Atlanta History Center hopes to make an emotional connection with patrons at immersive 'More Perfect Union' Civil War exhibit, opening in mid-July

Frock coat of  Benjamin Schumpert, a 17-year-old Georgia fatally shot in the head at Chickamauga in 1863; commemorative locket with a photograph of U.S.C.T. soldier; field hospital flag manufactured in Maine (AHC)

Prize artifacts and integrated technology will deeply engage those visiting “More Perfect Union: The American Civil War Era,” the Atlanta History Center says of its gallery opening on July 10.

The AHC this week provided more information and photos from “More Perfect Union,” the first of two Civil War exhibits debuting in coming months.

“Opening during the institution’s centennial year, the expansive new exhibition reimagines how this defining and contested period of American history is presented and understood,” a news release said.

“More Perfect Union” opens in the overhauled DuBose Gallery, which for years was home to “Turning Point: The American Civil War.” The second phase, “Hard Hand of War: Soldiers, Weapons, and Mass Production,” will open in the downstairs Goldstein Gallery some time this winter.

The AHC summarized “More Perfect Union” this way:

“Upon entering, visitors immediately step into an immersive media experience. This plunges them directly into the political storm that engulfed the nation just before the Civil War in 1861. Photographs, headlines, political cartoons, and other imagery flash across multiple screens, while period voices collide in a cacophony of political debate. These are the words of real Americans, revealing the deep divisions, conflicting opinions and uncertainty that defined the era.”

(Above, hand-painted bass drum carried by New York native William A. McKinzie of the 78th Illinois Infantry during the Atlanta Campaign.)

Digital maps and animated timelines will provide historical context and allow visitors to explore stories and connections at their own pace, “while keeping original artifacts and primary-source interpretation at the center of the experience.”

The remarkable array of artifacts -- many from the museum’s collection, while others were bought in recent years – include an original copy of Frederick Douglass’ speech (left, courtesy AHC), “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?”, the Confederate flag that flew over Atlanta at the time of the city’s surrender in 1864, Major Gen. William T. Sherman’s personal copy of “Photographic Views of Sherman’s Campaign,” a field hospital flag and the battle flag of the 127th U.S. Colored Troops bearing the words “We Will Prove Ourselves Men.”

Also featured will be uniforms for Union and Confederate soldiers who fought at Chickamauga in 1863 and at Peachtree Creek a year later.

The Atlanta History Center last year closed “Turning Point” to make way for the new galleries that will feature artifacts and a broader discussion of issues that engage the republic to this day: our belief systems, victory, defeat, reconciliation and the evolving meaning of freedom.

Atlanta, museum officials say, is ideal to tell a bigger national story about the Civil War in a striking way. Beyond being the capital of the South and a melting pot, it’s recognized by historians as a crucial battleground for saving the presidency of Abraham Lincoln and the United States itself.

For 30 years, relics collected by an Atlanta father and son formed the core of “Turning Point: The American Civil War.”

The exhibit focused on the soldiers in blue and gray and how they did their deadly work, and visitors were awed by the incredible collection of uniforms, weapons, personal items -- and just about every conceivable type of artillery shell. I enjoyed my visits over the years, but toward the end the presentation seemed outdated and in need of new energy.

Shelter half carried by Cpl. Charles E. Smith of the 32nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry (AHC)

While “Turning Point” did address some big questions about the Civil War, there was limited discussion on technology, slavery and the home front. New, more diverse generations – distanced even more from the Civil War era – are asking deeper questions, the museum says, about why the war happened, how 4 million enslaved Americans gained their freedom, Reconstruction and what the conflict, which took at least 720,000 lives, means today.

The history center is investing $16 million and more than 15,000 square feet for the new exhibits.

Make no mistake, Confederate and Union bayonets, swords, flags, rifles and revolvers will still be a big part of the presentation. To that end, senior military historic and curator Gordon Jones and AHC CEO and president Sheffield Hale told the Picket they are excited about plans to include two large collection of dug relics.

But they are particularly excited about the artifacts related to U.S. Colored Troops. The impetus for that came about in 2019, when the history center bought a hand-painted flag made for the 127^th USCT infantry. It depicts a soldier waving farewell to Columbia, a symbol of the United States, with the words “We Will Prove Ourselves Men.” (AHC photo, click to enlarge)

“More Perfect Union” also incorporates personal stories drawn from the journals, letters, photographs, and everyday objects of the people who lived through the war, the center says.

In a new video from the AHC, Jones detailed the “reimagined” signature Civil War exhibit.

“Atlanta is the home of so many pivotal events that have determined the outcome of American history, starting with the American Civil War. Everywhere you walk in Atlanta, you are on a battlefield. And on those battlefields, that was where the fate of the country was determined. It’s a story of a struggle and had it not been for what happened here, the outcome of the war for Union and emancipation may very well have turned out differently.”

USCT ladder badge worn by veteran; uniform of 1st Lt. George Young of the 143rd New York (AHC)

There will be stories of Confederate and Union soldiers. "This is about people -- men, women, free, enslaved," Jones says in the video.

The renovated Goldstein Gallery – which opens in the winter -- will focus on technology and the Civil War. In part, it will feature the singular collection of the late George W. Wray Jr., showcasing some of the rarest Confederate firearms, swords, uniforms, flags and other items. Some were one of a kind.

When it went on temporary display in 2015, the theme was the weapons were an attempt by a slave-based society to fight an industrial war. The South was hampered by limited manufacturing and the Union blockade of foreign goods.

At the AHC, Civil War aficionados can also see the giant Cyclorama painting of the Battle of Atlanta, related exhibits and the locomotive Texas, one half of the famous “Great Locomotive Chase” in 1862.