing fever, diarrhea, headache, enlargement of the spleen, and extreme physical exhaustion and collapse.
  26. 49. War: A new way of conducting war appeared during the Civil War. Instead of focusing only on military targets, armies conducting total war destroyed homes and crops to demoralize and undermine the civilian base of the enemy’s war effort. (Sherman in Georgia or Sheridan in the Shenandoah Valley, for example.)
Down
  1. 1. A hollow projectile, shot from a cannon; a shell was filled with powder and lit by a fuse when it was fired. Shells exploded when their fuse burned down to the level of the powder. Depending on the length of the fuse, artillerymen could decide when they wanted the shell to burst.
  2. 2. A state of bondage in which African Americans (and some Native Americans) were owned by other people, usually white, and forced to labor on their behalf.
  3. 4. A minor fight.
  4. 5. In Detail: To destroy the enemy piece by piece — by attacking smaller segments one at a time — instead of attacking the entire force all at once.
  5. 6. (pronounced juhg-er-nawt) An overwhelming, advancing force that crushes or seems to crush everything in its path.
  6. 9. A solid, round projectile, shot from a cannon. See image »
  7. 10. To formally approve or sanction.
  8. 11. Today called mines, Civil War torpedoes were mostly used by the Confederates. Sometimes they were buried in the ground in the enemy's path to explode when stepped on. Mostly they were used as water defenses. They floated below the surface of the water and exploded when the hull of a ship brushed against them.
  9. 13. (pronounced SKUR-vee) A disease caused by lack of ascorbic acid (found in fresh fruits and vegetables). Its symptoms include spongy gums, loose teeth, and bleeding into the skin and mucous membranes.
  10. 15. The common weapon of the Civil War infantryman, it was a firearm fired from the shoulder. It differed from a regular musket by the grooves (called rifling) cut into the inside of the barrel. When the exploding powder thrusts the bullet forward, the grooves in the barrel make it spin, just like a football spirals through the air. Rifle-muskets were more accurate and had a longer range than smoothbore weapons.
  11. 18. Machine": A term of contempt for torpedoes (either the land or the water variety). This term was also used to describe the Confederate vessel H.L. Hunley - the first successful submarine.
  12. 20. Land within the mainland boundaries of the country that had not yet become a state by 1861. Nevada Territory, Utah Territory, and Colorado Territory had basically the same boundaries they have today as states; Washington Territory encompassed today's states of Washington and Idaho; Dakota Territory is now the states of Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, and the northern part of Wyoming; Nebraska Territory today is the southern part of Wyoming and the state of Nebraska; New Mexico Territory included the states of Arizona and New Mexico; and the remaining unorganized land, also called the Indian Territory, filled the approximate boundaries of Oklahoma.
  13. 23. Small sewing kit soldiers used to repair their garments. See image»
  14. 27. Lines: A military strategy which holds that the fastest, most efficient maneuvers, transportation and communication are conducted within an enclosed geographic area as opposed to outside the geographic area.
  15. 28. Small canvas bag, about one foot square, used to carry a soldier's food. Typically, these bags were painted with black tar to make them waterproof. See image»
  16. 29. A ship protected by iron armor.
  17. 31. Paper currency which began to circulate in the North after February 1862 with the passage of the Legal Tender Act. The bills were called "greenbacks" because of their color.
  18. 32. Also called the North or the United States, the Union was the portion of the country that remained loyal to the Federal government during the Civil War. Union states were: Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wisconsin. West Virginia became a Northern state in 1863 and California and Oregon were also officially Northern but they had little direct involvement in the War.
  19. 36. Cutter: This term applies to fast ships that were used to patrol the seas and Great Lakes to prevent smuggling and impose importation and custom fees. Revenue cutters would go on to become the United States Coast Guard.
  20. 37. Boats: Small submersible vessels with long wooden spars mounted on the bow for ramming enemy ships. Torpedoes were lashed to the tip of the spar to explode on impact.
  21. 39. Long, cylindrical metal rod used to push the cartridge down the barrel of a musket in preparation for firing.
  22. 43. A handheld firearm with a chamber to hold multiple bullets (usually 6). The chamber turns so that each bullet can be fired in succession without reloading.
  23. 44. The term used to describe new soldiers.
  24. 45. A gun barrel is rifled when it has grooves (called rifling) cut into the inside of the barrel for longer range and more accurate firing.
  25. 48. Territory: The area that is now Oklahoma (except for the panhandle.)