We’ve decided to open up comments here on The Long Recall. It’s perhaps a bit out of the ordinary to have comments on what is essentially a news site (albeit one unstuck in time), but we think that in this case it is a worthwhile experiment. We hope our readers will use the space to help enrich the experience for everyone by suggesting things we may have missed or helping add context to events as they unfold. Please do keep in mind, though, that we’re scrupulously trying to keep our knowledge of “the future” from coloring our daily reports. To the extent possible, therefore, we ask that you do the same when commenting: discussion of the past is OK, but please don’t talk about what is about to happen.
For something as foundational to the American experience as the Civil War, we expect there to be disagreements–often deeply felt ones. Nevertheless, uncivil commenting will not be tolerated. For what we mean by “uncivil”, we refer you to the comments policy on Walter Russell Mead’s Via Meadia as a starting point. The Long Recall is a fundamentally different project, of course, so we reserve the right to be more restrictive if the situation demands it. We will, of course, strive to be as transparent as possible with our readership. If you have any questions, please refer back to this page for updates to our policy.
–The Editors
Could you possibly add a section on your research process and what online resources you are using to find and host newspaper clippings, etc.?
Thanks for the suggestion. We’ll do something like that soon.
We’re also working out a way to set up a parallel “editors’ blog” which would document and explain some of the continuity problems we’re encountering in presenting news from across the country on a daily basis at a time when news took much longer to travel.
A minor error I just noticed. In the entry for January 28th, 1861, the last article is said to be from De Bow’s Review. It’s actually from the North American Review. Article is at: http://dlxs2.library.cornell.edu/cgi/t/text/pageviewer-idx?c=nora;cc=nora;rgn=full%20text;idno=nora0092-1;didno=nora0092-1;view=image;seq=0007;node=nora0092-1%3A2
Keep up the good work. This project is my number one site on the Web.
Kudos to those responsible for gathering and posting The Long Recall.
As a Civil War reenactor- I look forward each day to the headlines- it has been a real help in fine tuning my understanding of the feel of the time and will no doubt lead me to a better CW impression for the public.
Thank you !
Thank you for the encouraging words Heather. Please feel free to suggest any features for the project as we move forward. We’re constantly looking for ways to improve the experience.