We estimate the effects of the brutal 1991-2002 Sierra Leone civil war using unique nationally representative household data on conflict experiences, postwar economic outcomes, and local politics and collective action. Individuals whose households personally experienced more intense war violence are robustly more likely to attend community meetings, more likely to vote, more likely to contribute to local public goods, and are more aware of local politics. Several tests indicate selection into victimization is not driving the results. The relationship between conflict intensity and postwar outcomes is weaker at more aggregate levels, suggesting that the war’s primary impact was on individual preferences rather than on institutions or local social norms. More speculatively, the findings could help partially explain the rapid postwar economic and political recovery observed in Sierra Leone and after several other recent African civil wars.