What I’m Working On
By A. Wilson Greene · Originally published March 2017 · p. 3
As I sit in my home office after one of my wife’s delicious suppers, it occurs to me that I am on the very cusp of a major change in my professional life. By the time subscribers to Civil War News read this little column, I will have retired from my position as Executive Director of Pamplin Historical Park and the National Museum of the Civil War Soldier - and from my formal career as a public historian. That career has spanned forty-three years and includes stints at six units of the national park system, a five-year term as the founding director of the Association for the Preservation of Civil War Sites (now the Civil War Trust) and my time at the helm of Pamplin
Historical Park - all twenty-two years of it. I have been remarkably blessed in my work - having the opportunities to shape the interpretation of Chatham Manor at Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania National Military Park, participate in founding of the modern battlefield preservation movement, and transform 424 acres of woods and fields into a much-admired Civil War history destination through the generosity of my employer and the hard work of the men and women who have over the years shared my labors at Pamplin Historical Park. Now it’s time to move on - but that motion will not take me away from my love of Civil War history.
A decade ago Gary Gallagher and the University of North Carolina Press recruited me to write a multi-volume history of the Petersburg Campaign of 1864-65 for the Civil War America series. Volume One of a projected three-volume endeavor is now at Chapel Hill awaiting an early 2018 publication date. Seven more months of campaigning around the Cockade City await my attention and I suspect that this work will keep me out of the taverns and opium dens for the foreseeable future. I also intend to maintain a vigorous schedule of speaking and tour guiding until my dotage renders me incapable. I have half-adozen tours on the books in 2017, ranging from the Atlanta Campaign, the war in Kentucky, the battlefields of West Virginia, and, of course, Petersburg. I lecture for Smithsonian twice a year on board the faux steamboat, Queen of the Mississippi, on cruises between Memphis and New Orleans, speaking about the war along the Father of Waters and leading passengers through Vicksburg National Military Park and Port Hudson State Commemorative Area. My wife and I relocated to Walden, Tennessee, a few years ago and I hope to insinuate myself into the Civil War history and preservation community in my new adopted state. As I close the door on my Virginia office for the final time, I leave behind some intriguing projects for my successor. We
School group of excited students at the fortifications.
Tudor Hall during the springtime. recently acquired the remarkable collection of manuscripts assembled by the renowned historian, Wiley Sword. Pamplin Historical Park staff is making progress toward our goal of transforming more than 1,000 of these letters into a rich resource for scholars. The Park is also implementing new technology in the National Museum of the Civil War Soldier that will add visual elements to the personal audio devices visitors use when touring the galleries. Developing content for this new approach will be a rewarding challenge for the Park’s professionals. I’m sorry I won’t be around to see these two initiatives through to completion. But as the cliché goes, when one door closes, another opens. I’m looking forward to long stretches of free time to research and write about Petersburg. As I grow older I become more keenly aware of the value of good friends and the importance of spending time while you can with the people you love. And there will be no question now about having the freedom to attend White Sox World Series games, Bears’ Super Bowls, and National Championship contests featuring Florida State and LSU!
