HistoricSiteMarkers
Civil War

Union Army Recruiting Site

Somerville, Middlesex County, Massachusetts

Marker Inscription

Site of recruiting stand for Union soldiers in Civil War was in front of this building

The Story

During the Civil War, towns across the North set up recruiting stands to enlist local men into the Union Army, and Somerville was no exception. This spot in front of the building marked one such recruiting station, where volunteers signed up to serve in the great struggle to preserve the Union. Massachusetts was an early and enthusiastic supplier of troops, and neighborhood recruiting sites like this one turned ordinary street corners into gateways to the front lines.

Why it matters

Local recruiting stands were where the national crisis of the 1860s became personal, transforming everyday citizens into soldiers and knitting small communities into the Union war effort.

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  • · American Civil War

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