The Civil War Monitor

Civil War Breakthroughs is a podcast that explores how the inventions, ideas, and innovations of the Civil War era defined a new kind of conflict. In our second season, The Medical Renaissance, we'll explore how modern medicine took root during the Civil War.On this episode, we're joined by Melanie Kiechle, an associate professor of history at Virginia Tech and author of Smell Detectives: An Olfactory History of Nineteenth-Century Urban America (2019). She talks about how the fear of “bad air” guided the daily decisions and medical practices of Civil War soldiers and physicians. ©2026 by The Civil War Monitor. All rights reserved.

Civil War Breakthroughs is a podcast that explores how the inventions, ideas, and innovations of the Civil War era defined a new kind of conflict. In our second season, The Medical Renaissance, we'll explore how modern medicine took root during the Civil War.On this episode, we're joined by Sarah Handley-Cousins, an Associate Teaching Professor in the Department of History at the University of Buffalo and author of Bodies in Blue: Disability in the Civil War North (2019). She talks about the presence and treatment of the “invisible wounds” suffered by Civil War soldiers. ©2026 by The Civil War Monitor. All rights reserved.

Civil War Breakthroughs is a podcast that explores how the inventions, ideas, and innovations of the Civil War era defined a new kind of conflict. In our second season, The Medical Renaissance, we'll explore how modern medicine took root during the Civil War.On this episode, we're joined by Judith Giesberg, the Robert M. Birmingham Chair in the Humanities in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Villanova University and the author of a number of books, including Civil War Sisterhood: The U.S. Sanitary Commission and Women's Politics in Transition (2006). She talks about the impact the United States Sanitary Commission had in its efforts to support healthy practices in the Union army during the Civil War. ©2026 by The Civil War Monitor. All rights reserved.

Civil War Breakthroughs is a podcast that explores how the inventions, ideas, and innovations of the Civil War era defined a new kind of conflict. In our second season, The Medical Renaissance, we'll explore how modern medicine took root during the Civil War.On this episode, we're joined by Jane Schultz, a professor of English and director of Literature at Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis and the author of Women at the Front: Hospital Workers in Civil War America (2004). She talks about the motivations and experiences of the women who volunteered as nurses during the Civil War. ©2026 by The Civil War Monitor. All rights reserved.

Civil War Breakthroughs is a podcast that explores how the inventions, ideas, and innovations of the Civil War era defined a new kind of conflict. In our second season, The Medical Renaissance, we'll explore how modern medicine took root during the Civil War.On this episode, we're joined by Lindsay Rae Smith Privette, an associate professor of history at Anderson University and author of The Surgeon’s Battle: How Medicine Won the Vicksburg Campaign and Changed the Civil War (2025). She talks about the wartime evolution in military surgeons' training, knowledge, and practices. ©2026 by The Civil War Monitor. All rights reserved.