The Union Army Balloon Corps was a highly innovative and effective force during the American Civil War, and its military role foreshadowed the advent of aerial warfare in the following century. From 1861 to 1863 the corps contributed invaluable surveillance and reconnaissance information to the Union Army's war effort during the Virginia Campaign. But its role was not restricted to intelligence gathering alone, and the Balloon Corps also achieved such military feats as air-to-ground communication by telegraph, the first use of an 'aircraft carrier' for launch of a balloon, and the first artillery barrage directed by an aerial observer where gun batteries were unable to see their targets on the ground. This fascinating book traces the history of the corps from its creation by pioneer balloonist Thaddeus Lowe to its disbandment in 1863.