American Civil War Museum

Mornings at the Museum: Celebrating Christmas in the Civil War
2025-12-22 10:00 - 12:00 (America/New_York)
Decorations and food are a beloved part of celebrating the holiday season. Come craft your very own Civil War–era Christmas decorations and join us as we explore popular recipes from the Civil War and how civilians and soldiers adapted when ingredients became scarce.

Recommended for children!

Mornings at the Museum: Battling Boredom – Soldiers' Games Behind the Lines
2025-12-29 10:00 - 12:00
Step into the everyday lives of Civil War soldiers and discover how they stayed entertained between battles!

When soldiers weren’t fighting, they relied on creativity, camaraderie, and classic games to pass the time – many of which we still play today. Join us to make your own knapsack checkerboard and experience games from the civil war.

Recommended for children!

Lunch & Learn: Love in Lynchburg—Where North Met South
2026-01-12 12:00 - 12:45
Part of our Lunch & Learn series! Bring your own lunch (or feel free to grab something to go from our neighbor, Daisy’s) and join us for this noontime talk in the ACWM—Tredegar lobby!

January Topic:

The Slaughters of Lynchburg: Where North Met South with Robert Hancock

Mary Harker was a young Quaker girl from Mt. Holly, New Jersey. John Slaughter was a slaveholder living and working in Lynchburg, VA. In 1861 they had been married eight years and had three sons with a fourth child on the way. So how did these two people, with obviously disparate backgrounds, end up together?

John was teased that “the prettiest girl in New Jersey was marrying the ugliest man in Virginia.” Was it some sort of arranged marriage?

How did Mary reconcile her Quaker upbringing with managing a home with five enslaved servants? And would their relationship survive the war when Mary traveled home to her parents and John stayed to defend Lynchburg against an approaching Union army?

Included with Museum Admission/ Free to Members

In-Person Book Talk: After the Fire with Nelson Lankford
2026-01-22 18:00 - 19:15
Explore Richmond’s rebirth after the 1865 fire in After the Fire with Dr. Nelson Lankford in this compelling look at a city reshaped by war.

In April 1865, the war that had consumed Richmond for four years ended in a massive fire that nearly destroyed the city. As the smoke cleared, no one knew what kind of society would emerge to replace the world that had been lost. After the Fire offers a wide range of perspectives that bring this vanished moment to life—one marked by hardship, defeat, celebration, false starts, and the rise of Confederate nostalgia and attempts at racial reconciliation. The book traces the struggles of Confederates and Unionists, men and women, and Black and white residents as they fought to shape the postwar future of Virginia’s capital city.

For thirty years, Dr. Nelson D. Lankford edited the Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, the quarterly journal of the Virginia Museum of History and Culture. He is the author or editor of eight books, the best known being Richmond Burning: The Last Days of the Confederate Capital. His new book, which he will discuss in this lecture, is its sequel. After the Fire: Richmond in Defeat continues the story of the city and its people in the aftermath of war and devastation.

Dr. Lankford is a native of Hampton, Virginia. He received his B.A. from the University of Richmond and his Ph.D. and MBA from Indiana University Bloomington.

5 PM: Members Reception

6 – 7:15 PM: Lecture followed by Book Signing

Lunch & Learn: Voices of Abolition
2026-02-02 12:00 - 12:45
Part of our Lunch & Learn series! Bring your own lunch (or feel free to grab something to go from our neighbor, Daisy’s) and join us for this noontime talk in the ACWM—Tredegar lobby!

February Topic:

Voices of Abolition with Kelly Hancock

In 1830, the first Negro Convention was held, marking the beginning of Black involvement in the abolition movement. However, the contributions of a few African Americans, with the exception of Frederick Douglass, are widely unknown today. From debates over colonization to moral suasion and outright violence, African Americans were at the forefront of shaping and maintaining the movement. This talk will shed light on several key individuals and their persistent efforts to bring about the end of slavery and achieve equality under the law.

Included with Museum Admission/ Free to Members

Relationships Forged in War Symposium (February 13—15)
2026-02-14 08:45 - 17:30
The American Civil War was not only a clash of armies and ideologies, but it also shaped and tested loyalty, friendship, family, and enmity on the battlefield and within the halls of government across a divided nation. The 2026 ACWM Symposium will explore human connections that emerged from conflict.

New to the symposium this year!

A full weekend Civil War history experience you may customize to your schedule and interests.This year we are pleased to provide more options and more opportunities to engage with the museum, symposium speakers, and our historians! Join small group tours of the collections, a special “Meet the Speakers” Q&A program and private reception in the museum, and ACWM historian-led battlefield tours on Friday and Sunday! Scroll down for more details.

Symposium daylong event occurs on Saturday, February 14, 2026 from 9:30am-5:30pm. Doors Open: 8:45am

LECTURES WILL BE PRESENTED BY:

•Dr. Jonathan White, Professor of American Studies, Christopher Newport University“Unlikely Collaborators: Frederick Douglass, Abraham Lincoln, and the Promise of America”

•Dr. Brandi Brimmer, Morehead-Cain Alumni Associate Professor, Director of Graduate Studies, Department of African, African American, and Diaspora Studies, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.“Black Women, Civil War Memory, and the U.S. Pension Bureaucracy”

•Dr. William C. “Jack” Davis, retired Executive Director of the Virginia Center for Civil War Studies and Professor of History at Virginia Tech.“Davis, Johnston, and Beauregard–The Triple-play that Crippled the Confederacy”

•Dr. Lindsay Privette, associate professor of history, Anderson University“Together at Vicksburg: Exploring the Bonds Between Commanders, Surgeons, and Soldiers”

•Dr. Caroline Janney, John L Nau, III, Professor in History of American Civil War, Director, John L. Nau III Center for Civil War History“From Partisan Warrior to Family Man: The Personal Relationships of John S. Mosby”

TICKET OPTIONS•General – $100•Member – $75•Student – $35

ADD-ONS•Friday: “Relationships Forged in War” Themed Collections Tours – $25 per person•Friday: Meet the Speakers & Reception in the Museum– $40•Saturday: Lunch – $12.50•Friday & Sunday: Battlefield Tour – $35 PER PERSON

“Relationships Forged in War” Themed Collections Tours

Join us Friday at ACWM-Tredegar for a “Relationships Forged in War” themed Collections Tour! Enjoy an intimate 8-person tour of our artifact collection led by Director of Collections, Robert Hancock.

Friday, February 13th, 2026

Slot Times: 2pm, 3pm, 4pm

Meet the Speakers Q&A Program & Reception in the Museum

Join us Friday from 5-7:00pm at ACWM–Tredegar for the “Meet the Speakers” program. The talk starts in the auditorium at 5PM, followed by a reception at 6PM.

Friday, February 13th, 2026

5:00pm – 7:00pm

Battlefield Tours

Caravan tours: participants will drive their own vehicles to meet an ACWM historic site interpreter at the stops for an overview of troop movements and battles.

Overland Campaign

Friday, February 13th, 2026

9:00am – 3:00pm

The tour begins at the Germanna Visitor Center (2062 Germanna Hwy, Locust Grove VA) near the site where Grant’s army crossed the Rapidan River to begin the campaign. From there, the tour proceeds through the Wilderness Battlefield (NPS), stopping at Saunders Field and the Widow Tapp Farm. Following the route taken by Grant’s army, the tour moves on to the Spotsylvania Courthouse Battlefield (NPS) with stops at Laurel Hill, the Muleshoe, and the fortification exhibit. From there, the tour continues on to the North Anna Battlefield site, then to the Totopotomoy Creek Battlefield (NPS), and finally the Cold Harbor Battlefield (NPS). At Cold Harbor, the group will be able to briefly explore the earthworks.

Appomattox Campaign

Sunday, February 15th, 2026

9:00am – 3:00pm

The caravan tour begins at ACWM-Tredegar and follows the retreat route of General Richard S. Ewell’s Richmond defense forces. The first stop will be at Branch’s Baptist Church, where General Custis Lee’s forces from the Chaffin’s Bluff defenses joined the main marching column. The tour proceeds to Mt. Zion Road near Jetersville for the story of Amelia Court House and the retreat’s westward turn, before stopping at Deatonville and Sayler’s Creek Battlefield (VSP). From there, the tour makes its way to Farmville, the Cumberland Church battlefield, Clifton (Grant’s headquarters from April 8-9), and New Hope Church (Confederate rear guard April 8-9). The tour concludes at ACWM-Appomattox with a talk about the Battle of Appomattox Station and the group doing a self-guided tour of the museum galleries.

SATURDAY’S Daylong SYMPOSIUM SCHEDULE:

8:45–9:30 AM – Check-in

9:30 AM – Opening Remarks

9:40–10:40 AM – Dr. Jonathan White, Christopher Newport University “Unlikely Collaborators: Frederick Douglass, Abraham Lincoln, and the Promise of America” and Q&A

11:00 AM–12:00 PM – Dr. Lindsay Privette, Anderson University “Together at Vicksburg: Exploring the Bonds Between Commanders, Surgeons, and Soldiers” and Q&A

12:00PM – Lunch

1:00–2:00 PM – Dr. Caroline Janney, University of Virginia “From Partisan Warrior to Family Man: The Personal Relationships of John S. Mosby” and Q&A

2:20–3:20 PM – Dr. Brandi Brimmer, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill “Black Women, Civil War Memory, and the U.S. Pension Bureaucracy” and Q&A

3:40–4:40 PM – Dr. William C. “Jack” Davis, Virginia Tech (ret.) “Davis, Johnston, and Beauregard—The Triple-Play that Crippled the Confederacy” and Q&A

4:40 PM – Closing Remarks

5:00–5:30 PM – Book Signing

In partnership with The John L. Nau Center for Civil War Studies at the University of Virginia.
