Military History
Dorothea Dix Volunteers
“Dragon” Dix was a shadowy and controversial figure in the opening scenes of the PBS series, Mercy Street. The historical Miss Dix was just as controversial. For those of you who don’t have the details of the American Civil War at your fingertips: the war began at 4:30 a.m. on April 12, 1861, when troops…
Read More
Marie von Clausewitz: An Interview with Vanya Eftimova Bellinger
As long-time readers here at the Margins know, I’m a fan of the Pritzker Military Library. I attend several of their programs each year and listen to more through their live-streaming feature.* Back in January, I attended a presentation at the Priztker in which Vanya Eftimova Bellinger spoke about her new book, Marie von Clausewitz:…
Read More
Confederate Nurses, Pt 1
Both the television show Mercy Street, and Heroines of Mercy Street* look at Civil War nurses through the lens of a single Union hospital, Mansion House Hospital in the occupied city of Alexandria, Virginia. I use the “memoirs” of two women who nursed there, Mary Phinney von Olnhausen and Anne Reading,** as a framework for…
Read More