Union Drummer Boy

Union Drummer Boy Specializing in Authentic Civil War Artifacts. We sell original historic relics, & accoutrements. A museum where you can shop.

🧔🏻‍♂️ WORLD BEARD DAY — CIVIL WAR EDITION! 🇺🇸Forget the battles for a minute…we need to discuss the REAL competition of ...
09/05/2026

🧔🏻‍♂️ WORLD BEARD DAY — CIVIL WAR EDITION! 🇺🇸

Forget the battles for a minute…we need to discuss the REAL competition of the Civil War: the facial hair. 😂

From Ambrose Burnside’s legendary side-whiskers to Ulysses S. Grant’s full beard and Abraham Lincoln’s unmistakable chin curtain, the 1860s gave us some truly impressive facial-hair history.

So in honor of World Beard Day, we have to ask…

🏆 WHO WINS BEST CIVIL WAR BEARD?

Drop your pick in the comments! 👇

☕ DID YOU KNOW? — Civil War Soldiers Loved Their CoffeeFor many Civil War soldiers, coffee may have been the most antici...
09/03/2026

☕ DID YOU KNOW? — Civil War Soldiers Loved Their Coffee
For many Civil War soldiers, coffee may have been the most anticipated part of the ration. Union troops were commonly issued green coffee beans, which they roasted themselves over campfires and then ground—sometimes using the butt of a rifle. Coffee became such a fixture of camp life that surviving coffee sacks, tins, cups and other personal mess equipment offer a fascinating look at the everyday soldier beyond the battlefield.

Confederate soldiers often weren’t so fortunate. With coffee increasingly scarce because of the Union blockade, they resorted to substitutes that included roasted corn, chicory and even peanuts.
Sometimes the simplest surviving artifact tells one of the best stories—because the Civil War wasn’t only fought on battlefields. It was lived one cup of coffee at a time.


https://uniondb.com/product-category/campsite-items-accoutrements/

The Finest Firsthand Description of the Use of a Civil War Knapsack We Have Ever SeenIf you could open a Civil War soldi...
09/02/2026

The Finest Firsthand Description of the Use of a Civil War Knapsack We Have Ever Seen
If you could open a Civil War soldier’s knapsack, what would you find?
In the case of Sgt. Austin C. Stearns of Company K, 13th Massachusetts Infantry, we actually know. A remarkable handwritten provenance tag accompanying his surviving knapsack records how Stearns packed it in the field. His blankets were rolled and strapped across the top, while inside he carried his quilt, overcoat, underclothing, ditty bag, extra ammunition, hardtack, bottles, toothbrush, medicine, pins and other personal necessities.
Even more fascinating, Stearns noted that this was his “3rd or 4th” knapsack during his three years of service—a wonderful reminder of just how hard campaigning was on a soldier’s equipment.
Stearns later recorded his wartime experiences in Three Years with Company K, giving us an unusually personal glimpse into the everyday life of a soldier in the Army of the Potomac.
This identified knapsack and Stearns’ forage cap are currently available at Union Drummer Boy—a rare opportunity to own artifacts connected directly to a soldier whose own words help tell their story.

THE UNION DRUMMER BOY — FACT OF THE DAYSeptember 1, 1864 — Confederate Forces Abandon AtlantaOn September 1, 1864, Confe...
09/01/2026

THE UNION DRUMMER BOY — FACT OF THE DAY

September 1, 1864 — Confederate Forces Abandon Atlanta
On September 1, 1864, Confederate General John Bell Hood ordered his forces to evacuate Atlanta as Major General William T. Sherman’s Union armies severed the city’s vital railroad supply lines.
After a campaign lasting nearly four months, Atlanta—one of the Confederacy’s most important railroad, manufacturing, and supply centers—fell to Union forces the following day.
The capture of Atlanta was one of the most significant Union victories of the Civil War and provided a major boost to Northern morale. Sherman would depart Atlanta on November 15, beginning his famous March to the Sea.
For a fascinating firsthand account of the Atlanta Campaign, take a closer look at this original wartime diary of John Strawser, 38″ Ohio Infantry, currently available from The Union Drummer Boy. History like this allows us to experience the Civil War through the words of those who actually lived it.
Explore this piece and more original Civil War history at The Union Drummer Boy https://uniondb.com/product/atlanta-campaign-diary-of-john-strawser-38-ohio-infantry/

Did You Know? — Civil War Medicine 🩺Civil War surgeons are often associated with amputations, but anesthesia was actuall...
08/31/2026

Did You Know? — Civil War Medicine 🩺
Civil War surgeons are often associated with amputations, but anesthesia was actually used in the vast majority of major operations. Chloroform and ether were routinely administered to soldiers before surgery, despite the persistent myth that men simply “bit the bullet” while being operated on.
In fact, the expression “bite the bullet” has little evidence tying it to Civil War surgery. Battlefield medicine could be primitive by modern standards, but the widespread use of anesthesia was one area in which Civil War medical care was more advanced than many people realize.
This surgical kit, along with other original medical Civil War artifacts are available through Union Drummer Boy.

Explore our collection: https://uniondb.com/shop/

On This Day in the Civil War — August 28, 1862 🇺🇸On August 28, 1862, fighting at Brawner’s Farm helped ignite the Second...
08/28/2026

On This Day in the Civil War — August 28, 1862 🇺🇸

On August 28, 1862, fighting at Brawner’s Farm helped ignite the Second Battle of Bull Run (Second Manassas). Confederate troops under Stonewall Jackson clashed with Union soldiers in a fierce, close-range fight that lasted into darkness. Some units stood only about 70 yards apart, trading volleys with devastating results.

The encounter was only the beginning. Over the next two days, tens of thousands of soldiers would battle across the same Virginia countryside where the First Battle of Bull Run had been fought just 13 months earlier—ending in another major Confederate victory.

Discover original Stonewall Jackson artifacts and other incredible pieces of Civil War history at Union Drummer Boy www.uniondb.com

Civil War Fact of the DayDid you know the Civil War helped make photography a part of American history like never before...
08/27/2026

Civil War Fact of the Day
Did you know the Civil War helped make photography a part of American history like never before? 📸
Photographers such as Mathew Brady, Alexander Gardner, and Timothy O’Sullivan captured thousands of images of soldiers, camps, battlefields, and prominent figures. For many Americans, these photographs offered an unprecedented—and sometimes shocking—look at the realities of war.
Today, these images give us an extraordinary window into the people who lived through the Civil War—putting real faces to the history we continue to preserve and study more than 160 years later.
Original images from these photographers can be found on our website at www.uniondb.com

08/26/2026

Me:
Heading back with over 200K worth of new inventory….

Also Me:
Oooh look, an antique store. Lets stop 🛑.

to antiques

⚠️ Collector PSA ⚠️Civil War cannons are for:✅ Museums✅ Historical collections✅ Reenactments✅ The Union Drummer BoyThey ...
07/13/2026

⚠️ Collector PSA ⚠️

Civil War cannons are for:
✅ Museums
✅ Historical collections
✅ Reenactments
✅ The Union Drummer Boy

They are not recommended for settling neighborhood disagreements.

Please collect responsibly.

🇺🇸
www.uniondb.com

Great Artifacts and Great Americans, Enjoying the History and Historians. God Bless America!
07/04/2026

Great Artifacts and Great Americans, Enjoying the History and Historians. God Bless America!

Address

34 York Street
Gettysburg, PA
17325

Opening Hours

Monday 10am - 6pm
Tuesday 10am - 6pm
Wednesday 10am - 6pm
Thursday 10am - 6pm
Friday 10am - 7pm
Saturday 10am - 7pm
Sunday 10am - 7pm

Telephone

+17173342350

Website

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