One of my favorite classes at UVA. If you don't decide not to take the class, 1) that's a shame and 2) it's worth sitting in a couple lectures throughout the year. It's rare to find someone so dedicated to their field.

Everyone should take this class! Of course, Gallagher knows so much about the topic. But it's all the extra things he does that makes this class special: field trip to Petersburg, the weekly book discussions, grading the film papers. Definitely worth getting up in the morning for!

Best course at UVA, hands down. Gallagher is one of the premier scholars on the Civil War and every student who takes his course is lucky to learn under such an intelligent professor. The class is at 8am, so going in itself requires a bit of dedication, but you do not want to miss his lectures. Gallagher is funny, engaging, and all around amazing to listen to. He certainly wakes you up! There is a lot of reading to be done, and Gallagher has biweekly book reviews so you won't miss the big points. The midterm and final are take home essays that draw on lecture and the readings. There is also a film paper that requires you to watch movies and assess their historical accuracy. Overall, this is a fantastic class that every student should take at UVA.

Attending an 8 am twice a week is hard to sell, bu Gallagher makes this class totally worth it. Attendance is not mandatory, but is essential to doing well in the class - Gallagher's lectures reveal as much about the Civil War as the readings do, in a fraction of the time. Attending class also makes the essays much easier, and Gallagher's passion for the subject and love of teaching combines with his personality to create an amazing classroom environment - highly recommend!

There is a reason this class is one of the most recommended and famous at UVa. Gallagher's class is only offered at 8:00 AM, and every year it fills to capacity. He is an outstanding lecturer and overall a fun and approachable professor. Though the "exams" are quite tough, you have plenty of time to prepare them, and the movie review papers help balance out the harsher exam grades. Highly recommended!!

Never imagined I'd be excited to go to an 8 AM. Gallagher is a fantastic lecturer and you learn so much. Highly recommend this class to anyone.

There are two "exams" where you have a week to write two papers, and there's one paper on civil war films. There's also two geography quizzes at the beginning of the semester which are an easy GPA booster if you study. Good amount of reading but not all of it is absolutely necessary. Just make sure to use the readings in the papers. I didn't find the class too demanding. You might only be able to get a B even after working hard on the papers, but it's still absolutely worth it.

This class is absolutely worth taking. I didn't realize how relevant the Civil War is to my daily life until Gallagher explained it brilliantly. Not an easy class, but an essential one for anyone wishing to develop a sense of American history.

The class was exceptional, as a class. Gallagher is an encyclopedia of Civil War knowledge, and it showed in every lecture. HOWEVER, he is an extremely difficult grader. The limited number of assignments makes it very difficult to get a feel for what he wants in time to save your grade, and getting a B/B- is often the best case scenario. If possible, taking the class C/NC may be best, since it allows you to get the full experience of learning from Gallagher while not taking a hit to your GPA. Overall it was an exceptional class, and I thoroughly recommend it.

Professor Gallagher is the best teacher I have had at UVA. His knowledge of the subject never ceases to amaze me and he is extremely engaging as a lecturer. The course material is also really fun to study. A lot of people found the class challenging, but I think that Gallagher makes it pretty easy for one to attain success. If you actually do and synthesize all the readings, keep the given questions in mind,, then give yourself enough time to prepare and write each paper, you should be fine. Also, nobody does anything to ensure that you do the readings as the course moves along. It piles up very quickly and, therefore, set to a reading schedule and stick to it.

Gallagher is a great professor. He is engaging and passionate, and he is super friendly. If you like the Civil War, this class is definitely worth the 8AM start time.