In the summer of 1861, soon after the start of the Civil War, the United States Coast Survey published a pair of influential maps based on data gathered in the previous year’s national census. Both depicted the percentage of enslaved people living in individual counties utilizing varying shades of black and gray—one map featuring Virginia, and the other all slaveholding states in the American South. Join Codie Eash, Director of Education and Interpretation, as he explores who created the maps, how the U.S. Army used them to benefit sick and wounded soldiers, and their influence on directly impacting emancipation policy enacted by leaders of the Union war effort, up to and including President Lincoln.

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Lydia Ziegler Clare Education Center

Seminary Ridge Museum and Education Center