Summary
Months after the Civil War ended Abraham Lincoln gave the Gettysburg Address. During this speech he talked about the fallen soldiers which gave a new meaning to war. Although the end of the Civil War eradicated slavery it also birthed different political, economic and social trends. The way in which the dead were dealt with was a growing concern during the Civil War. Obviously disposal of bodies was an issue especially since more people died during this war than any other American war. Over 600,000 soldiers died during the Civil War whereas 400,000 died during World War I. Soldiers feared dying and having to be buried by their opponents in the war, especially since the details of the burial conditions differed depending on who won the battle and which unit was assigned to burial duty. On the North, mostly African Americans were assigned burial duty. Therefore, a deceased soldier's burial would range from a blanket, separate grave, common grave, pine coffin, or burial container depending on what was available.
In addition to burial concerns, identification of the deceased was a growing issue. During this time the Federal Government helped The North with identification of bodies. This is why soldiers started pinning their name to their uniform leading to modern day dog tags. On the other hand, when they died in the hospital they had more resources, staff and time to take care of matters of identification. Not to mention they had cemeteries beside the property which made it even easier and organized for burial. In 1862 Congress approved and purchased land to erect twelve cemeteries near major battle fields.
Comments: