The Meaning of Union

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Historians identify individuals’ thoughts and feelings about the Civil War through analyzing letters, diaries, books, newspapers, etc. They look for motivations, inconsistencies, and keywords that explain why individuals supported one side or the other during the Civil War.

Those same ideas are conveyed visually as well. The documents, linked in this resource, contain images, logos, and government seals that demonstrate devotion to the Union through patriotic imagery during the war. 

Grade Levels & Kentucky Teaching Standards

5th Grade

5.C.RR.1

8th grade

8.H.CH.2

8.H.CH.3

8.H.CO.4

High School

HS.C.I.UE.2

HS.C.KGO.2

Primary Sources

Benjamin F. Blankenship to James F. Robinson

James Williams to James Robinson

Mary Ann Burns to James F. Robinson

John Maris to James F. Robinson

Secondary Literature

Gary W. Gallagher, The Union War (Harvard University Press, 2011). 

James M. McPherson, What They Fought For 1861–1865 (Doubleday, 1995). 

David M. Henkin, The Postal Age: The Emergence of Modern Communications in Nineteenth-Century America (University of Chicago Press, 2006). 

Framing Questions
  • How do letterheads convey meaning in their symbols, colors, or text? Do the meanings change from source to source?
  • What do the letterheads tell you about the individuals writing the letters?
  • Why do you think color letterheads often were considered luxury items?

Terms for Discussion

Loyalty: faithful in allegiance to one's lawful sovereign or government.

Union: the federal union of states during the period of the American Civil War.

Secession: formal withdrawal from an organization, political compact, etc. 

Sovereignty: freedom from external control; supreme power over a body politic.

Neutrality: refusal to take part in a war between other powers.

Treason: the offense of attempting by overt acts to overthrow the government of the state to which the offender owes allegiance.  

Activities

Letter to the Governor

Have students design their own letterheads based on the designs in the provided sources and write a letter to one of Kentucky‘s three governors during the Civil War. See example here (pdf).

KWL

Have students complete a KWL chart (pdf) on Civil War letterheads.