War of the Rebellion Atlas

The Atlas to Accompany the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies (also referred to as the War of the Rebellion Atlas) was published as a companion piece to the Official Records of the American Civil War. It contains maps and other images derived from materials generated by both Union and Confederate military personnel during the American Civil War.[1]

War of the Rebellion Atlas Plate 38, featuring maps of Galveston, TX; Charleston Harbor; and Port Hudson, Louisiana

Creation and Composition

The Atlas was published by the United States Department of War in 1895. It features maps of engagements large and small including Gettysburg, the Siege of Vicksburg, Shiloh and the various epochs of the Atlanta campaign.

The Atlas is composed of 178 plates containing more than 1,050 individual graphic elements.[2] Graphic elements include maps, line art illustrations derived from photographs, technical drawings, and other illustrations.[3]

Content

The Atlas contains three general types of illustrations: maps, illustrations based on photographs, and illustrations/technical drawings.[1]

Illustrations of uniforms worn by Union and Confederate soldiers, from the War of the Rebellion Atlas Plate 172
  • Maps
A total of 156 plates containing maps ranging from small-scale engagements to regional views and date-specific snapshots of long-running sieges like Vicksburg and Atlanta.
  • Illustrations based on photographs
Twelve (12) plates that include images of Charleston Harbor and Fort Sumter, Missionary Ridge and various elements of mid-nineteenth century warfare.
  • Illustrations and technical drawings
Ten (10) plates containing diagrams of defensive elements (redoubts, redans, and forts, for example), equipment and armaments, uniforms, and flags.

Digitization by Baylor University

In the fall of 2010, the Digitization Projects Group of the Baylor University Electronic Library digitized an extremely high quality copy of the Atlas and placed the plates online via their Digital Collections site. The collection is searchable by keywords including state, city, military personnel and battle name, among others.[4]

References
  1. The Official Records of the American Civil War: A Researchers’ Guide by Alan C. Aimone. 1972.
  2. "A Mammoth Book – Official Records of the Civil War Completed at Last, in 128 Volumes. Cost Nearly Three Millions of Dollars." New York Times, October 6, 1901
  3. The Official Military Atlas of the Civil War by George B. Davis, Leslie J. Perry, Joseph W. Kirkley ; compiled by Calvin D. Cowles; introduction by Richard Sommers. 2003.
  4. Baylor University Digital Collections page, War of the Rebellion Atlas homepage,https://digitalcollections-baylor.quartexcollections.com/documents/filteroption/the-texas-collection-war-of-the-rebellion-atlas/04cda0b7-03ba-4e8c-a19a-ac874bec2300/view, accessed April 2020.
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