Civil War Round Table Of New York Presents Fletcher Pratt Literary Award

Originally published August 2016 · p. 17

NEW YORK, N.Y.—The Civil War Round Table Of New York Presents The 60th Annual Fletcher Pratt Literary Award For Best Non-Fiction Civil War Book Of 2015. At Its 600th Meeting To James M. McPherson for Embattled Rebel: Jefferson Davis As Commander In Chief. On May 11, The Civil War Round Table of New York presented the 60th Annual Fletcher Pratt Literary Award for best non-fiction book of the year to the legendary Civil War Historian and Author, James M. McPherson.

The prestigious Fletcher Pratt Award was presented by Patrick Falci, Past President of the Civil War Round Table of New York and Chairperson of the Fletcher Pratt Awards Committee, along with Award Committee Members and former Past Presidents Charles Mander and William Finlayson, to the 1989 Pulitzer Prize Winner and the George Henry Davis 1986 Professor Emeritus of United States History at Princeton University, Dr. James M. McPherson for Embattled Rebel: Jefferson Davis as Commander in Chief. Awards Chairperson Patrick Falci informed Professor McPherson that this was indeed an “historic” meeting for The Civil War Round Table of New York, being the 60th annual presentation of the Round Table’s most prestigious literary award and that it was occurring at the Club’s 600th meeting during its 65th season. Dr. McPherson then came to the podium and enlightened the Round Table’s members and their guests with his penetrating insights and dry humor. Although history has not been too kind to Jefferson Davis, Professor McPherson took another track and told the Jefferson Davis military story from West Point to the Mexican War to his time as Secretary of War under the Pierce administration. He then explained his relationships with his generals, especially the complicated relations between himself and Joseph E. Johnston and his excellent working relationship with Robert E. Lee, all the time interweaving the actual events, battles and reactions to those events. It was a wonderful evening that ended with a spirited question and answer session. The Fletcher Pratt Award was established in 1956. One of the charter founding members of the Civil War

Round Table of New York, Fletcher Pratt was a prolific writer. Pratt authored 16 books, including six on the American Civil War. At a meeting of the board of directors held on June 19, 1956, just eight days after his untimely death, James D. Horan proposed that a Fletcher Pratt Literary Award be established as a memorial to a distinguished member and the second president of the Round Table (1953-54). Unanimously approved as proposed, the award, in the form of a scroll, is presented to the author or editor of the best non-fiction book on the Civil War published during the course of a calendar year. Previous winners have included such Civil War luminaries as Bruce Catton, Burke Davis, Allan Nevins, Harry Hansen, Shelby Foote, Clifford Dowdey, Edwin Coddington, John Y. Simon, David Donald, William C. Davis, William McFeely, Stephen Sears, Richard McMurray, Edward Longacre, James I. Robertson, Noah Trudeau, Steven Woodworth, Wiley Sword, Gary Gallagher, Gordon Rhea, Joseph T. Glatthaar, Amanda Foreman, Allen Guelzo, and Ed Bearss, just to name a few. James M. McPherson is the “dean” of contemporary Civil War Writers. Born in North Dakota, he received his B.A. from Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minnesota in 1958 and his Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins University in 1963 where he studied under C. Vann Woodward. His most famous work, of course, is his one-volume study of the Civil War, Battle Cry of Freedom” which won the Pulitzer Prize in 1989. He is the George Henry Davis ‘86 Professor Emeritus of United States History at Princeton. Some of his other books include: For Cause and Comrades: Why Men Fought in The Civil War; Crossroads of Freedom: Antietam 1862; and This Mighty Scourge. Founded in 1951, The Civil War Round Table of New York meets on the second Wednesday of the month from September to June. For more information on the Civil War Round Table of New York, please contact The Civil War Round Table of New York at our mailing address: 139-33 250th Street, Rosedale, New York 11422. Or, if you prefer, call 718-341-9811, or email us at [email protected]. Please check out our website at www.cwrtnyc.org.