National Geographic makes documentaries like no other channel can. There is just something about the level of details involved in their research, as well as the quality of the filmmaking itself that is impressive. They have a new series called “Civil Warriors” that involves a lot of genealogy.
Almost all genealogists will put together their family tree. Many will spend some extra time and effort to create a medical family history. If your family has a lot of ancestors who have been in the military, then your genealogy research may have led you to search through war records on various genealogy websites, or even to visit some actual archives.
If you have ancestors who served in the Civil War, or if you just happen to be interested in that particular time period in American History, then you won’t want to miss the new National Geographic series called “Civil Warriors”. It seems to take the interesting genealogical viewpoints that one might see in shows like “Who Do You Think You Are?” and weave them into a historical documentary about the Civil War. This series was created as part of National Geographic’s programming that marks the 150th anniversary of America’s Civil War.
“Civil Warriors” looks at the Civil War through the eyes of eleven people who are descendants of someone that was involved in some way in the Civil War. Each descendant is taken to places that their ancestor was at, when he or she was alive. This is a similar tactic to how the “Who Do You Think You Are?” series works. A unique part of the “Civil Warriors” series shows letters, journals, and a whole lot of old photographs from the Civil War. They have utilized an interesting visual technique that give the images in the photos depth and movement.
The “Civil Warriors” series aired on April, 11, 2011, as a three hour special. If you missed it, you can watch some clips from that episode on the National Geographic website. The second episode in the series will air on Monday, April 18, 2011. It is called “Families at War”, and will follow the descendant of a soldier who was on the Union side of the war. It also focuses on a descendant of a private who served in the Civil War, and who’s ancestors went through a struggle for their freedom.
Image by Brian L on Flickr