War of the Aeronauts [Hardcover]

Charles Evans (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 10, 2002

The Union Army Balloon Corps holds a significant place in the annals of Civil War and military history. From 1861 to 1863 the corps contributed invaluable surveillance and reconnaissance information to the Union Army's war effort during the Virginia campaign. It also accomplished such significant military feats as the initial air-to-ground communication by telegraph, the first use of the "aircraft carrier" for launch of the balloon, and the first artillery barrage directed by an aerial observer where gun batteries were unable to see their targets from the ground. This book traces the history of the intrepid airborne force, from its creation by pioneer balloonist Thaddeus Lowe to its unceremonious disbanding in 1863.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This is the first book since F. Stansbury Haydon's 1941 Aeronautics in the Union and Confederate Armies to treat extensively the brief but important contributions of ballooning to the war efforts of both sides. The chief man behind the push to use balloons as military reconnaissance weapons was Prof. Thaddeus S.C. Lowe, one of America's premier early aeronauts. Working against a hidebound military uninterested in balloons, Lowe managed to convince President Lincoln of their possible military uses and became the head of a small group of aeronauts who worked with the Union Army of the Potomac. The group surveyed by air the Confederate defenses and troops in northern Virginia during the fall of 1861 through the spring of 1862 and proved of some use during the siege of Yorktown. Lowe persevered with his balloons until the late spring of 1863, when the balloon corps was shunted aside by officers not interested in this innovation; it ceased to exist after Lowe resigned and went home. Evans, founding curator of California's Hillier Air Museum, describes Lowe's introduction of air to ground communications (via telegraph), successful launchings of balloons from ships and an air-directed artillery barrage. The brief operations of a Confederate balloon corps in 1862 is also covered. With Haydon's book long out-of-print, Evans's insightfully written volume, which includes 60 illustrations and three maps, helps fill a gap in existing Civil War literature, but will excite only Civil War and aeronautics buffs.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Charles M. Evans has written several articles about ballooning and the history of flight for such publications as Civil War Times Illustrated, American History, and Aviation. He was the founding curator of the Hiller Air Museum in Redwood City, California, where he served from 1990 to 1995. He currently resides in Reno, Nevada.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: Stackpole Books; 1st edition (July 10, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811713954
• ISBN-13: 978-0811713955
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,639,146 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A "must read" book on Civil War balloons, October 31, 2002

By 

Michael Horowitz (Philadelphia, Pa) - See all my reviews

This review is from: War of the Aeronauts (Hardcover)

I am just estatic over this new book on Civil War balloons written by Charles M. Evans. Number one, he is an extremely engaging writer who can balance telling a good story along with the the necessary historical data to back up what he writes about (this book is voluminously footnoted!).

War of the Aeronauts really does add a new and hitherto unexplored facet of the Civil War. Literally thousands of books have been written about land battles, general and leaders, and even naval situations--but few have even mentioned America's first air force. Thaddeus Lowe should go down in history as one of the great innovators of the 19th century. Evans' fascinating writing style captures the essence of how Lowe persevered in his quest to prove how aeronautics could be used on the battlefield despite the artillery fire from the Confederates and the infighting and technical indifference displayed by Union military leaders.

This book is definitely a must read for anyone who thinks they have read everything there is to read on Civil War history.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Civil War balloons--Who knew?, July 30, 2003

By 

Morgan Thomas (Burlingame, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: War of the Aeronauts (Hardcover)

I just finished reading a remarkable book about how balloons were used during the Civil War. It's entitled, The War of the Aeronauts--A History of Ballooning in the Civil War by Charles Evans and it's published by Stackpole Books.

I really have to say that War of the Aeronauts tells a fascinating story that really hasn't been told by any other Civil War historian. The main character of this book is a man name Thaddeus Lowe who was a professional balloonist. Evans introduces Lowe in the first chapter of the book by describing a free flight balloon journey that Lowe undertook from Cincinnati, Ohio to Union, South Carolina on April 20, 1861, just ten after the bombardment of Fort Sumter. Lowe was trying to test out the possibility of crossing the Atlantic Ocean by balloon, but after landing in Confederate territory and almost being shot as a spy, Lowe resolves himself to volunteer his efforts to the
Union Army.

This book reads like a fiction story, but it is voluminously

footnoted by Evans and it is well indexed. The story about how
Abraham Lincoln had to personally intevene on behalf of Lowe with a skeptical Winfield Scott is a true classic. And the real story about the Confederate Silk Dress Balloon is told in great and revealing details (Did the women of the South really donate their dresses to build a Southern balloon for Lee--Evans tells the actual story).

The War of the Aeronauts is really a must read. Just as the other reviews of this book I have read have indicated, I heartily recommend War of the Aeronauts to anyone who wants to read something "new" about the Civil War.

Morgan Thomas
Burlingame, California

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Balloons as frivolous? Never!, February 18, 2005

By 

Kaila Searl "a girl who likes military history" (Eugene, OR United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: War of the Aeronauts (Hardcover)

The thing that makes this book so readable is that I started to care about the people, almost like they were characters in the latest fiction novel. I wanted Thaddeus Lowe to get the commission - I felt betrayed whenever one of the other aeronauts got government sanctioning; I was scared for him behind enemy lines; I longed for him to succeed. Not to mention, of course, that I started hating Congress for not allotting him more money! (one of his major backers was Stephen A Douglas, who unfortunately died only a few months into the war) Often military histories will mention balloons being out over the army, but as they are MILITARY histories, and the battles are apparently more interesting than everything that went into preparing for the battle, the balloons are just mentionned. This book is relatively long, seeing as it only covers two years of the war (the Balloon Corps was disbanded in 1863) but it covers an early history of balloons and follows Lowe after the war. It reads like a novel, and goes quickly. There are a lot of primary sources quoted within, such as the note Lincoln wrote to Winfield Scott to allow Lowe an audience, or many different telegrams and letters trying to get the balloons corps off the ground (pardon the pun!). It is not necessary to know anything about the Civil War to enjoy this book, because it is written so well. Battles are mentionned, of course, as well as the different generals that were interested in using the balloons as observation platforms, but as long as you know the name "Bull Run" was the first battle...well, that's about the extent of the military knowledge you need. Not to say, of course, that someone who does have extensive Civil War knowledge can't enjoy this book, because it is such an interesting and different topic to learn about!

Over all, I am very happy with what I learned and it is one to keep on the shelf.