Decoding the Civil War

Thomas T. Eckert and field telegraph operators, near Petersburg, Va., 1864.

Decoding the Civil War, is a consortium project to digitize and transcribe the Union Army telegrams.

The Decoding the Civil War blog lets you read through the messages and codes from the United States Military Telegraph (USMT). Experts and amateurs have collaborated to transcribe and decipher a collection of almost 16,000 telegrams and 32 code books from The Thomas T. Eckert Papers, thought lost at the end of the war, and now housed at the Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens.

Thanks Bruce!