Includes bibliographical references and index.

An imperfect union, 1815-1860 -- Introduction -- Timeline -- the state of the nation -- A question of union -- Slavery divides the country -- Frederick Douglass -- The fury of abolition -- Slave auction -- Bleeding Kansas -- The rise of the Republican Party -- The raid at Harpers Ferry -- The election of 1860 -- Abraham Lincoln.

Secession triggers war, 1861 -- Introduction -- Timeline -- The union is dissolved -- Jefferson Davis -- The call to arms -- Fort Sumter -- The South's challenge -- Union and Confederate flags -- Raising armies -- The first Battle of Bull Run -- First encounter -- Organizing for the fight -- George B. McClellan -- The sinews of war -- Missouri and Kentucky -- Blockading the South -- Courting European allies.

Clash of armies, 1862 -- Introduction -- Timeline -- Soldiers in gray -- Confederate uniforms -- Soldiers in blue -- Union uniforms -- Fighting on foot -- The Battle of Hampton Roads -- The fall of New Orleans -- David Farragut -- Action on the Mississippi River -- CSS Arkansas runs through the Union fleet -- Grant takes Forts Henry and Donelson -- The Battle of Shiloh -- The Hornet's Nest at Shiloh -- Jackson in the Shenandoah Valley -- Thomas J. Jackson -- Rifles and muskets -- The Peninsula Campaign -- The Seven Days Battles -- The second Battle of Bull Run -- Longstreet's flank attack at second Bull Run -- Robert E. Lee -- Lee invades Maryland -- Field artillery -- Espionage and intelligence -- The Battle of Antietam -- Burnside's Bridge at Antietam -- Burnside takes the offensive -- The Far West -- Bragg invades Kentucky -- Braxton Bragg -- The battle of Stones River -- Cavalry in the Civil War -- Cavalry equipment.

The Union tightens its grip, 1863 -- Introduction -- Timeline -- The Emancipation Proclamation -- African-Americans in the War -- Journey to freedom -- Harriet Tubman -- The role of Black troops -- Assault on Fort Wagner -- Immigrants in the ranks -- The Battle of Chancellorsville -- The death of Jackson -- Lee advances north -- The Battle of Gettysburg -- Little Round Top -- James Longstreet -- The Vicksburg Campaign -- Surrender at Vicksburg -- Ulysses S. Grant -- The home front -- War-weary people -- Riots in New York -- Medicine and medical services -- Medical equipment -- Clara Barton -- The Chickamauga Campaign -- The Chattanooga Campaign -- George H. Thomas -- The railroad in War -- Communications -- Guerrillas and partisans -- Operations in the Indian Territory and Texas -- the Gettysburg Address.

Grant, Sherman, and total war, 1864 -- Introduction -- Timeline -- Lincoln prevails -- The Wilderness Campaign -- In the trenches at Spotsylvania -- Photography in the War -- Maneuvering toward Richmond -- Jeb Stuart -- Pistols -- Rebel victories -- Prisoners of War -- Andersonville Prison Camp -- The Battle of Cold Harbor -- Grant advances to Petersburg -- Supply, transportation, and logistics -- The Valley Campaign -- Philip Sheridan -- Sheridan's Ride -- The siege of Petersburg -- Siege artillery and siege warfare -- The Battle of the Crater -- Naval developments -- Confederate raiders -- The duel of the Alabama and the Kearsarge -- The Battle of Mobile Bay -- Mississippi operations -- Nathan Bedford Forrest -- Sherman's advance to Atlanta -- Sherman's March to the Sea -- William Tecumseh Sherman -- Franklin and Nashville.

Collapse of the Confederacy, 1865 -- Introduction -- Timeline -- The Thirteenth Amendment -- The Carolinas and Alabama -- The fall of Petersburg and Richmond -- The Appomattox Campaign -- Surrender at Appomattox -- The assassination of Lincoln -- The last hours of Lincoln -- Last terms of surrender -- Andrew Johnson.

Legacies of the war, 1865-1877 -- Introduction -- Timeline -- The cost of the War -- The politics of Reconstruction -- The reality of Black freedom -- "Redeeming" the South -- The end of Reconstruction -- The Travis Panorama -- The War remembered -- In their footsteps.

Presents a pictorial history of the Civil War that includes artifacts, maps, personal narratives, and historical timelines for each year of the war.