Disease during the First Year of the Civil War – Winter at Bristoe Station

COVID-19 and closures won’t stop us from sharing the incredible lessons we can learn from studying medical care during the Civil War!

Join us on Monday, June 8 at 1:00 PM on Facebook Live for a virtual program hosted by the National Museum of Civil War Medicine. You can tune in live by visiting facebook.com/civilwarmed/live at the scheduled time.

Director of Interpretation Jake Wynn will have a conversation historians Paige Gibbons Backus and Kevin Pawlak of Prince William County Historic Preservation about disease during the first winter of the Civil War. Disease spread quickly through army encampments during the Civil War, and the winter camps at Bristoe Station were no exception. Send us your questions in advance on Facebook or by email (jake.wynn@civilwarmed.321staging.com) and tune in to the Museum’s Facebook page for what is sure to be a fascinating conversation. During this FREE program, you’ll hear about different aspects of healthcare on the front lines and in hospitals during the most destructive conflict in our nation’s history that continues impact us today. We are here to answer your questions about Civil War medical care!

A native of Wisconsin, Paige Gibbons Backus graduated from the University of Mary Washington with a bachelor’s degree in Historic Preservation, and has a master’s degree in Applied History from George Mason University. She currently serves Prince William County as the Historic Site Manager at Ben Lomond Historic Site and Historic Lucasville School. Mrs. Backus has worked at several historic sites throughout Northern Virginia including Gadsby’s Tavern Museum, Sully Historic Site, and Ellanor C. Lawrence Park.

Kevin Pawlak is a Historic Site Manager for the Prince William County Historic Preservation Division and works as a Licensed Battlefield Guide at Antietam National Battlefield. Kevin also sits on the Board of Directors of the Shepherdstown Battlefield Preservation Association and the Save Historic Antietam Foundation. He is the author of Shepherdstown in the Civil War: One Vast Confederate Hospital published by The History Press in 2015 and ‘The Heaviest Blow Yet Given the Confederacy’: The Emancipation Proclamation Changes the Civil War in Turning Points of the Civil War, part of Emerging Civil War’s Engaging the Civil War Series with Southern Illinois University Press.

Like these programs? Consider supporting our efforts by becoming a member or donating to the Museum! Your efforts ensure that we can continue sharing the story of Civil War medicine in this crucial time. In history, we can find hope amid our struggle against COVID-19.