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ACTIVITY #5

Sherman’s March to the Sea

You cannot qualify war in harsher terms than I will. War is cruelty, and you cannot refine it; and those who brought war into our country deserve all the curses and maledictions a people can pour out. --William Tecumseh Sherman Letter to the city of Atlanta, 1864

Overview This activity helps students understand how the Union’s March to the Sea was one of the most controversial aspects of the later phases of the Civil War. Sent by Ulysses S. Grant to create havoc and destruction of all resources that would be beneficial to the enemy, Sherman began his Atlanta Campaign in May 1864. Students will view a video clip from The Civil War series that explains how after capturing Atlanta, Sherman marched his army to the sea, capturing the city of Savannah in December, and then marching through South Carolina into North Carolina. Students will then analyze two primary sources. First, they will look at a letter written by Sherman to Grant as Sherman’s army approached Savannah. Second, they will review the lyrics to the popular song of that period, Marching Through Georgia. Student questions follow, which can be used for general class discussion or individual assessment. Answers to the questions are included.

Resources:  Video Clip . Sherman’s March (Episode 8, Chapter 3)

 Handout: Letter from General Sherman to General Grant, 1864

 Lyrics from Marching to Georgia

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Standards

McREL

U.S. History Standard 13: Understands the causes of the Civil War o Level II (Grades 5-6) . Understands the economic, social, and cultural differences between the North and South (e.g., how the free labor system of the North differed from that of the South) o Level III (Grades 7-8)  Knows the locations of the southern and northern states and their economic resources (e.g., the industries and small family farms of the industrial North, the agricultural economy and slavery of the South).

Standard 14: Understands the course and character of the Civil War and its effects on the American people

Level II (Grades 5-6)  Understands the technological, social, and strategic aspects of the Civil War (e.g., the impact of innovations in military technology; turning points of the war; leaders of the Confederacy and Union; conditions, characteristics, and armies of the Confederacy and Union; major areas of Civil War combat).

Level III (Grade 7-8  Understands the circumstances that shaped the Civil War and its outcome (e.g., differences between the economic, technological, and human resources of both sides; the impact of the Emancipation Proclamation on the outcome of the war)

Common Core

 Key Ideas and Details o CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.2 Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of how key events or ideas develop over the course of the text.  Craft and Structure o CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including vocabulary describing political, social, or economic aspects of history/social science. o CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.8 Assess the extent to which the reasoning and evidence in a text support the author's claims.

PBS.org/civilwar 3

Extension Activities

 Have students imagine that they are writers or editors for Civil War period newspapers (both North and South). Prompt them to write editorials regarding the march, either as editors of Northern newspapers or Southern newspapers.

 Have students compare Sherman’s march with other instances of total war in World War I or World War II. (Some examples include the firebombing of Hamburg and Dresden during World War II, as well as the London Blitz or bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki).

 Have students debate the issue of total war (regarding whether it is humane or inhumane) as a class, or may wish to conduct a mock trial of Union officers who were engaged in the practice, such as Sherman.

This Activity was written by Michael Hutchison and Greg Timmons.

About the Authors

Michael Hutchison is the social studies department chair at Lincoln High School. Vincennes, Indiana. He has more than 35 years of classroom teaching experience, and has written lessons for several Ken Burns films, including The Civil War, Empire of the Air, Horatio’s Drive, Unforgivable Blackness, The War, Baseball, The Tenth Inning, Prohibition, The Dust Bowl, and The Roosevelts: An Intimate History. He is past president of the Indiana Computer Educators. In 2014, he was named winner of the Caleb Mills Indiana History Teacher of the Year Award by the Indiana Historical Society.

Greg Timmons has been a social studies teacher for over 30 years. He has written lessons for several PBS productions including The NewsHour, FRONTLINE, and various Ken Burns’s productions including The War, The National Parks: America’s Best Idea Baseball, Prohibition and The Dust Bowl.” He resides in Montana and Washington state.

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