Civil War
Our Civil War exhibit has many interesting items, from flags to musical instruments. Here are a few highlights from the collection:
- A medical kit that belonged to Dr. L.T. Hoyt of Roseville, who was a physician in the area during the mid-20th century, a time when many doctors still made house calls. These kits contained a variety of medicines to treat common ailments.
- A newspaper called the Vicksburg Wallpaper. During the Siege of Vicksburg in 1863, the Confederate forces within the besieged city were low on supplies, including paper. The local newspaper, the Daily Citizen, continued operations in order to boost morale. When the printing presses ran out of paper, they printed the news on wallpaper from local houses.
- A print of the First Reading of the Emancipation Proclamation of President Lincoln by Francis Bicknell Carpenter, which dates from approximately 1900. The original painting was commissioned in 1864 and resides in the United States Capitol.
- A piece of hardtack that was given to soldiers during the Civil War. It's not often that you get to see food from 150 years ago!
