July 24-26, 2026

The Friends of the Elmira Civil War Prison Camp and Elmira College are sponsoring a symposium Friday, July 24 through Sunday, July 26, 2026. Presentations will cover a range of topics related to Elmira’s Civil War history. Scheduled activities will take place on the historic Elmira College campus.

Registration Link: https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/2026-civil-war-symposium

Thomas K. Meier Keynote Speaker:
Scott Mingus Sr.

“Northern Central & Elmira-Williamsport Railroads”

The Northern Central Railway and its partner line, the Elmira & Williamsport Railroad, were key routes to send troops, supplies, food, and ammunition to the Union armies. Confederate troops targeted the NCR during the Gettysburg Campaign, destroying more than 30 bridges on the line in southern Pennsylvania. The next summer, trainloads of Confederate prisoners captured during U.S. Grant’s Overland Campaign steamed north to Elmira. Author Scott Mingus will discuss the history of the railroad and its role in the Federal war effort.

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Multiple award-winning author Scott Mingus is a retired scientist and executive in the global specialty paper industry. The Ohio native graduated from Miami University. He was part of the research team that developed the first commercially successful self-adhesive U.S. postage stamps, and he was a pioneer in the early development of bar code labels. He has written more than 35 Civil War and Underground Railroad books and numerous articles for Gettysburg Magazine and other historical journals. He has appeared on C-SPAN, C-SPAN3, PBS, PCN, and other TV networks. Mingus writes the Cannonball blog on the Civil War history of York County, PA, where he and his wife Debi live. He has also written six scenario books for miniature wargaming and was elected to the hobby’s Legion of Honor.

Mingus received lifetime achievement awards from the York County History Center, the Northeastern York County Historical and Preservation Society, and the Camp Curtin Historical Society for his many contributions to local Civil War history. His biography of William “Extra Billy” Smith won two national awards for Confederate military history. The Gettysburg Civil War Round Table presented Mingus and co-author Eric Wittenberg with the 2023 Bachelder-Coddington Award for the best new book on the Gettysburg Campaign, If We Are Striking for Pennsylvania.

Several direct ancestors were in the Union army in the Civil War, including 15-year-old Pvt. John D. Sisson of the 51st Ohio.

The Elmira Civil War Symposium will take place on the campus of historic Elmira College. Founded in 1856, it graduated its first class in the gathering shadows of the Civil War and has operated continually since then. The original college building, Cowles Hall, still stands atop what was known at the time as Prospect Hill, overlooking the campus. For more information about Elmira College’s history go to: Elmira College – History & Traditions

Option A (great for 1st time attendees)

• Bus tour of wartime locations with stops at Barracks Three, Woodlawn National Cemetery, John W. Jones Museum

Option C (Group is limited to 15 registered attendees!)

• Quarry Farm – Langdon family farm (UGRR participant, home of Mark Twain’s wife Olivia & location where Twain wrote some of his books
• Chemung Valley History Museum – Civil War era artifact & Mark Twain exhibits
• Panel Discussion – Researching, writing and publishing historical information. Panel comprised of published authors.

Richard Leisenring, Jr, 
“Elmira – The Civil War Prison Camp in Photographs, 1864-1865”

Mary Frailey Calland
“Our Lesser Angels”