Confederacy is on Her Way Up the Spout: Letters to South Carolina, 1861-1864 [Paperback]

J. Roderick Heller (Editor)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

This volume gathers 33 letters sent to Lucretia Barrett McMahan and her husband by relatives and friends of the family who served as Confederate soldiers. The letters cover the course of the war and reflect the writers' changing attitudes in direct proportion to the changing prospects of the Confederacy. The editors have allowed this upcountry farm family to retain their eloquent Southern vernacular by retaining the original spelling. Interspersed throughout is just enough historical context to guide the reader. The extensive information about the Barrett family, their social sphere, and the region provides enough background to enhance the very regional flavor of the letters. Recommended.
- David Lee Poremba, Detroit P.L.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: University of South Carolina Press (May 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1570032548
• ISBN-13: 978-1570032547
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,062,135 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A useful book for the specialist, less for amateurs, January 16, 2001

By 

K. Freeman (Apple Valley, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Confederacy is on Her Way Up the Spout: Letters to South Carolina, 1861-1864 (Paperback)

The value of this and similar primary sources to the specialist should be obvious. I did find that the way the letters were organized -- by year and then by writer -- was confusing. Perhaps it would be better to group all the letters by one author together.

The amateur may be disappointed by the fact that, like many if not most Civil War primary sources, these letters describe rather little action. The editors have left idiosyncratic spellings as is, which I like, but which does make the material a little more difficult to read.