Bullets & Bandages: The Aid Stations And Field Hospitals At Gettysburg. By James Gindlesperger Appendices, Notes, and Index, 360pp., 2020. Blair/ Carolina Wren Press. www.blairpub.com. Cloth. $29.95.
Reviewed by David Marshall
There have been many books written about the battle of Gettysburg since July 3, 1863, and new titles are published every year. These works cover nearly all aspects of the fighting during the three July days with many dealing with a specific part of the battle, others looking at the common solders, regiments, tactics, specific individuals, and even the campaign. Very few volumes have dealt with field hospitals and aid stations during and following the battle. Two great titles have been written about this topic in the past: A Vast Sea of Misery and A Strange and Blighted Land, both written by Greg Coco in the mid- 1990’s. James Gindlesperger has now written an excellent guide book that provides students of the battle of Gettysburg’s with an understanding of the medical assistance provided many soldiers during the hostilities and the aftermath. Enthusiasts will learn about the many citizens who opened their homes and farms to care for the many brave men from the Union and the Confederacy who fought in this historic battle.
Over 160,000 men fought in this engagement. During the battle there was a total of 51,112 casualties including 7,052 dead and 33,264 wounded Union and Confederate soldiers, approximately one in three soldiers ended up a casualty. When the two armies departed a few days later, thousands of wounded remained.
Many hospitals and aid stations were set up throughout the battlefield for corps, divisions, and regiments. Following the fighting when both the Army of the Potomac and the Army of Northern Virginia returned to Virginia, many men had to be treated around the Gettysburg area.
Gindlesperger’s guide and field study has a distinct view of this battlefield town and presents ideas and information that will benefit many enthusiasts, trampers, and armchair students. This monograph is broken into sixteen chapters that tell the story of the battlefield’s field hospitals. The text begins by detailing the treatment of the wounded, including the efficiency of Letterman Plan, and the difficulties associated with burial of the dead. The next eleven chapters deal with farms, homes, churches, and schools around Gettysburg. Some sites are well known such as the David Wills House, the Lutheran Seminary, the Nicolas Codori Farm, the Adam Trostle Farm, the Jacob Weikert Farm, the George Spangler Farm, the Jacob Brinkerhoff Farm, and the St. Francis Xavier Church. What
Defending the Arteries of Rebellion: Confederate Naval Operations in the Mississippi River Valley, 1861–1865. By Neil P. Chatelain. Illustrated, Index, bibliography. Savas Beatie Publishers, www.savasbeatie.com, 2020, 324 pp., hardbound, $32.95.
Reviewed by Wayne L. Wolf
Numerous accounts have been published of the Union’s naval operations that helped capture Forts Henry and Donelson, Vicksburg, and New Orleans; this meticulously researched volume comprehensively covers the Confederacy’s attempt to retain control of the Mississippi River Valley.
At the outset of the Civil War, the South was faced with cobbling together a navy from few resources, impromptu construction, innovative strategies, and an ad hoc naval force. A fully functional river force capable of retaining control of the Mississippi River and its tributaries was one of Navy Secretary Stephen Mallory’s top priorities. His desire was to utilize a fleet of ironclad warships and converted wooden vessels to keep internal Confederate supply lines open.
The Confederacy started the war with no government shipyard, little money, and few ships. Yet to defend the Mississippi, they still managed to create an ammunition factory, a laboratory for producing heavy armament, ironclads like the CSS Arkansas, and innovative new weapons, that included fire rafts, sunken ship barriers, and torpedoes to slow down the Union flotillas and prolong control of the Mississippi valley. The Confederate River Defense Force and the independent Louisiana Navy, while improvised and makeshift, proved formidable, albeit temporary, barriers to Admiral Farragut’s fleet and Porter’s river flotilla.
From the first Confederate naval victory at Head of Passes to isolated hard won skirmishes on the Mississippi and Yazoo Rivers, the Confederate naval force tried a three-pronged strategy of circumventing the blockade to keep supply lines open, attacking Northern commerce, and keeping the port of New Orleans north to Kentucky free of Union control. They ultimately were most successful in only the first of these goals, interfering with Northern commerce. Yet, their small, improvised navy managed to delay the Union fleet from cooperating with the army in capturing ports from Memphis to New Orleans.
From the early days of the war, the South learned the value of armored vessels, the need to fortify land positions by shifting limited resources, running ships past Union strongholds, and using unconventional weapons to blunt Union naval superiority. While ultimately failing in their attempt to retain control of the Mississippi, it was not for the lack of trying and the courage of the defenders.
100 Significant Civil War Photographs: Atlanta Campaign presents a riveting collection of George Barnard’s camera work. Most of the photographs are from Barnard’s time in Atlanta, mid-September to mid-November 1864, during the Federal occupation of the city. With this volume, Stephen Davis advances the scholarly literature of
The failure could more appropriately be attributed to the lack of army and navy command coordination, too much confidence in the strength of the River Defense Force, and a lack of resources and manpower to compete with Union industrial capacity.
Neil Chatelain does a magnificent job of weaving extensive research into a readable and engrossing, almost day by day, analysis of the Confederate navy’s actions on the Mississippi. This book is thoroughly researched, eminently readable, engrossing, and essential to any understanding of the Confederate navy’s role in the western theatre. Every historian of the Trans-Mississippi should add this volume to their library.
Dr. Wayne Wolf is Professor Emeritus at South Suburban College and the author of numerous Civil War books and Two Years articles including Before the Paddlewheel, The Last Confederate Scout, and Soldiers, Sailors and Scoundrels of the Civil War.
The Impulse of Victory: Ulysses S. Grant at Chattanooga. By David A. Powell. Appendix, Notes, Bibliography, and Index, 246 pp., 2020. Southern Illinois University Press, www.siupress.com. Hardback. $34.50.
Reviewed by John D. Fowler
In November 1863, Union forces under the command of Major General Ulysses S. Grant routed the Confederate Army of Tennessee under Braxton Bragg outside Chattanooga. The defeat at Chattanooga was the last great Confederate catastrophe of 1863, following Gettysburg and Vicksburg. Arguably Chattanooga was the most damaging because it opened Georgia and its machine shops and farms up to Union invasion.
The Impulse to Victory by David A. Powell is the story of that defeat and the campaign’s effect on Ulysses S. Grant. Powell, a business executive by profession, is a prolific and well-regarded Civil War author by avocation. He is perhaps best known for his Chickamauga Campaign trilogy, as well as Battle Above the Clouds: Lifting the Siege of Chattanooga and the Battle of Lookout Mountain, October 16-November 24, 1863.Impulse to Victory is a natural fit with the author’s other work that covers Western Theater campaigns. What distinguishes this book from the others is that Powell focuses not only on the battle but also on Grant’s performance and generalship at this critical point in both the war and his career.
Powell examines the prelude to the battle, provides an in-depth analysis of the details of the campaign, covers all the major issues and personalities, and explores the aftermath of the encounter in twelve tight and well-written chapters. Troop movements, logistical considerations, etc., are all granted proper attention. Anyone unfamiliar with the battle would find Impulse to Victory interesting, informative, and enjoyable.
The question could be asked whether or not another book on the battle is needed, considering that Powell covers material that other historians have already presented and reaches conclusions that are not unique from previous works. A strong case in favor of the book can be argued on at least three grounds. First, Powell does an excellent job of presenting Grant realistically as a fair commander who owes his success at Chattanooga (and perhaps his entire military career) to tenacity and luck. Grant does not perform exceptionally well at Chattanooga, and yet he gains credit for a battle actually won by the Army of the Cumberland’s soldiers in an impetuous charge and Confederate incompetence. The Grant who emerges from the pages of Powell’s book is far more nuanced than the one found in the ever-increasing hagiographical works on the general.
Second, Powell’s account is concise and well-written and stands out as perhaps the best short volume on the battle. It is perfect for the student or the aficionado. Third, and unfortunately perhaps the most important reason why this book is crucial now, is that professional Civil War historians have generally stopped writing military history. Indeed, scholars are becoming prejudiced against military studies. Many younger students of the war today know nearly nothing about the actual military events of the conflict. Considering the war was won and lost on the battlefield, this is devastating and detrimental to the field.
In sum, this is a solid work that both lay readers and professional historians will find it useful.
John D. Fowler Ph.D., is a professor at Dalton State College, and military historian specializing in the Civil War Era. He has written several books and articles primarily focused on the Western Theater of the conflict.
Useful Captives: The Role of POWs in American Military Conflicts. Edited by Daniel Krebs and Lorian Foote. Illustrated, notes, index, 344 pp., University Press of Kansas, kansaspress. ku.edu, 2021, hardcover. $45.00
Useful Captives is a compilation of 11 essays on POWs emanating from the 2017 Filson Historical Society’s lecture series. The essays encompass the experiences of POWs from the Georgia Creek Border incursions to detainees from Iraq and Afghanistan. Four chapters deal specifically with the American Civil War.
The role of POWs is discussed around five main themes: the hostage as a negotiating tool, a propaganda asset, an object of indoctrination, the proof of military success, and use as a political expedient. Each chapter interprets the story of POWs into a broader narrative about society and the cultural and social context of warfare. Studying POWs illuminates the values inherent in both the captors and captives, whether those be the definition of manliness and courage, the role of defiance in defining POW character, or how POWs can become the targets of hatred and revenge.
To fully understand the POW experience, the authors argue that seven phases of that experience need to be understood, i.e. pre-capture, capture, removal,
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landscape, resistance, release, and lament. Without a thorough analysis of each of these stages, the POW experience can only partially be understood.
The four chapters dealing with POWS in the American Civil War include individual soldier vignettes as well as common conceptions and misconceptions regarding POWs, their ordeals, motivations, and use as political ploys, particularly in the North. Additionally, environmental issues of Camp Douglas, Elmira Prison, and Andersonville, created problems for captives and the communities in which they were located. Likewise, Northern newspapers and politicians are called out for their biased coverage of the horrors of Southern prisons while neglecting the abuses in the Northern camps, political ploys that lasted decades after the war’s end. Post Reconstruction writing by former Confederates tried to counter this Northern bias by creating the literature of the Lost Cause for which they fought.
One fourth of all Civil War soldiers were captured during the war and 56,000 died in prison. The editors of this text could easily have compiled a comprehensive book on these POWs and provide a more coherent analysis of POWS, both North and South. Their present attempt should be divided into a series dealing with the POW experience in each American and foreign theatre of war. They attempt too much in a single volume that lacks the depth necessary for a complete analysis of the individual wars. Thus, this book serves best as an introduction to the trials of POWS over a 250 year span and begs the need for further research on each conflict.
Dr. Wayne L. Wolf is Professor Emeritus at South Suburban College and the author of numerous Civil War texts and articles including Two Years Before the Paddlewheel and the Last Civil War Scout. He is past president of the Lincoln-Davis Civil War Roundtable.
Tullahoma: The Forgotten Campaign that Changed the Course of the Civil War, June 23-July 4, 1863. By David A. Powell and Eric J. Wittenberg. Appendix, Notes, Bibliography, and Index, 395 pp., 2020. Savas Beatie, www.savasbeatie.com. Hardcover. $34.95.
July 1863 was a critical month in the American Civil War. Impressive Union victories at Vicksburg and Gettysburg offered hope to a war-weary Northern populace and at the same time tested the resolve of a teetering Confederacy. The two battles were indisputably important to the final outcome of the war; however, an equally important, yet often overlooked, successful Federal campaign was decided at the same time.
While politicians, the press, and the public of both nations focused on events in Mississippi and Pennsylvania, Union General William S. Rosecrans and his Army of the Cumberland executed an impressive campaign of maneuver, and in a matter of
weeks with little bloodshed, drove Confederate General Braxton Bragg’s Army of Tennessee from middle Tennessee and finally secured the state for the Union. On par with Vicksburg and Gettysburg in terms of strategic consequences, the Tullahoma Campaign dramatically altered the situation in the Western Theater and led to the series of battles to secure Chattanooga and the gateway to Georgia.
It is understandable that contemporaries “lost” the Tullahoma campaign among the great battles of 1863. While Rosecrans took pride in driving the Rebels from Tennessee at the cost of fewer than 500 casualties, President Lincoln and Secretary of War Stanton viewed the battle as a lost opportunity. Indeed, they chided the general that Bragg’s army had escaped destruction. Given the operational skill exhibited by the Union commander and the significance of the campaign to the movement against Chattanooga, it is both unfortunate and surprising that scholars have failed to examine it in greater depth.
Thankfully, historians David A. Powell and Eric J. Wittenberg have turned their attention and research to this forgotten campaign. Powell, a prolific author and noted authority on the Chickamauga Campaign, and Wittenberg, an equally prolific writer and a cavalry specialist, have produced an excellent study. In fourteen concise and well-written chapters, the authors cover the important events and personalities associated with the campaign from its beginnings to its aftermath. While little of their research or conclusions is new, this is still an important work for several reasons.
First, the campaign is often mentioned only briefly in other works that cover the Western Theater or events in Tennessee. Powell and Wittenberg have given readers and scholars the indepth monographic study that Tullahoma deserves. The authors do justice to this complex campaign of intricate troop movements, long marches, feints, logistical concerns, bad weather, and skirmishes. What emerges is the brilliance of Rosecrans and the ineptitude of the Confederates. Bragg’s constant state of confusion as to Rosecrans’s objectives, exacerbated by the poor performance of his corps commanders, led to disaster for the Rebels as they ceded the southern portion of middle Tennessee without a fight.
The second reason this work is welcomed is that it clearly demonstrates the need for greater study of the military campaigns and battles of the Civil War. Far from being an exhausted field, Civil War military studies still has much to be explored.
In sum, this volume is an example of how a modern campaign study should be written. It is well-researched, well-written, and well-presented with excellent maps and illustrations. It contains balanced and nuanced evaluations of the leadership of Rosecrans and Bragg and presents realistic descriptions of their performance. Finally, it covers the often overlooked but critical role supply and logistics played in this campaign and, indeed, in all military campaigns. This book deserves a wide audience.
John D. Fowler Ph.D., is a professor at Dalton State College, and military historian specializing in the Civil War. He has written several books and articles primarily focused on the Western Theater of the conflict.
is interesting that the author included many smaller and less well known places of historic interest. People will be interested to learn that larger sites like the U.S. Sanitary Commission Lodge and Camp Letterman, not only provided services and aid to soldiers but prepared the wounded for transport to urban hospitals in places such as Philadelphia and Baltimore. Finally, the remaining chapters deal with the Hanover, Hunterstown, Fairfield, and Cashtown areas. An excellent overview of the hospitals, aid stations, farms, homes, and churches that took care of both Union and Confederate soldiers is covered throughout this treatment.
James Gindlesperger and his wife Suzanne continue the research of Greg Coco’s wellknown books and expand on the subject matter providing visitors with an excellent guide that includes the GPS coordinates of countless sites discussed in the text. People visiting Gettysburg will be able to add these important locations to their itinerary. This study is well written, soundly researched, abundantly illustrated, and enhanced with detailed maps. It is indispensable reading for anyone interested in the Battle of Gettysburg’s aftermath. Two valuable appendices, a glossary of Civil War era medical terms and money values of damaged
properties, notes, and an index enhance this manuscript.
This excellent volume contains many illustrations as well as a helpful map of all sites at the beginning of each chapter that provides helpful information and context about where many hospitals and aid stations were located. This monograph will help visitors to the greater Gettysburg area receive a better understanding of what doctors did in treating soldiers and what the townspeople went through in opening their homes and farms during and following the fighting. Highly recommended by this reviewer.
David Marshall is a high school American history teacher in the Miami-Dade School district for the past thirty-four years. A lifelong Civil War enthusiast, David is president of the Miami Civil War Round Table Book Club. In addition to numerous reviews in Civil War News and other publications, he has given presentations to Civil War Round Tables on Joshua Chamberlain, Ulysses S. Grant, Abraham Lincoln, the Battle of Gettysburg, and the Common Soldier.
Weekend Warrior: Over Fifty Years Re-living American History. By Lawrence J. Bopp, illustrated, appendices, subject index. Privately published 2020, Lawrence J. Bopp, paperback, 315 pages. $40
The hobby of U.S. Civil War reenacting has been around long enough now to have created a history of its own. Civil War reenactments began springing up around the time of the U.S. Civil War Centennial and have continued ever since. Weekend Warrior is the title of the memoirs of longtime reenactor Lawrence J. Bopp. He sets out here to prove the old saw that “we are all the heroes of our own story.” Mr. Bopp first began participating in American Civil War events during 1967 as a recruit in George Gorman’s 2nd NC Infantry, arguably the sine qua non of authentic Civil War units during that time. By all accounts George Gorman was an interesting character with a well-earned reputation for wild behavior. As often happens with reenactment groups, things ran their course and the 2nd NC soon folded, but Mr. Bopp had found something there that he really enjoyed and pursuing historical military reenacting would come to dominate his weekends for the next half century.
Mr. Bopp formed his own unit in 1968 in Baltimore, Md., that he called the 4th NC Infantry and maintained some of the same characteristics found in Gorman’s 2nd NC Infantry, most particularly the attention paid to their equipment and handmade woolen uniforms. His quixotic search for the right fabrics and patterns dominated his earliest recollections. Let me hasten to add, this was taking place during the time before anything in the way of quality reproduction gear was available; options were limited to what you could make yourself.
More often, what prospective reenactors would do was cobble together an outfit from their own closets which consisted of work or casual clothes, a reshaped western cowboy hat and work boots. Reenactors often showed up looking more like Texaco service station attendants than any sort of Union or Confederate Civil War soldier. A common insult at that time was to inquire, “what gas station are you fighting for?” The derogatory term, “farb,” is widely used by Bopp throughout the book to describe such participants.
Mr. Bopp also recalls the other alternative for more authentic Union and Confederate reenactors who routinely used surviving historical artifacts as part of their kit. Original jackets, trowsers (trousers), hats, and cartridge boxes were pressed back into service at Civil War reenactments. The muskets were cobbled together from disassociated parts or else an original still in serviceable order was used. Naturally, this was an unwise practice that is now frowned upon. Today there at least some quality reproductions available which was not the case fifty years ago. It is now more widely recognized that when a historical artifact is lost or damaged in a reenactment or living history, so is a piece of history. The loss of these valuable artifacts is acknowledged by Mr. Bopp and he expresses his regrets about the matter.
There is something of a sliding scale in how Mr. Bopp considers matters of authenticity as it relates to the hobby of Civil War reenacting. He pays considerable attention to the hat and uniform part of his kit, which he terms his “costume.” The preferred term in the authentic living history community for the clothing worn is “period attire.” This may seem trivial but it is strongly inferred in this book that modern sewing machines were used to construct his Confederate “costumes.” However, sewing machines were not in wide use to construct Confederate uniforms domestically during the Civil War. Hence, most reenactors who participate in the history heavy side of the hobby hand sew their clothing as this was the method of construction during the 1860s. Further, the use of vegetable dyed cotton thread is used, and so on. There is more to authenticity than just getting the correct wool.
In addition, Bopp recalls that his first major purchase was a reproduction of the two-band 1862/3 Remington contract rifle that reenactors of the time incorrectly called the “Zouave.” These were never issued to Civil Warera Zouave units or for that matter anybody else. While they were among the first reproductions available, what is also true is that they are completely anachronistic to any authentic portrayal of a Confederate Civil War soldier in the Army of Northern Virginia. In fact, the reproduction “Zouave” rifle became so closely associated with those who Bopp derisively terms “farbs” that most mainstream Civil War reenactments eventually banned their use. He also sometimes calls The Battle Flag of the Army of Northern Virginia the “Confederate Battle Flag” and in at least one instance, “the Stars and Bars.” This is regrettable since the original 4th NC Infantry served with distinction in the Army of Northern Virginia. You are certainly to be excused if you don’t find such matters to be of any concern to the overall narrative. The broader point here is that in Weekend Warrior a “farb” is always pointed out where some other guy lacks knowledge or cuts corners.
These minor criticisms aside, there is much worthwhile information here and for the intended audience of American history buffs and reenactors the book can be recommended. For example, it is annotated in the Chicago style where a superscript number is placed in the text that corresponds to a footnote at the bottom of the page. The footnotes often contain important information that put things in better context and should always be read. Mr. Bopp makes this part easy on the reader. Another much appreciated feature was the subject matter index at the back of the book to assist in quickly finding people you might know as well as other points of interest. The book is arranged in chronological order and chapters correspond to different time periods in his long reenacting career which over time increased to include all periods of American history from Revolutionary War to World War II. Mr. Bopp also participated in a number of television programs and National Park Service Visitor Center films, an activity for which he devotes a separate chapter in the book. His recollections mirror my own observations about some of those same experiences.
The best parts in Weekend Warrior are the author’s vivid
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recollection of hundreds of campfire stories involving his interactions with colorful characters over the years, many of whom have since passed away. The part of the living history hobby that many participants enjoy most begins after the battles or demonstrations are finished; the sun goes down and the serious drinking starts. Mr. Bopp mentions that he was known by the nickname “Uncle Filth.” It is apparently well deserved. If you enjoy pranks, salty language, misadventures, and scatological humor you are in for a treat. If not, consider yourself warned.
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Musket: A Handbook for Historical Accuracy (2006, 2011), The Unfinished Fight: Essays on Confederate Material Culture Vol. I and II (2012, 2013). He
19th CENTURY
Civil War Trails Inc., in partnership with King George County Economic Development and Tourism are excited to announce the official expansion of the popular “John Wilkes Booth, Escape of an Assassin” driving trail into Virginia. The thematic driving trail that began in Maryland over 15 years ago now offers visitors 11 sites to explore. The four new sites in King George County, Va., are the latest additions to the Civil War Trails program that now offers over 1,350 sites across six states.
Originally designed and implemented in Maryland, the thematic driving trail offers something for history travelers, road trip enthusiasts, and communities hosting the Civil War Trails sites and signs. “By following the Trail, visitors experience the story of one of the most significant events in American history,” said Maryland Department of Commerce Assistant Secretary Tom Riford. “The newly expanded trail helps this scenic and historic driving tour come to life, in the places where the events happened.”
Since the “Escape of an Assassin” trail originally opened, interest from visitors has only increased and requests for the brochure rivals other Civil War Trails pieces in popularity. This interest was the driving force behind expanding the trail into King George County. “King George is excited to join the Civil War Trails sign network. With travel projected to be at an all-time high this year, our highways will be full of tourists and travelers looking for historical locations as they make their way to beaches and family gatherings,” explained Nicholas Minor, with the King George County Economic and Tourism Development Office.
Over the last year the Civil War Trails program offered a safe and responsible amenity for families and travelers, often driving sorely needed revenues to businesses. Moreover, over the last several years the Civil War Trails program continued to experience growing visitation, along with an increasingly younger and more dynamic audience. “The [Booth] byway highlights attractions that make for a great side trip for history buffs who travel to or live in Washington D.C.,” said Ashley Chenault, Chief of Tourism, Explore Charles County, Maryland.
The Civil War Trails team is excited about continuing to grow beyond the four thematic sites in King George and to uncover other aspects of their Civil War history. “With these signs as a starting point, we are happy continue working with stakeholders in King George to tell larger and more diverse stories in the county,” said Chris Brown, Assistant Director at Civil War Trails.
For more information about Civil War Trails or to request your free brochure today connect with them at: