From February 1864 until the end of the American Civil War
(1861-65) in April 1865, Andersonville, Georgia, served as the
site of a notorious Confederate military prison. The prison at
Andersonville, officially called Camp Sumter, was the South's
largest prison for captured Union soldiers and known for its
unhealthy conditions and high death rate. In all, approximately
13,000 Union prisoners perished at Andersonville, and following
the war its commander, Captain Henry Wirz (1823-65), was tried,
convicted and executed for war crimes. More to Explore People
and Groups This Day in History The most successful and feared
Confederate commerce raider of the war, the CSS Alabama, sinks
after a spectacular battle off the coast of France with the… The
American Civil War, fueled by the debate over slavery and
states' rights, pitted North against South in the costliest
conflict fought on U.S. soil. In 1860-61, after years of rising
tensions, 11 southern states seceded from the Union to form the
Confederate States of Amer