In A Newport Minute | 1856-1865

This video is the 9th in our series, In A Newport Minute, created by the Newport Historical Society as part of Newport’s contribution to America Turns 250. Each installment highlights a moment in American history within a ten‑year span, beginning in 1776 and continuing to the present day.

Across these 25 short videos, we’ll explore how Newport grew, adapted, and evolved alongside the nation—sometimes in step with national events, sometimes in its own unique way. Our goal is to bring local history to life and show how our community’s story fits into the larger American narrative.

We invite you to follow along every two weeks as we share new chapters in Newport’s past.

Overview

In a Newport Minute recounts Elias Bush Bascom’s 1863–1864 Union Army service, focusing on his capture at Missionary Ridge and incarceration in Libby Prison. The narrative details harsh transport conditions, limited rations, and the prison’s constrained facilities, while noting occasional privileges like letters and parcels when Confederate supply lines allowed.

Bascom’s diary also records daily life and morale inside Libby Prison: music and preaching, punishments for dissent, the famous tunnel escape attempt, and his own flight north with Union sympathizers, culminating in his return to Newport. Sources and archival references are provided for further historical verification.

All of the videos in the series can be viewed using the link below:

Sources:

• Diary of Elias Bush Bascom, Newport Historical Society Archives.
• Freeman’s Auction House.
• Encyclopedia Virginia – Libby Prison.
• Emerging Civil War – Railroads and Union Soldiers.
• Pixels – Battle of Missionary Ridge.
• Civil War Talk – Tobacco Warehouse Prisons.
• University of South Florida – Inside Libby Prison.
• Emerging Civil War – Sundry Boxes.
• Library of Virginia – Escape of Federal Prisoners.
• Wikipedia – Jefferson Davis.
• The Banning Museum – Railroads of the Civil War.
• Find a Grave – Elias Bush Bascom Memorial.
• Virginia Museum of History & Culture.

Key Words:

Elias Bush Bascom, Abraham Lincoln, Newport, Iowa, Chattanooga, Tennessee, Battle of Missionary Ridge, Mission Hill, Georgia, Richmond, Virginia, Libby Prison, Union Army, 5th Iowa Regiment, October 5, 1864, November 5, 1864, Civil War

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