A special program titled "Civil War Aeronauts" will be held at 7 p.m. next Thursday, May 17, at the Main Street Association office in Gloucester’s Main Street Center.

Dr. James Green, an authority on the Civil War, will talk about the history of balloons and their importance during that war, according to Gloucester tourism coordinator Hilton Snowdon.

Although his daytime job is Director of the Planetary Science Division at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in Washington, D.C., Green has researched the use of tethered observation balloons during the war, including their importance during the Peninsula Campaign, said Snowdon.

Both the North and South used balloons to observe troop movements, he said, and Green will describe some of these battle scenarios.

The lecture is linked to "The Birth of Military Aviation" program which will be held from 10 a.m. -3 p.m. Memorial Day, Monday, May 28, at Main Street Center.

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