Pigeons of War is a public-history project devoted to the history of military pigeon services and the use of homing pigeons in military, maritime, and emergency communications.

The project explores pigeon communications from antiquity through the modern era, with particular attention to naval and maritime operations, military communications systems, civilian pigeon networks adapted for government use, and the role of pigeons when conventional communications fail.

Research for Pigeons of War draws on military reports, archival newspapers, technical manuals, memoirs, pigeon-fanciers’ publications, photographs, and other primary and secondary sources. Articles range from individual pigeons and units to broader questions about communications infrastructure, military organization, and human-animal cooperation.

About the Editor

Justin Craig is the founder and editor of Pigeons of War. His research on military pigeons has appeared in Warship International, the Pulaski County Historical Review, and the Encyclopedia of Arkansas. His public-history work has also included manuscript review, museum exhibit research assistance, documentary consulting, and oral-history research.