The Northern Perspective

From a New England Woman's Diary in Dixie in 1865

A Northern Woman in the Confederacy: From the Diary of Mrs. Eugene McLean

Letters of a War Correspondent

The Whip, Hoe, and Sword; or, The Gulf-Department in '63

Leading up to, during, and after the Civil War, Union soldiers were not the only Northerners to venture south of the Mason-Dixon line. Indeed, men, women, and children moved and traveled throughout the South during this time and documented their reactions to the historical events they witnessed. As they experienced Southern culture, the politics of secession, the brutality of war, and the horrors of slavery, they had mixed reactions. For some, these experiences reinforced preconceived notions of the South. In contrast, others embraced the culture, supported the right of secession, and felt the institution of slavery was not as bad as abolitionists would have had them believe. In short, their experiences were as diverse as the reasons they went south.