Anya Jabour, Ph.D., explains that for emancipated African Americans, wedding celebrations offered one of the first opportunities to enjoy freedom.

Anya Jabour, Ph.D., explains that even though they were denied education in slavery, African Americans were determined to have it in freedom.

Anya Jabour, Ph.D., explores the multitude of women who dressed as men to fight—and die—in all the major battles of the Civil War.

Anya Jabour, Ph.D., explores the courage and perseverance of Harriet Jacobs.

Anya Jabour, Ph.D., details how southern women frequently served as secret agents in the Civil War, using every means possible to demonstrate their patriotism—whether that meant supporting the Confederacy or remaining loyal to the Union.

Anya Jabour, Ph.D., explains how most contraband camps were dismal if not downright dangerous places, and how Union authorities were unprepared for the influx of refugees—particularly those who could not be recruited into the ranks of the Union Army. From Fulton, Missouri, one Union captain wrote to his senior officer: “What are we to do with the women and children?”

Anya Jabour, Ph.D. is one of Mercy Street's historical advisors and bloggers. In our last behind-the-scenes sneak peek post before Season 2 kicks off, she recounts how she got involved with the series and details her on-set work aiding the actors and producers. She also gives us a sneak peek at what's to come this season.

In this blog post, Anya Jabour, Ph.D., examines how the vast majority of self-supporting women continued to eke out an existence in the Civil War era.

In this blog post, Anya Jabour, Ph.D., reveals how most Americans in the Civil War era struggled to maintain familiar mourning rituals in death’s aftermath.

In this blog post, Anya Jabour, Ph.D., reveals how for many young men, joining the Confederate army was an important coming of age ritual, a marker of both manhood and adulthood.

In this blog post, Anya Jabour, Ph.D. provides historical background on the "contrabands" of the Civil War South.

Anya Jabour, Ph.D., has been teaching and researching the history of women, families and children in the 19th-century South for more than 20 years. She is Professor of History at the University of Montana. In her first blog post, Jabour explores the history of Civil War-era fashion and why women of that time wore hoopskirts.