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Unit 10 Plan: New Hampshire and the Civil War

Unit Summary

The Civil War is generally considered a great turning point in U.S. history, the dividing line between early and modern American history. There is no doubt that the war had an enormous impact on nearly every aspect of society. The sectional crisis that led to the war dominated national politics for decades before the war itself, but events in New Hampshire during these years foreshadowed the political realignment that would eventually occur in other northern states as well. The argument over slavery and southern political power played out here before it did elsewhere in the North. Once the war broke out in 1861, New Hampshire mobilized along with the rest of the country. When the war ended, the Granite State readjusted to a postwar world, as industrialization and immigration reshaped the state. New Hampshire also wrestled with how to commemorate the war, an effort that continues today in reconciling the role of former President Franklin Pierce with more modern sensibilities.

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The Big Picture

As you learn about this national crisis and its impact on New Hampshire, keep in mind the following ideas:

  • In the 1840s and 1850s, New Hampshire’s political parties split and shifted over the issue of slavery, upending state politics. The disagreements between Franklin Pierce and John Parker Hale—the first abolitionist senator in the United States—led to the formation of the Republican Party in 1853, foretelling a political realignment that would eventually occur throughout the North.
  • The presidency of Franklin Pierce brought the United States closer to civil war, as sectional tensions increased over the Kansas-Nebraska Act and the enforcement of the Fugitive Slave Act. Pierce’s one term in office damaged his reputation and attached a level of controversy to his name that would last even after his death.
  • New Hampshire was ill-prepared for war, as was the rest of the country, but the state quickly mobilized across all levels of society. For the four years between 1861 and 1865, the war would dominate nearly every aspect of life in the Granite State, with more than 10% of the population serving in the military, industries producing wartime goods, communities providing care and support for those affected by the war, and state and local governments falling deeply into debt to cover the enormous costs of the conflict.
  • The Granite State produced 18 infantry regiments for the U.S. Army, as well as men for specialized army units and for the navy and marines. Some New Hampshire women served as well, filling a crucial need for nurses. Other Granite Staters played more unusual roles in the conflict that earned them national attention.
  • Although many of the New Hampshire regiments made important contributions to the war effort, none were as revered as the Fifth New Hampshire Regiment—the so-called “Fighting Fifth.” The regiment served in nearly every major conflict in the Virginia theater of the war, most notably the Battle of Gettysburg where it dealt the Confederates a devastating setback and helped turn the tide of the battle.
  • After the war, the veterans’ campground at Weirs Beach became the most organized veterans’ retreat in the country and hosted annual reunions for Civil War soldiers from New Hampshire and beyond. Meanwhile, the Grand Army of the Republic emerged as a major force in state politics, as it did in almost every other northern state.
  • Monuments to the Civil War can be found in towns and cities throughout New Hampshire, as well as in the New Hampshire State House and on the state house grounds. For example, the battle flags of the state’s regiments are enshrined in the state house’s Doric Hall, also known as the Hall of Flags. There are statues on the state house lawn to commemorate New Hampshire politicians who played important national roles in the pre-war, antebellum years like Daniel Webster and John Parker Hale. There is also a statue of Franklin Pierce, but its addition was decades in the making and brought with it a storm of controversy over his role in the lead-up to the war. The debate over Pierce’s culpability continues to this day and provides a Granite State example of the national debate over how the Civil War should be remembered and who is worthy of commemoration.

Focus Questions for This Unit

Lessons in this unit are geared towards students answering the unit focus questions comprehensively through a variety of methods. This unit’s focus questions are:
  • 1
    How did sectionalism threaten the United States?
  • 2
    How did the presidential election of 1860 divide the country?
  • 3
    What did New Hampshire soldiers experience during the Civil War?
  • 4
    How should we remember the Civil War today in New Hampshire?

Essential Questions for This Unit

Essential questions are designed to be answered repeatedly throughout the entire curriculum. This unit particularly addresses all four of the curriculum’s essential questions:
  • 1
    How has New Hampshire come to be the way it is?
  • 2
    How has New Hampshire been shaped by many voices?
  • 3
    How have New Hampshire’s people shaped its government?
  • 4
    How has New Hampshire impacted the nation?

The four lesson plans in this unit focus on sectionalism, the presidential election of 1860, life as a Civil War soldier, and the challenges of commemorating such a divisive episode of American history.

Lesson Plan 1: A House Divided Cannot Stand

Students watch a video and examine primary sources to learn about sectionalism, then create a visual reflection about how it divided the United States prior to the Civil War.

Lesson Plan 2: The Presidential Election of 1860

Students use primary and secondary sources to “meet” the candidates, analyze election data, and explain how Lincoln’s win was the final straw for the southern states.

Lesson Plan 3: Life of a Civil War Soldier

After analyzing objects and photographs, students create a gallery of collaborative drawings depicting the experiences of New Hampshire’s Civil War soldiers.

Lesson Plan 4: How Much Do Civil War Statues Really Tell Us?

Students build on their understanding of monuments and memorials by investigating multiple perspectives about the Franklin Pierce monument at the New Hampshire State House.

Please note that a printable vocabulary list with definitions is accessible to students in the Learn It! section of this unit.

Vocabulary in This Unit


 
abolition (noun) The action of getting rid of something, specifically ending slavery during the 19th century
abolitionist (noun) A person who works to get rid of something, especially slavery during the 19th century
campaign (noun) A connected series of events or actions to make something happen; for example, a political campaign is waged to win elections
candidate (noun) Someone who is applying for a job. In a presidential primary, a candidate is a person who is trying to get the job of president of the United States.
canteen (noun) A container that holds drinking water
civil war (noun) Violent armed conflict between the citizens of the same region, territory, or country
Civil War (noun) A war that lasted from 1861 to 1865 between the northern states and the southern states. The northern states were fighting to preserve the United States as one country, while the southern states wanted to create their own country called the Confederate States of America.
compromise (verb) The process of coming to a solution that works for everyone
Confederacy (noun) Another term for the Confederate States of America, which seceded from the United States of America in 1861
Confederate Army (noun) The armed forces of the southern states during the Civil War; this army was the military force of the Confederate States
Constitution (noun) The document that lays out the framework for how the federal government works; written in 1787 and ratified in 1789
dissenter (noun) Someone who disagrees with a commonly held opinion or belief
election (noun) When people vote for a person for office or other position
Emancipation Proclamation (noun) A document signed by President Abraham Lincoln that took effect on January 1, 1863, and freed all enslaved people who lived in Confederate states and territories
federal (adjective) The central government of a group of states; the U.S. federal government is in Washington, D.C.
fortification (noun) A defensive structure built to strengthen a position against attack
haversack (noun) A small backpack
home front (noun) People and areas of a country at war who are not involved in the military but whose activities support the war effort
memorial (noun) Something, often a structure, established to remind people of a person or event
Mexican-American War (noun) A war between the United States and Mexico that lasted between 1846 and 1848. The United States won the war and gained millions of acres of land in the West. The question of whether these new territories would allow slavery or not  made sectional tensions much worse between the North and the South in the years before the Civil War.
monument (noun) A structure built to honor a notable person or event
musket (noun) A gun with a long barrel
party divide (noun) When political groups disagree on many issues and have trouble working together
plaque (noun) A sign put up to honor a person or event
 
platform (noun) The main beliefs and policies of a political party
political party (noun) An organized group of people with similar goals and opinions about how a nation should function. The United States has two major political parties: the Democratic Party and the Republican Party.
popular vote (noun) The votes cast by all eligible voters
regiment (noun) A organized group of soldiers, usually 1,000 men serving under a colonel
secede (verb) To separate from a political organization, like from a state or country
secession (noun) The act of separating from a political organization, like a state or country
sectionalism (noun) Loyalty to the interests of a specific region or section of a country
sharpshooter (noun) Someone who is very good at shooting things from far away
slaveholder (noun) A person who was recognized by law as owning enslaved people
slavery (noun) When human beings are treated as property and made to work for nothing
statue (noun) A figure of a person or animal made out of stone or bronze
territory (noun) An area of the United States that had not yet been been organized as a state
transcontinental railroad (noun) A railroad that crosses a whole continent
Union (noun) During the Civil War, the part of the country that remained loyal to the federal government of the United States of America
Union Army (noun) The armed forces for the northern states during the Civil War; this army was the military force of the United States
veteran (noun) A person who has served in the armed forces

The New Hampshire Historical Society’s journal, Historical New Hampshire, has published nearly two dozen articles about the Granite State in the sectional crisis leading up to the Civil War and war itself—too many to list individually here. Members of the New Hampshire Historical Society may access these articles online at the Society’s website (nhhistory.org). Nonmembers can access these articles through online subscription databases like America: History and Life or in printed form at the Society’s headquarters in Concord or in many local libraries around the state.

Online Article
“The Battle of Gettysburg”
By National Geographic Kids
For Students. An explanation of the battle geared toward elementary-age kids, with images
Online Article
“Civil War Book List”
By New York Times
For Educators. This online article provides a curated list and brief description of some of the best books about the American Civil War, although the list only goes up to 2010
Website
Civil War Curriculum Lesson Plans: Elementary School
By American Battlefield Trust
For Educators. A collection of eight standards-based lesson plans that align with Common Core and the National Council for the Social Studies
Website
The Civil War: A Dear America Activity
By Scholastic
For Educators. An article about the course of the war, lesson plans, and activities
Books
The Civil War Diary of Freeman Colby, vols. 1 & 2
By Marek Bennett
For Students and Educators. A graphic novel that tells the story of a young recruit from Henniker in a sometimes humorous but always entertaining way
Book
The Civil War for Kids: A History with 21 Activities
By Janis Herbert
For Students and Educators. A narrative history with biographies, quotes, and images, it includes a timeline and an activity guide, like making ink or creating a stretcher
Video
Crash Course #20: The Civil War, Part 1
By John Green
For Students and Educators. Fast-paced and irreverent video about the Civil War, with animations and other gimmicks to keep advanced students interested. Note that Crash Course has multiple videos on this topic and on slavery and the growing sectionalism that led to the war, but all videos were created for older student audiences
Video
Crash Course #21: The Civil War, Part 2
By John Green
For Students and Educators. A continuation of the fast-paced and irreverent video about the Civil War, with animations and other gimmicks to keep advanced students interested. Note that Crash Course has multiple videos on this topic and on slavery and the growing sectionalism that led to the war, but all videos were created for older student audiences
Book
Franklin Pierce: New Hampshire’s Favorite Son
By Peter A. Wallner
For Educators. The definitive biography of the early life of Franklin Pierce, covering his birth to his election to the presidency
Book
Franklin Pierce: A Martyr for the Union
By Peter A. Wallner
For Educators. The second volume of the definitive biography of Franklin Pierce, covering his years in the White House and after his term ended
Book
The History of the Civil War: A History Book for New Readers
By Susan B. Katz
For Students. An introduction written for elementary children; includes illustrations, a visual timeline, and a test-your-knowledge quiz to reinforce learning
Book
Men of Granite: New Hampshire’s Soldiers in the Civil War
By Duane E. Shaffer
For Educators. Covers the daily lives of the soldiers who served from New Hampshire
Book
My Brave Boys: To War with Colonel Cross and the Fighting Fifth
By Mike Pride and Mark Travis
For Educators. A narrative history of the Fifth New Hampshire when it was under the command of its famed leader, Colonel Edward Cross
Book
New Hampshire and the Civil War: Voices from the Granite State
By Bruce D. Heald and William Hallett
For Educators. Overview of the various regiments from New Hampshire that served during the war