Historian Brings the Hidden History of the Civil War to Mineola

Most New Yorkers today merely thing of Brooklyn as a component of New York City, a simple borough they may pass through on their way to Manhattan, New Jersey or points beyond. But 150 years ago, during the start of the Civil War, Brooklyn provided thousands of soldiers for the Union and housed many important facilities vital to the war effort.

Such was one of the many tidbits of historical information historian E. A. “Bud” Livingston handed out to residents Monday evening, providing a rare glimpse into the history of the Civil War and the local landmarks during a lecture at the .

Author of “President Lincoln’s Third Largest City: Brooklyn and the Civil War,” Livingston has also served as the president and vice-president of the Civil War Round Table of New York. He has also taught and lectured on the American civil War at Adult Education programs at Hofstra University, Hunter College, Queens College, and Cooper Union. When he is not on the lecture circuit, Livingston also gives tours of Green Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, the final resting home to many famous Civil War veterans.

During the late 19th century, Brooklyn was the third largest city in the United States, right behind New York and Philadelphia.

Among the finer points Livingston touched upon was the significance of Fort Hamilton, functioning as an offensive bastion against any enemy invasion trying to come up the East River, the building of the U.S.S. Monitor at the Continental Iron Works in the Greenpoint section of Brooklyn. The Monitor would help turn the tide of the war in favor of the Union after defeating the Merrimack in the first battle of ironclad ships. Also among the discussion was the infamous Fort Lafayette named for the Marquis de Lafayette. The fort was also known as the “American Bastille,” since it housed many Confederate prisoners and political enemies of the Union and Lincoln’s administration.

Livingston also touched upon the famous Brooklyn Navy yards and Henry Ward Beecher, the brother of “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” author Harriet Beecher Stowe, who became the first minister of the Plymouth Congregational Church, a stop on the Underground Railroad used to hide emancipated and runaway slaves as they made their way toward freedom in the North.

For more information email Livingston at sisty313@aol.com.