The Battle Rages Higher: The Union's Fifteenth Kentucky Infantry [Hardcover]

Kirk C. Jenkins (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 24, 2003

" The Battle Rages Higher tells, for the first time, the story of the Fifteenth Kentucky Infantry, a hard-fighting Union regiment raised largely from Louisville and the Knob Creek valley where Abraham Lincoln lived as a child. Although recruited in a slave state where Lincoln received only 0.9 percent of the 1860 presidential vote, the men of the Fifteenth Kentucky fought and died for the Union for over three years, participating in all the battles of the Atlanta campaign, as well as the battles of Perryville, Stones River and Chickamauga. Using primary research, including soldiers' letters and diaries, hundreds of contemporary newspaper reports, official army records, and postwar memoirs, Kirk C. Jenkins vividly brings the Fifteenth Kentucky Infantry to life. The book also includes an extensive biographical roster summarizing the service record of each soldier in the thousand-member unit. Kirk C. Jenkins, a descendant of the Fifteenth Kentucky's Captain Smith Bayne, is a partner in a Chicago law firm. Click here for Kirk Jenkins' website and more information about the 15th Kentucky Infantry.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A new kind of regimental history that could well serve as a model for the genre in the twenty-first century." -- Register of the Kentucky Historical Society

"An extremely fine regimental history, entertainingly written. It is essential for anyone interested in Kentucky infantry regiments or with the Civil War in the West." -- Civil War News

"Provides new information on the experience of soldiers in the ranks and valuable perspective on the difficulties of men from a slave border state serving in the Union army." -- H-Net

"An extensive biographical roster describing each man in the unit completes this sound, multidimensional interpretation of a military community.... Merits wide notice." -- Journal of Southern History

"A well-researched and well-written regimental history that illuminates the fighting in a crucial sector of the Western theater, and gives much insight into Kentucky's role in the fight." -- Signal Flag

About the Author

Kirk C. Jenkins, a descendant of the Fifteenth Kentucky's Captain Smith Bayne, is a partner in a San Francisco law firm.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 472 pages
• Publisher: The University Press of Kentucky (October 24, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0813122813
• ISBN-13: 978-0813122816
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,250,260 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Book, October 7, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: The Battle Rages Higher: The Union's Fifteenth Kentucky Infantry (Hardcover)

A wonderful work by an excellent writer. I enjoyed the book as much if not more than any History book I've read in years. Mr. Jenkins passion for the subject and his love for the men who fought for the Union comes out with every page turned. The complete roster included in the back of the book will be a boon to anyone interested in locating their ancestors of the regiment. This book reads as if it is a wonderful movie. I loved it. The fact that several of the companies came from the northern Kentucky area also added an extra thrill during my read.