Civil War Union Brigadier General, Congressional Medal of Honor Recipient, Maine Governor. This is such an impressive individual that we made an article about his life located here: Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain: Lion of the Union
Before the U.S. Civil War he was a college professor living in Brunswick Maine. He served in Maine's 20th under Colonel Adelbert Ames and was present with his regiment during the Battles of Antietam and Fredericksburg. He was promoted to Colonel and assumed command of the unit after the Battle of Chancellorsville, leading with distinction during the Gettysburg Campaign.
On the second day during the battle of Gettysburg (July 2nd 1863) he commanded the 20th Maine in its famous defense of Little Round Top. His unit, posted as left flank of the Union Army, fended off repeated Confederate attacks throughout the day, and broke the Confederate lines by a bayonet charge ordered and led by Col. Chamberlain. His actions on that day earned him a Medal of Honor and he assumed command of a brigade in August 1863 where he participated in the Battles of the Wilderness, Spotsylvania, Cold Harbor. His troops were among the first to reach Petersburg, where he was severely wounded and was put out of action for months.
World War 1, the Mexican Revolution, the Russian Revolution, the Easter Rising in Ireland . . . the sinking of the Titanic and the Lusitania. Spanish flu killed well over 20 million people world wide ...
The American Civil War began on April 12, 1861 and ended on May 10,1865, lasting 4 years, 3 weeks, and 6 days. 750,000 soldiers died in the Civil War, making it the deadliest war in United States hi...
I'm a Founder of AncientFaces and support the community answering questions & helping members make connections to the past (thus my official title of Founder & Content and Community Support ). For me, it's been a labor of love for over 20 years. I truly believe with all of my heart that everyone should be remembered for generations to come.
I am 2nd generation San Jose and have seen a lot of changes in the area while growing up. We used to be known as the "Valley of Heart's Delight" (because the Valley was covered with orchards and there were many canneries to process the food grown here, which shipped all over the US) - now we have adopted the nickname "Capital of Silicon Valley" and Apple, Ebay, Adobe, Netflix, Facebook, and many more tech companies are within a few miles of my current home in San Jose (including AncientFaces). From a small town of 25,000, we have grown to 1 million plus. And when you add in all of the communities surrounding us (for instance, Saratoga, where I attended high school, living a block from our previous Mayor), we are truly one of the big cities in the US. I am so very proud of my hometown. For more information see Kathy - Founder & Content and Community Director My family began AncientFaces because we believe that unique photos and stories that show who people are/were should be shared with the world.