Touch the Elbow - Blogging the Civil War

As promised, we've updated the list of Civil War related conferences scheduled for the rest of the year. Please let us know if we've missed any.

This post originally ran on May 10th. Thanks to tips from readers Hal Jespersen and Jim Schmidt one correction and one additional conference have been added.

Sponsor: Center for Civil War Photography
2010 Theme: Civil War photography
Dates: Friday, October 1 to Sunday, October 3, 2010
Location: Gettysburg, PA
Registration fees: Non-members $295 before July 21st; $325 after July 21st
Notes: Combines lectures on the different aspects of Civil War photography with battlefield tours, including an all-day tour of the battlefield on Saturday.


Sponsor: Center for the Study of the Civil War
2010 Theme: Petersburg: In the Trenches with the Common Soldier
Dates: Thursday, June 24 to Sunday, June 27, 2010
Location: Pamplin Historical Park, Petersburg, Virginia
Registration fees: Tuition only: $395 Tuition, Room and Board: $555-687
Notes: "To study the Petersburg Campaign and the soldiers who fought there, no site could be better than Pamplin Historical Park in Petersburg, Virginia... We will spend TWO DAYS touring the Petersburg Battlefield and associated sites, including City Point, the Crater site, the Breakthrough Battlefield, and A.P. Hill’s death site, led by Pamplin Park’s director, A. Wilson Greene. Each year, we bring together a group of distinguished and respected Civil War historians to share their expertise with our seminar participants. These talented teachers and writers remain available to seminar participants throughout the seminar for questions and discussion."


Sponsor: Chambersburg Chamber Conference
2010 Theme: Civil War related seminars
Dates: July 21-24, “From Cedar Mountain to Antietam.”
Sept. 24-26, “Lee: An Examination of One of America’s Great Commanders”
Location: Sheraton Four Points Hotel, Chambersburg, PA
Registration fees: Non-members $425.00
Notes: The Chamber has offered seminars focusing on the history of the region for more than 20 years. The seminars, coordinated by historian Ted Alexander, have raised more than $125,000 for battlefield preservation since their inception in 1989. “Since the seminars began, more than 6,000 men and women from 38 states and four foreign countries have trekked to our area to take part in these educational seminars,” Alexander said. Three Civil War seminars in 2009 attracted 154 people to Chambersburg from throughout the United States and Canada.


Sponsor: Civil War Institute
2010 Theme: The Election of 1860
Dates: Sunday, June 27 to Saturday, July 3, 2010
Location: Gettysburg, PA
Registration fees: Tuition only: $430; with Room and Board: $690-$805
Notes: "The theme for the 2010 Civil War Institute Conference will focus on the "Election of 1860" considering the politics of the day, introducing the "characters" surrounding the election, and Secession with historians Michael Burlingame, Allen Guelzo, Matthew Pinsker, Michael Holt, Craig Symonds, and others. Former Senator George McGovern will speak on his new book, Abraham Lincoln."


Sponsor: Civil War Preservation Trust
2010 Theme: Battle in the Bluegrass: The Fight for Kentucky
Dates: Thursday, June 3 to Sunday, June 6, 2010
Location: Lexington, KY
Registration fees: via Internet: $575; via mail: $585; does not include hotel costs
Notes: "Join CWPT members and staff, along with some of the nation's elite historians for four days of camaraderie and Civil War touring at some of America's great Civil War battlefields."


Sponsor: Friends of Civil War Alcatraz
2010 Theme: Coastal Defense: Blood on the Ramparts
Dates: Friday, November 12 to Sunday, November 14, 2010
Location: San Francisco War Memorial, San Francisco, CA
Registration fees: $179 prior to October 1st; $199 after October 1st
Notes: "Lectures will be held in the San Francisco War Memorial, featuring speakers including James M. McPherson, Craig L. Symonds, Jim Stanbery, John Martini, and Rick Hatcher. On Sunday, November 14, an optional tour will visit Alcatraz Island, Fort Point, the Presidio, and Fort Mason."


Sponsor: Mosby Heritage Area Association
2010 Theme: Art of Command: The Battle of Fredericksburg
Dates: Friday, October 1 to Sunday, October 3, 2010
Location: please contact the Association
Registration fees: $400; for details and registration call 540-687-6681 or go online
Notes: "Lectures Friday and Saturday plus Sunday tour of the Fredericksburg battlefield."


Sponsor: National Museum of Civil War Medicine
2010 Theme: (see Notes)
Dates: Friday, October 1 to Sunday, October 3, 2010
Location: Towson, MD
Registration fees:
Notes: the NMCWM Web site is undergoing redesign, however the site can be accessed on Facebook, Twitter, and their Blog to obtain details.


Sponsor: Rice University
2010 Theme: Millennialism and Providentism in the Era of the American Civil War
Dates: Friday, October 1 to Saturday, October 2, 2010
Location: Rice University, Houston, Texas
Registration fees: To be announced
Notes: This conference is still in the early planning stages. In the call for papers the following appeared: "Recent studies have emphasized the importance of the Civil War in recasting the millennial spirit and providential expectations that coursed through antebellum culture. Yet recent historiography leaves pressing questions unanswered as to the fate of these energies after the War. It is to this end that the history department at Rice University seeks to initiate a critical reconsideration of millennialism, the Civil War era, and American culture."


Sponsor: Shenandoah Civil War Associates
2010 Theme: The Lincoln Assassination: Path of the Conspirators
Dates: Friday, June 25 to Sunday, June 27, 2010
Location: Colony South Hotel, Clinton, MD
Registration fees: Tuition only: $350
Notes: "Participants will visit the Navy Yard Museum, Ford’s Theater, and Lincoln’s Cottage at the Soldiers’ Home. Visit the Surratt House Museum in Clinton, Md., country home of Mary Surratt. On June 27 there will be an all day tour of Booth’s escape route."


Sponsor: Society of Civil War Historians
2010 Theme: Biennial Meeting
Dates: Thursday, June 17 to Saturday, June 19, 2010
Location: Marriott Hotel, Richmond, Virginia
Registration fees: Non-member: $100 prior to June 1st
Notes: "The goal of the conference is to promote the integration of social, military, political, and other forms of history on the Civil War era among historians, graduate students, and professionals who interpret history in museums, national parks, archives, and other public facilities."


Sponsor: Society for Women and the Civil War
2010 Theme: Antebellum Antecedents of War
Dates: Friday, July 23 to Sunday, July 25, 2010
Location: Peace College, Raleigh, NC
Registration fees: Non-members $250
Notes: the conference features lectures, workshops, and field trips related to the important role of women in the Civil War


Sponsor: University of Virginia
2010 Theme: "The Lost Cause" And Civil War Memory
Dates: Fall 2010 (Specific dates TBA; check the Web site for updates)
Location: University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA
Registration fees:
Notes: "The U.Va. Civil War Weekend Seminar is for those who value investigating not only the events, but also the hearts and minds behind the Civil War. It is suited for those who have great knowledge of the Civil War as well as those wanting to gain more. Teachers, students, friends, multigenerational family pairings….this is an experience for anyone who seeks out unique travel and learning opportunities that provide intellectual stimulation in a warm, congenial, and truly beautiful environment."


Sponsor: Virginia Center for Civil War Studies
2010 Theme: Campaigning With Lee
Dates: Sunday, June 20 to Saturday, June 26, 2010
Location: Clarion Hotel, Hagerstown, MD
Registration fees: Not listed
Notes: The annual Campaigning with Lee seminar, known as "Bud's Brigade," brings together Civil War enthusiasts from across the nation to learn more about the rich history of the Civil War. Day-long field trips to local historic sites are planned. Registration will be on a first-come, first-served basis. Maximum enrollment is 145 people.


Sponsor: Virginia Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War Commission
Theme: Race, Slavery and the American Civil War: The Tough Stuff of American History and Memory
Dates: Friday, September 24, 2010
Location: Norfolk State University, Norfolk, Virginia
Registration fees: This is a free event, but online reserved seating is recommended
Notes: "the second of seven annual Signature Conferences sponsored by the Virginia Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War Commission and hosted by Norfolk State University. Noted historians will gather in the state of the art L. Douglas Wilder Performing Arts Center to discuss various aspects of Race, Slavery and the Civil War: The Tough Stuff of American History and Memory."