Records About Civil War Battle Sites, created by the CWSAC, 1990-1993, and deposited with the National Archives AAD

name:aad_battles
path:aad_battles.csv
format:csv

gBattle-level data of the battles in the original reports of the Civil War Sites Advisory Commision compiled during 1990-1993.

These reports were deposited with the National Archives Access to Archival Databases.

Each observation in the data is a battle. The battles are those identified by the CWSAC as the prinicipal battles of the American Civil War, and later used in the official CWSAC Report and its updates, and the CWSS database.

The original documentation reads:

The Civil War Sites Advisory Commission created this database to support its congressional mandate to identify Civil War battlefields, determine their historic significance, assess short- and long-term threats to their integrity, and propose new ideas about their preservation and interpretation. The Commission intended the recommendations to be used as the basis for legislative proposals in the area of battlefield preservation.

The Civil War Sites Advisory Commission data files contain information relating to battlefields of the American Civil War, 1861-1865. Four data files compose this series: Events, Counties, Campaign, and Theater files. The Events file is the primary data file. Of 10,500 armed conflicts in the military history of the Civil War, the file contains information on 384 conflicts that the Commission identified as the principal battles. Each record identifies the following information: state and county or counties of the historic site, the type of battle or event that occurred there, the theater of operations and the campaign to which the engagement relates, the dates of the battle or event, the current ownership of the site, and the assessment of three subject area experts of the military significance, physical integrity, historic preservation status, and interpretive potential of the site or event, and whether it should be a priority for protection of cultural property. The records of the Counties file identify the county location(s) of each battlefield and are linked to the Events file by a common battlefield reference number. The records of the Campaign file include a code for each of 116 campaigns and provide its name, dates, and a ranking of the military importance of the campaign’s battle events. The records of the Campaign file are linked by the campaign code to the records in the Events file. The Theater file records identify five designated Civil War theaters of operation and are linked to the Events file by a theater code.

The records in this file potentially identify the following information: state and county or counties of the historic site, the type of battle or event that occurred there, the theater of operations and the campaign to which the engagement relates, the dates of the battle or event, the current ownership of the site, and the assessment of three subject area experts of the military significance, physical integrity, historic preservation status, and interpretive potential of the site or event, and whether it should be a priority for protection of cultural property.

Sources: [CWSAC_AAD]

Schema

reference_number string Reference Number
event string event
type string Type
start_date date Start date
end_date date End date
theater string Theater
campaign string campaign
threats number threats
ownership_federal boolean Ownership (Federal)
ownership_local boolean Ownership (local government)
ownership_private boolean Ownership (private)
ownership_state boolean Ownership (state government)
ownership_unknown boolean Ownership (unknown)
park boolean park
integrity string integrity
military string military
interpretive_political boolean Interpretive Potential: effect upon international diplomacy
interpretive_commander_loss boolean Interpretive Potential: Loss of significant commander (Wounding, Death, Relieved of Command)
interpretive_casualties boolean Interpretive Potential: Unusually High Casualties
interpretive_tactics_strategy boolean Interpretive Potential: Illustrates Important Lessons in Military Tactics and Strategy
interpretive_public_mind boolean Interpretive Potential: Unusual Importanve in the Public Mind and Imagination
interpretive_combat_arm boolean Interpretive Potential: Significant Participation of Cavalry, Artillery, or Other Single Combat Arm
interpretive_military_firsts boolean Interpretive Potential: Military Firsts
interpretive_minority_troops boolean Interpretive Potential: Participation of Significant Numbers of Minority Troops
interpretive_economic boolean Interpretive Potential: Significant Economic Consequences
interpretive_archaelolgical boolean Interpretive Potential: High Archaelogical Potential
interpretive_logistics boolean Interpretive Potential: Unusually Significant Logistics or Supply Feat
interpretive_individual_bravery boolean Interpretive Potential: Exception Individual Initiative in Bravery or Command
interpretive_group_behavior boolean Interpretive Potential: Exceptional Group Behavior
interpretive_joint_ops boolean Interpretive Potential: Illustrates Joint Operations (Army, Navy)
interpretive_coop_armies boolean Interpretive Potential: Illustrates Cooperation of Separate Military Departments or Armies
interpretive_naval boolean Interpretive Potential: Naval Operations
military_jim string Military Importance (James McPherson)
military_ed string Military Importance (Edwin Bearss)
military_bill string Military Importance (william_cooper)
protected_acres number Protected land area (acres)
protected_percent number Protected (percent of land area)
county string County
land_value string Land value
priority1 boolean priority1
url string url

reference_number

title:Reference Number
type:string
format:default

The reference number assigned to the battle site/event. The first two letters are the abbreviation of the state in which the battle site/event is located. The number reflects the order in which the battle site/events in the state were assigned a reference number.

event

title:event
type:string
format:default

type

title:Type
type:string
format:default

The kind of conflict as designated in The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies (Washington, DC: GPO, 1880-1901).

start_date

title:Start date
type:date
format:default

Beginning day of the event.

end_date

title:End date
type:date
format:default

End day of the event.

theater

title:Theater
type:string
format:default

The name of the theater. 1 Main Eastern Theater of operation. 2 Lower Seaboard Theater of Operation. 3 Main Western Theater of Operations & the Gulf Approach (1861-1863). 4 Trans-Mississippi Theater of Operations 5 Pacific Coast Theater Robert N. Scott, the overall editor of The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies (Washington, DC: The Government Printing Office, 1880-1901), arranged Series I, of that publication, according to the campaigns and several theaters of operations …. The Official Records editors recognized five theaters of operations, Main Eastern, Lower Seaboard, Main Western, Trans-Mississippi, and Pacific Coast. Dr. Dallas D. Irvine, the creator and major compiler-editor of Military Operations of the Civil War: A Guide-Index to Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, 1861-1865 (Washington, DC: The Government Printing Office, 1968-80), modified this arrangement by removing the Gulf Approach operations from the Main Western Theater and combining them with the Lower Seaboard Theater. The Commission study used Irvine’s classification system.

campaign

title:campaign
type:string
format:default

threats

title:threats
type:number
format:default

The degree of anticipated threats to the battle sites’ integrity over the next 10 years. The Commission assigned the degree of threat based on short- and long-term threats identified by the field investigator on the battle site survey form.

ownership_federal

title:Ownership (Federal)
type:boolean
format:default

The kind(s) of known ownership of the battle site. The Commission relied on the ownership information provided on the survey forms and additional data collected by staff members. The field surveyors and the Commission staff did not consult official ownership records, such as County tax records or maps. Many of the battle sites probably have more kinds of ownership than indicated in the Commission’s database.

ownership_local

title:Ownership (local government)
type:boolean
format:default

ownership_private

title:Ownership (private)
type:boolean
format:default

ownership_state

title:Ownership (state government)
type:boolean
format:default

ownership_unknown

title:Ownership (unknown)
type:boolean
format:default

park

title:park
type:boolean
format:default

Park means any size or kind (historical, recreations, natural, etc.) of federal, state, local, or private park. A park presence does not mean that the battle is interpreted or even that the battle site is protected.

integrity

title:integrity
type:string
format:default

Integrity is the measure of the battle site’s condition. A battle site with fair integrity is largely intact with some changes in primary geographical and topographical configuration and mass and scale of the buildings. A battle site with good integrity is essentially unchanged from the historic period with respect to terrain, land use, road network, and mass and scale of buildings. A battle site with poor integrity is significantly altered in terms of its primary geographical and topographical configuration and mass and scale of the buildings. Road construction and changes in land use are usually evident at sites with poor integrity. Sites with poor integrity sometimes retain core parcels (50-200 acres) intact within the generally fragmented landscape. A local site has changed beyond recognition, meaning that a local resident of the time returning to the site today presumably would not recognize his surroundings. Lost battlefields may retain small (1-50 acres) parcels suitable for commemoration, however, the ability to interpret the battle on the landscape has been lost.

military

title:

military

type:

string

format:

default

constraints:
enum:[‘A’, ‘B’, ‘C’, ‘D’]

The Military Importance or Military Class; Military Importance = Military Class. The Commission ranked each battle (and its associated battle site) within the framework of its campaign and the war. Decisive: A general engagement involving field armies in which a commander achieved a vital strategic objective. Such a result might include an indisputable victory on the field or be limited to the success or termination of a campaign offensive. Decisive battles had a direct, observable impact on the direction, duration, conduct, or outcome of the war. Formative: An engagement involving divisions or detachments of the field armies in which a commader accomplished a limited campaign objective of reconnaissance, disruption, defense, or occupation. Formative battles had an observable influence on the direction, duration, or conduct of the campaign. Limited: An engagement, typically involving detachments of the field armies, in which a commander achived a limited tactical objective of reconnaissance, defense, or occupation. Limited battles maintained contact between the combatants without observable influence on the direction of the campaign. Major: An engagement of magnitude involving field armies or divisions of the armies in which a commander achived an important strategic objective within the context of an ongoing campaign offensive. Major battles had a direct, observable impact on the direction, duration, conduct, or outcome of the campaign.

interpretive_political

title:Interpretive Potential: effect upon international diplomacy
type:boolean
format:default

interpretive_commander_loss

title:Interpretive Potential: Loss of significant commander (Wounding, Death, Relieved of Command)
type:boolean
format:default

interpretive_casualties

title:Interpretive Potential: Unusually High Casualties
type:boolean
format:default

interpretive_tactics_strategy

title:Interpretive Potential: Illustrates Important Lessons in Military Tactics and Strategy
type:boolean
format:default

interpretive_public_mind

title:Interpretive Potential: Unusual Importanve in the Public Mind and Imagination
type:boolean
format:default

interpretive_combat_arm

title:Interpretive Potential: Significant Participation of Cavalry, Artillery, or Other Single Combat Arm
type:boolean
format:default

interpretive_military_firsts

title:Interpretive Potential: Military Firsts
type:boolean
format:default

interpretive_minority_troops

title:Interpretive Potential: Participation of Significant Numbers of Minority Troops
type:boolean
format:default

interpretive_economic

title:Interpretive Potential: Significant Economic Consequences
type:boolean
format:default

interpretive_archaelolgical

title:Interpretive Potential: High Archaelogical Potential
type:boolean
format:default

interpretive_logistics

title:Interpretive Potential: Unusually Significant Logistics or Supply Feat
type:boolean
format:default

interpretive_individual_bravery

title:Interpretive Potential: Exception Individual Initiative in Bravery or Command
type:boolean
format:default

interpretive_group_behavior

title:Interpretive Potential: Exceptional Group Behavior
type:boolean
format:default

interpretive_joint_ops

title:Interpretive Potential: Illustrates Joint Operations (Army, Navy)
type:boolean
format:default

interpretive_coop_armies

title:Interpretive Potential: Illustrates Cooperation of Separate Military Departments or Armies
type:boolean
format:default

interpretive_naval

title:Interpretive Potential: Naval Operations
type:boolean
format:default

military_jim

title:

Military Importance (James McPherson)

type:

string

format:

default

constraints:
enum:[‘A’, ‘B’, ‘C’, ‘D’]

Dr. James M. McPherson. The letter in this field is Dr. McPherson’s initial opinion regarding the military importance of the event. (Refer to MILITARY above.) An entry was made in this field only when Dr. McPherson disagreed with the first military importance value assigned to the event. Differences of opinion about the military importance of specific battle events were resolved at an October 23, 1992 meeting.

military_ed

title:

Military Importance (Edwin Bearss)

type:

string

format:

default

constraints:
enum:[‘A’, ‘B’, ‘C’, ‘D’]

Dr. Edwin C. Bearss. The letter in this field is Mr. Bearss ‘initial opinion regarding the military importance of the event. (Refer to MILITARY above.) An entry was made in this field only when Mr. Bearss disagreed with the first military importance value assigned to the event. Differences of opinion about the military importance of specific battle events were resolved at an October 23, 1992 meeting.

military_bill

title:

Military Importance (william_cooper)

type:

string

format:

default

constraints:
enum:[‘A’, ‘B’, ‘C’, ‘D’]

Dr. William J. Cooper, Jr.. The letter in this field is Dr. Cooper’s initial opinion regarding the military importance of the event. (Refer to MILITARY above.) An entry was made in this field only when Dr. Cooper disagreed with the first military importance value assigned to the event. Differences of opinion about the military importance of specific battle events were resolved at an October 23, 1992 meeting.

protected_acres

title:Protected land area (acres)
type:number
format:default

The number of acres of the battle site that are protected; for example, by easement or park status. This field is ill-defined and incomplete. The data may be inaccurate. The Commission did not use the data in this field.

protected_percent

title:Protected (percent of land area)
type:number
format:default

Percentage of the land area of the battlefield that is protected. This field is ill-defined and incomplete. The data may be inaccurate. The Commission did not use the data in this field.

county

title:County
type:string
format:default

The county, or counties, in which the battle site is located. In Virginia, incorporated cities are not part of their surrounding jurisdiction. Note: The Commission used its Counties database (counties.dbf) for county information rather than this entry in the events database.

land_value

title:Land value
type:string
format:default

The assessed land value of the battle site. This field is incomplete and the data may be inaccurate. The Commission did not use the data in this field.

priority1

title:priority1
type:boolean
format:default

“1” = The battle site/event is one of the Commission’s Priority One battlefields. “0” = The battle site/event is not one of the Commission’s Priority One battlefields. This field was never completed.

url

title:url
type:string
format:url

URL to the record on aad.archives.gov.