Union and Confederate veterans shaking hands at reunion to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the battle of Gettysburg: <a href="https://www.loc.gov/item/2018652225/" rel="nofollow">https://www.loc.gov/item/2018652225/</a><p>I get the impression Americans today are more divided than people that literally used to shoot at each-other.
I think one of the reasons for the polarization in the US is that it has a two-party system. Both parties do their best to frustrate the other. In most west European countries the political discussions are far more moderate.