The boys who fought Mr. Lincoln's war.

Erastus Haskell. Thaddeus Lowe. Francis Brownell. George Kimbrue.

Brenda Elthon

Civil War soldiers convalesce in the Armory Square Hospital, Washington, D.C.

1. Walt Whitman and Erastus Haskell.

The awful news came in mid-December 1862: George Whitman had been wounded in battle near Fredericksburg, Virginia, and his condition was unknown.

Frantic for news, George’s older brother Walt took the train from the family home i…