Ambrose Burnside: From Crazy Sideburns to Carbine

History Gets Hairy
Discussions of historical facial hair present an unusual method of stimulating interest in the past. In 2011, the Smithsonian presented a list (with pictures!) of the 24 best examples of Civil War facial hair and asked readers to vote on which they thought was the best. (Polls are still open; check it out and vote!) In 2013, Business Insider decided to highlight Movember and No Shave November by selecting 15 particularly excellent examples of Civil War hirsuteness (hairiness). This past August, Prologue: Pieces of History, the National Archives’ blog, featured an article about Civil War facial hair. One Hoosier is featured in all three articles and the facial hair he sported soon took on his name. However, there is more to Ambrose Burnside than his sideburns.