A Civil War Treasury: Being A Miscellany Of Arms And Artillery, Facts And Figures, Legends And Lore, Muses And Minstrels And Personalities And People [Paperback]

Albert A. Nofi (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 22, 1995

A Civil War Treasury does not pretend to be a sweeping historical account of the conflict. Instead, it presents anecdotes of army life and encampments, explanations of logistics and tactics, descriptions of soldiers and citizens, and deeds of honor and infamy. There are profiles of people, regiments, and ships; songs and poems; and serious treatments of particular aspects of the war such as musketry and infantry. Camp recipes are discussed, women soldiers are profiled, military medicine is assessed, and an invaluable bibliography and resource guide is appended. The object of A Civil War Treasury is to provide a deeper understanding of the human side of the war as well as its more technical aspects—topics which are frequently neglected in more traditional treatments. Few other books give more fascinating insight into the many facets of the Republic's greatest crisis.The following subject headings are purposefully explored in each chapter: Incidents of War, the Men, the Women, Lincoln, the Units, War and Society, Army Life, War and the Muses.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

This is a collection of stories and miscellany from a number of sources about various aspects of the Civil War. It attempts to cover facets of the Civil War that may have eluded more popular works. The book is organized in a loosely chronological way: Similar areas at each stage of the war are grouped together, with identical subtitles for each chapter in the group. The problem with this format is that the stories really do not tie together; some are just excerpts from larger works, and there are no transitions to link themes. Often, it is hard to understand exactly how a particular incident had any effect on the war. With so much material available on the Civil War, this is not recommended.
- Barbara Zaborowski, Cambria Cty. Lib., Johnstown, Pa.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Book Description

Going beyond the battles and the memoirs, this book offers a unique, intimate and informative portrayal of this nation's greatest catastrophe, the War Between the States.

--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: Da Capo Press (March 22, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0306806223
• ISBN-13: 978-0306806223
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,663,105 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Useful pastiche, January 1, 2010

By 

Steven A. Peterson (Hershey, PA (Born in Kewanee, IL)) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A Civil War Treasury: Being a Miscellany of Arms and Artillery, Facts and Figures, Legends and Lore, Muses and Minstrels, Personalities and People (Hardcover)

This is a book that could be described as "pastiche." A little of this and a little of that. As the author notes, this book (Page 11) ". . .does not pretend to be a sweeping historical account of the greatest crisis in the life of the Republic." His aim? Looking at the war (Page 11) ". . .in terms of bits and pieces of reality." Those well read on the Civil War are not apt to find a lot that is new here. However, for those who wish to get an introduction to the daily realities of this war, this work would serve as a useful resource.

For each year of the war, he provides a brief summary of key events, brief biographies of key leaders, biographies of non-combatants (women included), army life, and so on. The book's organization is chronological--"The Eve of War," 1861, 1862, 1863, 1864, 1865, and "Aftermath."

Let's take a look at some examples to illustrate the approach. . . .

1861: This chapter begins with a brief sketch of what takes place in 1861 (perhaps too brief). Then "Incidents of war." One example of this is the brief description of the meeting in California, over dinner, of officers moving in different directions. Albert Sidney Johnston and Lewis Armistead were going with the South. Winfield Scott Hancock would fight for the Union. His wife facilitated a last dinner among these and others. "The Men." Here, we get brief biographical sketches of people such as Jefferson Davis, Pierre G. T. Beauregard, George McClellan, and Ben Butler. "The Units." Some key units on each side are briefly described--such as "The Louisiana Tigers," "the 39th New York," and the "Washington Artillery." Other sections for 1861--"War and Society," "The Ways of War," "Army Life," "War and the Muses" (in this case, the focus is on songs, such as "The Bonnie Blue Flag," Maryland, My Maryland," and so on).

Then, on to 1862 and so on.

For those without a great deal of immersion in the Civil War oeuvre, this book is a nice starting point.