Talk on Civil War food shortages scheduled

Friday, January 1, 1904

photo People walk past Chickamauga National Military Park Visitors Center which is located on 3370 LaFayette Road in Fort Oglethorpe.

In commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the Southern Bread Riots, Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park will host a half-hour talk on food shortages caused by the Civil War.

On Friday, April 5, at 6:30 p.m. in the battlefield's Visitor Center, Ranger Lee White will discuss stories of the shortages, ramifications on the Confederacy and effects on the men serving in the Army of Tennessee.

As the Civil War entered its second year of high taxes and food shortages increased, discontent toward the Confederate government grew, according to a National Park Service news release. The discontent finally boiled over in April 1863 when Southern women rose up and ransacked shops, all the while screaming, "Bread or Blood!" in actions known as the Southern Bread Riots.

For more information about programs at Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park, visit the park's website at www.nps.gov/chch.