37 maps that explain the American Civil War

View animated battle maps from every major skirmish of the war

The American Battlefield Trust's animated maps trace every major Civil War battle with moving troop lines, narration, and historical context—bringing the strategies, turning points, and human cost of the war to life.

Explore an interactive map of battles from the American Revolution, along with detailed summaries of each engagement

Where was the Civil War fought?

The Civil War is commonly described as a war between northern and southern US states, but where was the war actually fought? Watch this interactive map and timeline to see who fought who and when. Click on specific battles to learn more about each fight.

See the army generals who helped define the Civil War

Hear profiles of the Union and Confederate commanders whose choices defined the war's outcome—from Grant and Lee to Sherman, Jackson, and others. See how their actions, tactics, and skills shaped the Civil War.

The Civil War was the deadliest conflict in American history

Between 1861 and 1865, an estimated 620,000 to 750,000 soldiers died from battle and disease—more than in all other US wars combined.

The American War of Independence included over 1,500 military engagements

Several hundred of these were major battles like Yorktown, Saratoga, and Bunker’s Hill. This interactive map shows the locations of key locations of the conflict, highlighting major factors in each battle and their outcome.

See rare Civil War photographs preserved by the National Archives

The Civil War was the first major American conflict documented by a camera, with its images distributed widely to the public. The National Archives' digital collection offers thousands of original Civil War images: portraits, battlefields, hospitals, and everyday life.

The Civil War turned the Continental Divide into an American symbol of identity

Historians argue that the boundary only became a celebrated American symbol in the 1860s, when Civil War-era leaders promoted a west-east geographic divide to replace the devastating north-south political divide, and that the term's use spiked after the transcontinental railroad crossed it in 1868.

A collection of contemporary maps from World War II

Newspapers published detailed maps of the conflict in real-time. See different portrayals of the situation, ranging from propaganda maps to speculative maps about the war's outcome. The fascinating depictions reveal how maps can show us the aspirations and intentions of different players in a global conflict.

Watch Ken Burns' documentary series on the American Revolution

In "The American Revolution," filmmaker Ken Burns presents the conflict as both a global war and a civil war, telling its story through the lives of soldiers, civilians, enslaved people, Native nations, and international allies.

The devastation of the American Civil War led to the establishment of Memorial Day

Tracing its origins to the post-Civil War era, Memorial Day began as local tributes to those who lost their lives in the war. Originally taking place annually on May 30, it was moved to the final Monday in May in 1971.

Hear how the world reacted to the American Civil War

European nations closely watched the Civil War for its economic and political consequences. Some European nations quietly engaged diplomatically with the Confederacy but withheld recognition. When the Union made slavery's abolition a central cause, European public opinion turned sharply against the South.

See a timeline of colonial settlement in North America

This interactive timeline uses archival maps, illustrations, and documents to trace early American history—from the failed 1590 Roanoke colony and Indigenous accounts of a devastating smallpox epidemic to the political tensions that culminated in the Revolutionary War.

Clark’s maps provided the first detailed record of the American West

Covering over 8,000 miles, William Clark’s maps charted rivers, mountains, and tribal territories with remarkable accuracy. Equipped with sextants, compasses, telescopes, and more, Clark became an expert at surveying—requiring extensive celestial and topographical observations each day.

Explore new and contemporary perspectives with Emerging Civil War

Emerging Civil War brings together historians and writers who offer fresh research, essays, and battlefield stories that uncover overlooked events, people, and places—showing that scholarship on the war is still evolving over 160 years later.

Illustrating the beginning and end of WWI through maps

In August of 1914, Germany invaded an ostensibly neutral Belgium, kick-starting World War I. The war became one of the deadliest conflicts in human history, decimating Europe and reshaping global politics for the next century. It also brought forward sweeping and terrifying new military technologies, a product of the Industrial Revolution. Explore 40 maps explaining the Great War in detail.

A graphic illustration of death tolls in historical events and wars

Which killed more, the American Civil War or the Korean War? Hurricane Katrina or the Titanic sinking? You’ll be surprised how wrong you are about death tolls.

A primary source timeline of US history (1600-1968)

Compiled by the Library of Congress, this archive walks through important events in US history through civil rights era, while providing primary sources to explore.

Nineteenth-century, hand-drawn infographics on US slavery and race

In the second half of the 19th century, researchers studying the behavior of the millions of emancipated Americans after the Civil War used "information graphics" to cut through the noise of racially charged debate. In this collection from Stanford, you can see century-old, stunningly hand-drawn data visualizations showing racial demographics, the effects of emancipation on cotton prices, and more.

An interactive map of 250 American places worth visiting before you die

The Smithsonian created ten categories of landmarks—from history and food to oddball Americana and architecture—to enrich your celebration of America's semiquincentennial. You can sort by region or category, see a map of each location, and learn each spot's significance in a clean, aesthetic user interface.

The real stories behind America's national parks

The history and impact of national parks is complex. The authors of "Olmsted and Yosemite: Civil War, Abolition, and The National Park Idea" curated this list of nonfiction books examining American national parks from a variety of perspectives.

Map of union membership by state

In the United States, unions exist across the entire country, but some states have more union members than others. Multiple reasons exist: from policy differences across states, to industrial and cultural influences. Want to learn more? Find out which state has the highest percentage of union membership, and which one has the lowest, through this map.

Tour this virtual museum of important events and letters from the Vietnam War

The Vietnam War lasted about 20 years, killed millions, and ended with half of a divided country engulfing the other. What else do you know about it? Learn more in this virtual exhibit, which includes videos, text blurbs, and audio clips; covers important events from the war; and features handwritten letters from those involved.

40 maps that explain North Korea

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) is one of the most misunderstood countries in the world. Use these maps and charts, compiled by Vox, for context and clarity on North Korea. North Korea has a large military and an advanced nuclear...

The causes of American rebellion were multifaceted

British taxes on colonists to pay for the French and Indian War were just one element. Thousands of miles of separation between London and the Colonies, expanding territories, a distinct Colonial identity, and political conflicts combined to prompt the Revolution.

Snowfall records from every county in the US

Discover the one-day snowfall records of every county in the US in this comprehensive map. Data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration captures inches of snowfall and the year it fell the most in each county. See the contrasts between the inches of snowfall in warm southern American states and the cooler East Coast.

Meet the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence—most of whom didn't put pen to paper until August 2, 1776—and see their original signatures.

Hear about the 250-year history of the United States Postal Service, complete with some of its strangest deliveries, important innovations, and the figures that made it an American institution.

Abraham Lincoln was almost assassinated weeks before his inauguration as he traveled from Illinois to DC through Baltimore in 1861; it took two independent claims for Lincoln to be convinced the threat was real

See the most iconic photos from four decades of LIFE magazine

View the ten deadliest tornadoes in US history.

Explore an interactive map built from more than 100,000 survey responses on where people find joy in their lives

The US Constitution is widely regarded as the longest-standing written national constitution still in force—see how it has influenced rights worldwide.

'Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone,' a work by American painter Thomas Moran, inspired Congress to establish Yellowstone National Park.

Stanford built a Google Maps for the Roman Empire, revealing how much it cost to travel in the ancient world

The Russia-Ukraine conflict is the largest ground war in Europe since World War II in casualties, forces mobilized, and displacement of civilians.

Visualize the path of every solar eclipse from 1900 to 2099 and see what each looks like when observed from different locations on Earth.

44% of Americans say they pray at least once a day—discover how your state's religiosity stacks up against the rest of the country.

The American Society of Civil Engineers' infrastructure report card gave the US a C in 2025, its highest grade since the project launched in 1998.

See how each of the more than two million known species relates to each other—and to common ancestors—in this zoomable tree of life.

Browse a detailed visual analysis of over 200,000 similes—comparisons that often use 'like' or 'as'—from popular fiction to see how frequently writers the same idiomatic expressions.

The United States has had a tumultuous relationship with Cuba since its 1959 revolution, highlighted by a nuclear crisis and a decades-long trade embargo.

The American cockroach is actually from Africa, an apparent hitchhiker aboard ships carrying enslaved people, with evidence suggesting the bug may have arrived in the New World as early as the 1600s.

See how fireworks are made and learn how metals like magnesium and copper are responsible for different colors.

The Brothers Grimm were lawyers before they were storytellers, but became interested in fairy tales as they began investigating how rules and customs had been passed down through cultures.

See how Budweiser's famous Clydesdales spend their days at Warm Springs Ranch, where roughly 70 to 80 of the beer brand's giant horses can be found at any given time.

This poison ivy knowledge quiz—accompanied by photos of the plant's varied forms—may help you identify this common rash-inducing growth.

Gerrymandering works through two techniques: cracking opposing voters across districts to dilute their power, and packing them into a few to waste their votes in lopsided majorities.

Sunflowers have long been a symbol of nuclear disarmament because they can extract large amounts of radioactive cesium from soil.

Ebola infects and disables immune cells, triggering a cascade of events that leads to small blood clots throughout the body, weakening blood vessels and interrupting blood flow to key organs.