Book Reviews

Book Reviews — September 2021

Originally published September 2021 · pp. 40–43

The Homefront Kalamazoo County in the Civil War. By Gary L. Gibson. Appendix, bibliography, index, photos. 175 pp., The History Press, www.historypress.com, 2021, softcover, $21.99. Reviewed by Joseph Truglio

One of the more popular genres in Civil War literature is the ‘monograph,’a short concise presentation of singular events. Two of the most popular producers of these texts are The History Press and Savas Beatie. I have a number of them in my library ranging from battles to my home town. This one sounded unique to me as I know very little of Michigan’s history during the War. I was not disappointed. There are brief histories of the various regiments along with accounts of creating regimental flags. Included as “vignettes” are fragments of stories and biographies related by various soldiers. There is also a chapter on African American life in the county. Each episode is enhanced by period photos. The largest presentation is a list of the men who made the ultimate sacrifice for the cause. A good bibliography gives the reader the ability to do further research. Overall, this is another valuable addition to Civil War research at an affordable cost. The book is only 175 pages but the content is delivered giving the reader an easy way to understand book. I highly this study aid to all students of the war. Joseph Truglio, of Manchester, N.J., is a retired Motion Picture Technician who has a life long interest in the Civil War. He is currently President of the Phil Kearny CWRT in Hasbrouck Heights, N.J.

Gettysburg: Gen. Rodes Aberration

No Place For Glory: Major General Robert E. Rodes and the Confederate Defeat at Gettysburg. By Robert J. Wynstra. Illustrated, bibliography, index, notes, Kent State University Press, www.kentstateuniversitypress.com, 2021, 290 Civil War News book reviews provide our readers with timely pp., hardcover, $55.00. analysis of the latest and most significant Civil War research and Reviewed by Wayne L. Wolf scholarship. Contact email: [email protected].

Considered one of the best field commanders in the Army of Northern Virginia, Gen. Rodes distinguished himself at Chancellorsville, Orange Turnpike, and Spotsylvania Court House. Yet, controversy surrounds his performance at Gettysburg which haunted him until after his September 1864 death at Winchester. At Gettysburg five major episodes occurred that held Gen. Rodes largely responsible for the disaster at Oak Ridge on July 1, 1863, possibly foreshadowing the loss of the South’s best chance for victory. Rodes was faulted for allowing his two worst brigade commanders, Col. Edward O’Neal and Gen. Alfred Iverson, to lead the initial assault on entrenched Federals at Oak Ridge. He had detached the 3rd Alabama from Col. O’Neal’s force prior to the attack, thus weakening this assault. This, coupled with temporarily holding the 5th Alabama back, because he mistakenly believed a Federal skirmish line in Forney Field intended to attack his artillery, an incident that forced Iverson to advance without a screen of skirmishers. Finally, he failed to support Gen. Early by halting the Confederate advance after seizing the town of Gettysburg. As Gen. Rodes’ private correspondence was destroyed,thereasons for his mistakes are attributed to his illness that day coupled with his aversion for staging an aggressive attack without meticulous attention to every detail. Yet, while Gen. Iverson and Col. O’Neal, whose reputations were destroyed at Gettysburg, Gen. Rodes redeemed himself in his aggressive and successful actions at the Orange Turnpike, Spotsylvania Court House, and

Winchester. His death on Sept. 19, 1864, was mourned by his entire former command and his value to the Army of Northern Virginia was lauded for decades even to his being hailed as a “Norse God in Confederate Gray” by historian Douglas Southall Freeman. The author does an excellent job of weaving voluminous primary source material into every aspect of the Gettysburg campaign from the initial thrust North to the horrid retreat back to Virginia. The book is eminently readable, historically accurate, and compelling. Additional photographs would have added to the book but otherwise any historian of the Gettysburg campaign would do well to consider this addition to his library. Unfortunately, the $55 cost of the book may limit its marketability. Wayne L. Wolf is Professor Emeritus at South Suburban College and the author or editor of numerous books on the Civil War including Two Years Before the Paddlewheel, the Last Civil War Scout, and Heroes and Rogues of the Civil War. He is past president of the Lincoln-Davis Civil War Roundtable.

“The Fall of the Crescent City” A Mortal Blow to the Confederacy: The Fall of New Orleans, 1862. By Mark F. Bielski. Maps, photographs, illustrations, 192 pp., 2021. Savas Beatie, www.savasbeatie.com. $14.95, paperback. Reviewed by Gould Hagler

A Mortal Blow to the Confederacy is the latest of the Emerging Civil War Series published by Savas Beatie under series editor Chris Mackowski. Bielski, who earned a Ph.D. in History from the University of Birmingham in England and now lives in New Orleans, has produced a lucid and easily digestible account of his adopted city’s fall to Federal forces in the spring of 1862. The book’s 14 brief chapters guide the reader through the wartime history of the Confederacy’s largest city and most important port. As much of the South’s cotton and other exports got to market through New Orleans, bottling up this vital conduit was a key aim for the Federals. Bielski discusses the Confederates’ defense of the city and the Federals’ successful push to blast through the defenses. Some players in this drama have names familiar to most CWN readers and others with an interest in the Civil War, especially on the Northern side, such as Farragut, Porter, and Butler. Many readers will get to know some new characters, officers who are less famous but are nevertheless important parts of the New Orleans story. Of particular note are two on the Southern side. Brig. Gen. Johnson Duncan commanded Forts Jackson and St. Philip with skill and determination, while Capt. John Mitchell inexplicably refused to bring the Louisiana into action when this massive ironclad could have provided critical support to Duncan’s efforts. All the major figures and many of the minor ones are pictured in the book, along with captions that provide helpful biographical information. Bielski does a good job describing the strategic and tactical issues relevant to the campaign. He also discusses the failure of Confederate leaders in Richmond to understand that the threat to New Orleans came from the Gulf, not from upstream. Officers on the scene were dismayed by their superiors’ orders to shift resources northward, far from the real threat. Another costly error was the Confederates’ failure to achieve unity of command. The book also gives ample information on the relevant material culture, i.e., the ships, gunboats, guns, and fortifications used in defense and assault. In Chapter 13 the author describes the capitulation after Farragut’s ships arrived. While surrender terms were being discussed, some citizens remained defiant, turning at times into a threatening mob. Some did not seem to understand their situation until an exasperated Farragut read them the riot act and made threats they deemed credible. In the same chapter we learn that the garrison at Fort Jackson, at that point not captured but bypassed and cut off from the city, understood the situation better than the townspeople. The men had suffered through a relentless bombardment for days. When Duncan urged them to fight on, they mutinied. Half the men walked away from the fort. Duncan surrendered with the remainder. The final chapter covers the city’s occupation. Between May and December 1862 Benjamin Butler was in command and earned his famous nickname, “Beast Butler.” Five appendices provide interesting information that is not central to the story. Finally, the book takes a novel approach to footnotes: they are not in the book. They are to be placed online at the Emerging Civil War website. CWN readers are familiar with Emerging Civil War, as each issue devotes a couple of pages to current goings on at ECW. This book, like others in the series and like ECW in general, is aimed at the general public. Such an audience can appreciate Bielski’s account, learn from it, and develop an appetite to learn more. The book ends with suggestions for further reading. Gould Hagler is a retired lobbyist living in Dunwoody, Ga. He is a past president of the Atlanta Civil War Round Table and the author of Georgia’s Confederate Monuments: In Honor of a Fallen Nation, published by Mercer University Press in 2014. Hagler speaks frequently on this topic and others related to different aspects of the Civil War and has been a regular contributor to CWN since 2016. He can be reached at [email protected].

Abraham Lincoln:

Sleeping With the Enemy An American Marriage: The Untold Story of Abraham Lincoln and Mary Todd. By Michael Burlingame. Illustrated, appendix, index, Pegasus Books, pegasuspublishers.com, 302 pp., hardcover, $27.95. Reviewed by Wayne L. Wolf

Starting in 1889 with the publication of Herndon’s “Lincoln: The True Story of a Great Life,” countless books on the 16th President have explored his marriage from its political effect to its personal living hell. Michael Burlingame, however, has spent three decades compiling all known letters, diaries, newspaper accounts, and personal reminiscences of friends and foes alike to paint an objective and ultimately defining picture of the struggles Lincoln faced in his marriage. Probably forced into the marriage by a conniving Mary Todd, and in danger of hurting his sense of honor, Lincoln entered a tumultuous union with a woman beset by depression, fits of violent anger, a penchant to berate both her husband and servants, headaches, and prone to use violence against those who crossed her. This included throwing coffee in Lincoln’s face and chasing him and the children with a broom. Similar punishments were doled out to the staff who displeased her. Yet, her character was not defined solely by these violent outbursts. Throughout her life, but particularly in the White House years, Mary Lincoln accepted bribes, at times even leaking state secrets for cash. She padded her expense accounts and payrolls to siphon money for her shopping excesses. She pinched wages from White House staff, raided the White House stationary fund, and filed her personal shopping bills in with legitimate government bills. She also peddled trading permits, expedited pardons for cash, and falsified bills, most of these actions were behind the President’s back but with the assistance of a group of unethical flatterers including Isaac Henderson, John Watt, William Marston, Ninean Edwards, William S. Ward, Henry Wikoff, and Nathanial P. Willis to name just a few. Many of these transactions today would rise to the level of a Justice Department investigation. Many of the President’s greatest embarrassments came from social contacts wherein Mary exhibited irrational fits of rage and jealousy against Washington wives, cabinet members, and White House visitors, including African Americans. Her public outbursts embarrassed the President, brought a wealth of journalistic criticism, and were even used in 1864 by Democrats as a weapon against Lincoln’s reelection. These encounters paint Mary Lincoln as a troubled woman, wounded by the early death of her mother, and a sense of abandonment, who could not cope with the stress of life. Burlingame does a superb job of searching out every morsel of evidence available today to present a comprehensive portrait of the Lincoln marriage. Perhaps Lincoln best summed up his view of their marriage when pardoning a soldier so he could return home and be married. Lincoln stated, “In a year the soldier will wish I never signed the pardon.” To Lincoln, marriage was anything but connubial bliss. He was sleeping with the worst enemy. This book is exceptionally well written, historically accurate, comprehensive, and balanced; it should be on every historian’s bookshelf. Wayne L. Wolf is Professor Emeritus at South Suburban College and the author or editor of numerous books on the Civil War including Two Years Before the Paddlewheel, the Last Civil War Scout, and Heroes and Rogues of the Civil War. He is past president of the Lincoln-Davis Civil War Roundtable.

Aside from Belle Grove Plantation, one of the most iconic structures within the boundary of Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park is a small white home situated on the west side of the Valley Pike.

Finally, Slough Receives Deserved Attention John P. Slough: The Forgotten Civil War General. By Richard L. Miller. Photos, notes, index, 304 pp., 2021. University of New Mexico Press, www.unmpress. com. $34.95. Reviewed by Jonathan A. Noyalas

This structure was occupied by the Heater family during the Civil War and. while associated most with the Battle of Cedar Creek, stood at the epicenter of numerous military activities throughout the conflict, including its use as headquarters for Brigadier General John P. Slough in the early summer of 1862. I first discovered Slough’s use of the Heater house more than a decade ago, when I worked as part of a team of three historians on the historic resource study for Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park. Beyond brief mentions of Slough, or simplistic characterizations of him as “a short-tempered martinet,” I quickly discovered that no biographical treatment existed. Fortunately, Richard L. Miller has resurrected Slough’s life in this prodigiously researched,balanced,andcogently crafted volume. Although Slough certainly does not rank among the Union army’s most significant figures, he found himself in the midst of some of the era’s most noteworthy moments. Throughout the book’s first six chapters Miller presents a superb examination of Slough’s life from his childhood and education in Cincinnati, Ohio, his rise to prominence in the Democratic Party in the Buckeye State, election to the Ohio legislature in 1855, and Slough’s expulsion from that chamber in 1857 for striking fellow member Darius Cadwell. Miller convincingly argues that, although the Cadwell episode displayed Slough’s inability at times to control his temper, Slough’s resiliency and desire for new opportunities never wavered. The search for new opportunity carried Slough first to Leavenworth, Kansas, in 1857, where he quickly emerged as a leader in the Democratic Party and a leading voice in opposition to the Wyandotte Constitution, and then in 1861 to Denver, Colorado. The core of Miller’s outstanding study focuses on Slough’s career as an officer in the Union army. Miller’s narrative ably traces the evolution of Slough’s military service from his stint as colonel of the 1st Colorado Volunteer Infantry and victor at the Battle of Glorieta Pass in March 1862. That was followed by service as a brigade commander in Virginia and a stint of thirty-two months as military governor of Alexandria, Va. While Miller’s superb volume offers a fine treatment of Slough’s life and military service, this biography’s appeal reaches far beyond an understanding of a general who fell into obscurity. For instance, those interested in the experiences of civilians, particularly African Americans in Alexandria, Va., will find this volume quite insightful. Furthermore those seeking a better understanding of the manner in which officers maintained discipline among troops and attempted to create stable environments for their men and civilians in the midst of chaos will find Miller’s study quite significant. At various moments in Slough’s military life, including his time as commander of the 1st Colorado in Denver and lengthy tenure as military governor of Alexandria, he had to deal with tensions between soldiers and civilians, disorderly troops, drunkenness, and a smallpox epidemic. Even in the book’s final two chapters which examine Slough’s postwar life, including his career as chief justice of the New Mexico

Territorial Supreme Court and the tragic end to his life in December 1867, Miller’s biography offers much more than a mere chronicle of Slough’s final two years. For example, students of veterans’ commemorative efforts will find Miller’s examination of Slough’s efforts to appropriately honor Union soldiers who perished at Glorieta Pass quite enlightening, not only as a lens to explore obstacles, but as an avenue to investigate the bond between an officer and troops killed in combat. Prodigiously researched and eloquently written, Miller’s volume is an important study with wide-rangingappealand one that I wholeheartedly recommend. Jonathan A. Noyalas is director of Shenandoah University’s McCormick Civil War Institute in Winchester, Virginia, a professor in Civil War Era Studies at Shenandoah University, and founding editor of Journal of the Shenandoah Valley During the Civil War Era. He is the author or editor of fourteen books. Noyalas’ latest book, Slavery and Freedom in the Shenandoah Valley during the Civil War Era, was published by the University Press of Florida.

A Pioneering Study of Cavalry at Cold Harbor Six Days of Awful Fighting: Cavalry Operations on the Road to Cold Harbor. By Eric J. Wittenberg. Appendices, Notes, Bibliography and Index, 345pp., 2020. Fox Run Publishing, LLC. www.foxrunpub.com. Cloth. $36.95. Reviewed by David Marshall

Appalling events happened at Cold Harbor during Grant’s June 1-3, 1864, Overland Campaign, however, few students know about the severe cavalry fighting that took place from May 27 to June 1. The Cavalry Corps of the Army of the Potomac and the Army of Northern Virginia fought at Hanovertown, Haw’s Shop, Matadequin Creek, Hanover Court House, and Ashland, setting up the well-known infantry battle that began the afternoon of June 1, 1864. Eric Wittenberg tells a story about how the armies arrived at Cold Harbor. This is the first book that concentrates on exploring several days of daily cavalry clashes. The author presents the importance of the cavalry fighting with significant analyses on the roles generals such as Fitzhugh Lee, Wade Hampton, Philip Sheridan, George Custer, and David Gregg played in the clashes. David Powell in his foreword explains to readers that each of these cavalry engagements helped Ulysses S. Grant gain position or turn a flank, while Robert E. Lee made every effort to prevent any advantage by Union forces. Wittenberg explains that by 1864, the new seven-shotSpencerrepeatingcarbine being used by Federals, increased their firepower, allowing greater success by the Army of Potomac’s cavalrymen. Even with the death of J.E.B. Stuart at Yellow Tavern, the Southern horsemen under Wade Hampton proved formidable. General Philip Sheridan, an inexperienced cavalry commander, helped his bluecoat fighters overcome the gray horsemen’s past dominance. The first three of twelve chapters are devoted to the reorganization of both armies’ cavalry corps as well as covering the beginning of Overland Campaign’s operations and changes in their mission. The final three quarters of this book explore the engagements and the opportunies or failures both sides had during the campaign. Union Generals Ulysses S. Grant and George Meade both made significant mistakes that cost them an opportunity to locate Lee’s army at the start of the fighting. While Federal cavalrymen were victorious at Haw’s Shop, Sheridan failed to win a larger victory due to a lack of assiduousness and forcefulness. On the other hand, Wade Hampton made mistakes and looked tentative in command by choosing to stand and fight north of Totopotomoy Creek in the same battle, far from reinforcements or infantry support. Wittenberg ends his monograph with an important conclusion and epilogue in which he addresses fighting immediately after the battle of Cold Harbor, the performances of both armies, and how the fighting, the War, ending of slavery, and Reconstruction left Hanover County, Va., significantly different. The Second Battle of Haw’s Shop gave the Army of the Potomac’s men a much-needed reprieve during the relentless carnage of June 3, 1864. This fighting might have been a minor event during the June 3 fighting, but it had tactical consequences. Once General James Wilson’s dismounted troopers drove off General Hampton’s cavalry, their force concentrated against Heth’s position on the Army of Northern Virginia’s left flank forced Lee to withdraw that exposed flank. As a result, Ulysses S. Grant seized the opportunity to move across the James River and threaten Petersburg. Both armies fought several times including at Trevilian Station, where the Southerners made several remarkable stands, despite being outmanned and outgunned. Wittenberg has provided students with an excellent study on Civil War cavalry operations, the battlefield experiences of cavalry, and adds greater understanding to an eventful week during an important campaign. He spins an engaging yarn that should not escape readers who enjoy this genre. The author allows readers to visualize the fighting through his in depth research, and the vast array of illuminating first-hand evidence. The three hundred and forty-six-page well-balanced narrative includes seventy-two helpful photographs that make this monograph worth owning; the twenty-five outstanding maps produced by cartographer Edward Alexander support the text and are indispensable for understanding the Cold Harbor cavalry action. An added feature is the seven tables of organization appendices which help make this reading indispensable for casual enthusiasts. David Marshall is a high school American history teacher in the Miami-Dade School district for the past thirty-five 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.