Retracing Civil War History One Person, Place and Event at a Time

Last year, on Monday, May 26, 2025, the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War held a memorial service to honor those who sacrificed their lives for our country during the Civil War, 1861-1865. This is a highlight of events.

Freedom has always carried a cost. Today we remember those who paid it.

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It's Memorial Day weekend, so I thought there might be interest in a video I created a couple of years ago on Union General, Illinois politician, and Vice Presidential candidate John A. Logan.

John had an incredibly interesting life, but there are two things that stand out for me when I think of him:

1) He authored the 1854 Illinois Black Codes, the harshest discriminatory statutes in the free states, yet ten years later was one of the biggest supporters of the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments

2). Was the man behind Decoration Day (now Memorial Day), then designated as a national day of remembrance to honor those that died in the Civil War

I greatly enjoyed putting this video together, as John is a great example that prejudiced minds can be changed. He sacrificed a lot for changing his views, but remained committed to helping African Americans until his death. Even abolitionist and orator Frederick Douglass singled him out and praised him his work. I hope you find the man as interesting as I do.
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Though it's most notable resident was President Abraham Lincoln's Secretary of State William Seward, the entire Seward family left their mark on our history, so it's fitting that the historical site I recently visited is called the Seward House Museum.

Meet the family:

While William was off working in Albany as Governor, or in Washington D.C. as a NY Senator & later as U.S. Secretary of State, his wife Frances was using their Auburn home as part of the Underground Railroad. It's through this network that Frances became good friends with Harriet Tubman, who would eventually live just down the road from them.

Daughter Fanny is responsible for the most complete diary of a young lady living in Washington City during the Civil War.

Sons Augustus (who served in the Mexican War and the Civil War) & Frederick (Assistant Secretary of State during the Civil War) were attacked at their father's Washington City home on April 14, 1865 by Lewis Powell. Their father, William, was laid up in bed from a bad carriage accident; he was the main target, and received several stabbings in the face and neck, but managed to survive. William had been assigned to Powell by John Wilkes Booth, who shot President Lincoln that same evening while at Ford's Theatre.

Oh, and don't forget William Jr., who had a knack for money & banking, and would inherit the Seward's Auburn, NY estate after both of his parents had died.

Pretty impressive family, isn't it?

If you are looking to visit a home where more than 95% of the items belonged to the family, this is the house for you. Almost everything is original to the home & family, and with it's connection to the Underground Railroad, it makes it a must-see. This is my second visit, and in both tours (which often last around an hour or even more) I learned a great deal of information and walked away feeling like I knew the family personally. It's one of those historical sites where you learn something new every time.

I love the library, the shelves with Fanny Seward's book collection, the gallery of notables, and the green couch that William Seward passed away on. There are also a few relics from the assassination attempt.

I would have loved to have spent some time in the garden, but there was a great deal of work going on. During the Republican National Convention in Chicago, Illinois, May 16-18, 1860, William Seward is said to have spent a lot of time between the home and the garden, waiting for new updates to arrive. He was expecting to win the Republican nomination for President, but he lost to Abraham Lincoln.