xiv, 386 pages, [16] pages of plates : illustrations ; 24 cm
Notes
Includes bibliographical references (pages 354-372) and index.
Summary
The first narrative history of the Civil War as told by the very people it freed. Historian of nineteenth-century and African-American history Andrew Ward weaves together hundreds of interviews, diaries, letters, and memoirs. Here is the Civil War as seen from slave quarters, kitchens, roadsides, swamps, and fields. Body servants, army cooks and launderers, runaways, teamsters, and gravediggers bring the war to richly detailed life. From slaves' theories about the causes of the Civil War to their frank assessments of major figures; from their searing memories of the carnage of battle to their often startling attitudes toward masters and liberators alike; and from their initial jubilation at the Yankee invasion of the slave South to the crushing disappointment of freedom's promise unfulfilled, this is a transformative vision of America's second revolution.--From publisher description.
xix, 321 p., [8] leaves of plates : ill., maps ; 25 cm.
Notes
Includes bibliographical references (p. 293-308) and index.
Contents
The Gettysburg campaign : a brief chronology -- Prologue : the lay of the land; a sign of the times -- An afternoon in the badlands -- The season of disbelief -- Desolation's edge -- Flying thick like blackbirds -- Bold acts -- The wide eye of the storm -- The aftermath -- The seesaw of honor, or, How the pigpen was mightier than the sword -- Women and remembrance -- Making a living on hallowed land.
Summary
"In the summer of 1863, as Union and Confederate armies marched on southern Pennsylvania, the town of Gettysburg found itself thrust onto the center stage of war. The three days of fighting that ensued decisively turned the tide of the Civil War. In The Colors of Courage, Margaret Creighton narrates the tale of this crucial battle from the viewpoint of three unsung groups - women, immigrants, and African Americans - and reveals how wide the battle's dimensions were."
"Creighton draws on memoirs, letters, diaries, and newspapers to bring to life the individuals at the heart of her narrative. In telling the stories of these participants, Margaret Creighton has written a work of original history - a narrative that is sure to redefine the Civil War's most remarkable event."--Jacket.
Part 1. A growing rivalry between the North and South, 1846-1854. The Mexican War, the Wilmot Proviso, and the election of 1848 ; The Compromise of 1850 ; The fugitive slave controversy, the election of 1852, and growing sectionalism -- Part 2. Southern successes, Northern anxieties, 1854-1857. The Kansas-Nebraska Act, bleeding Kansas, and the Republican Party ; The elction of 1856 and its aftermath -- Part 3. The Union comes apart, 1857-1861. Dred Scott, Kansas, and the events of 1858 ; John Brown's raid, party conventions, the election of 1860, and secession.
Summary
Voices from the Gathering Storm explains the dramatic change in thinking about the nature and value of the American Union from 1846 to1861 which impelled citizens from 11 southern states to declare independence and the remaining 22 states to fight the bloodiest war in the nation's history. This reader tells the story of seventeen Northerners and Southerners who lived through the critical fifteen years prior to the Civil War. In their letters and diaries, they describe in their own words what it was like to live during the sectional crisis and the coming of the war. [from the publisher]
Includes bibliographical references (p. 211-243) and index.
Summary
"As a nation we bring many perspectives to our commemorative places and our ideas may change over time, especially on difficult topics like slavery and racism. Why a place is saved and how it is interpreted to visitors has much to do with our collective memory of the events that took place there. Using the skills of an archaeologist and a historian, Paul Shackel examines four well-known Civil War-era National Park sites and shows us how public memory shaped their creation and continues to shape their interpretation. Shackel shows us that 'public memory' is really 'public memories'. and interpretation may change dramatically from one generation to another as interpreters try to accommodate, or ignore, certain memories. Memory in Black and White is important reading for all who are interested in history and memory of landscapes, and will be especially useful to those involved in preserving and interpreting a controversial place." [from the publisher]
