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to the history of the war. “There are all sorts of relics from the army – guns, uniforms, IDs from everyone who did heroic deeds to unknown soldiers. It gives you an idea of: what did the guns look like? What were the blankets like? What were their letters like?”

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A WAR BY ANY OTHER NAME

In the South, one conflict comes by many names.

• The Civil War: what the federals called it, simply a term for fighting within a country.

• War Between the States: used primarily by those in Confederate states, as states broke away and began fighting for independence.

• War of Northern Aggression: the South had the right to secede and the North attacked.

• War for Southern Independence: ditto.

• The Recent Unpleasantness: first used by Charlie Weaver on the Jack Paar’s Tonight Show in the 1960s, when the events of the 1800s weren’t a too distant memory.

• The War: across the South and in Charleston, everyone will know what you mean.

Jack Thomson, Civil War historian

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Don’t miss sleeping in the Village Inn B&B, one of only a handful of inns in the Southeast with a direct connection to the Civil War. It’s 15 minutes east of downtown Atlanta. The only reason it wasn’t burned down during Sherman’s march was because it served as a Confederate hospital (there are a few reputed ghosts left over from days past). The inn was built in the 1840s and is as romantic as it gets – in-room spa tubs and fireplaces, homemade cookies waiting for you each afternoon and a veranda overlooking nearby Stone Mountain. If you enjoy the breakfast so much you want to be able to make the raspberry-stuffed French toast or flaky biscuits at home, you’re in good; the B&B publishes its own recipe book so you can take some of the South home with you.

Alex Leviton

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TRIP INFORMATION

DO

Atlanta History Center

See hundreds of artifacts from the Civil War, including uniforms, ID tags and letters home. 404-814-4000; www.atlantahistorycenter.com; 130 West Paces Ferry Rd, Atlanta, GA; adult/child$15/10; 10am-5:30pm Mon-Sat, noon-5:30pm Sun

Carnton Plantation

A mansion that became a makeshift Confederate hospital during the Battle of Franklin. 615-794-0903; www.carnton.org; 1345 Carnton Ln, Carnton, TN; adult/child $12/5; 9am-5pm Mon-Sat, 1-5pm Sun

Carter House

Over 1000 bullet holes riddled this mansion, next to where the Battle of Franklin raged. 615-791-1861; www.carter-house.org; 1140 Columbia Ave, Franklin, TN; adult/child $8/4; 9am-5pm Mon-Sat, 1-5pm Sun, shorter winter hours

Chickamauga & Chattanooga National Military Park

Site of the second deadliest battle in Civil War history. 423-752-5213; www.nps.gov/chch; 3370 S. Lafayette Rd, Fort Oglethorpe, GA; admission free; 8:30am-6pm Apr-Sep, to 5pm Oct-Mar

Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park

A full-scale battlefield with a scenic mountain and hiking trails. 770-427-4686; www.nps.gov/kemo; 905 Kennesaw Mountain Dr, Kennesaw, GA; admission free; 8: 30am-5pm Mon-Fri, to 6pm Sat & Sun

Shiloh National Military Park

Next to the Corinth Civil War Interpretive Center, with a driving tour of a historic battlefield. 703-689-5696; www.nps.gov/shil; 1055 Pittsburg Landing Rd, Shiloh, TN; admission free; 8am-5pm Apr-Sep, to 6pm Oct-Mar

Vicksburg National Military Park

A 16-mile driving tour of the USS Cairo museum, Civil War ironclad gunboat display and national cemetery. 601-636-0583; www.nps.gov/vick; 3201 Clay St, Vicksburg, MS; vehicle $8; 8am-5pm

EAT

Catfish Hotel

A catfish ‘palace’ right on the Tennessee River, serving dishes and tradition for almost 200 years. 731-689-3327; www.catfishhotel.com; 1005 Pittsburg Landing, Shiloh National Military Park, TN; mains $9-12; 11am-9pm Sun-Thu, to 10pm Fri & Sat

Cedar Grove Mansion Inn & Restaurant

Decorated with furnishings brought back from an 1842 European honeymoon. The elegant mansion was once used as a Union hospital. 601-633-1000; www.cedargroveinn.com; 2200 Oak St, Vicksburg, MS; mains $18-32, r $100-215; 5-10pm dinner

SLEEP

Mayor’s Mansion Inn