Is Civil War History Losing Ground?

This was a question Dana Shoaf, publisher of Civil War Times, consulting editor of America’s Civil War, and involved with other history-themed magazines, posed in this article to some well-known historians. He writes, “Yes, some aspects of Civil War culture appear to be on the wane, but others are thriving. I’ve experienced that surge of interest both factually and anecdotally. Sales of Civil War Times were up from 2017 to 2018 and I had trouble finding a parking spot at the Gettysburg Museum and Visitor Center on a cold Wednesday afternoon in March.  In conversations with the owners of relic shops, I’ve learned that sales have been brisk and are increasing, book sales remain strong, and conferences keep selling out. This past August, seminars held by two organizations, Emerging Civil War and the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation, sold out on the same Saturday in Virginia. The American Civil War Museum…