From the Editor

May offers a wealth of riches for any student of the Civil War. The wartime weather finally got good enough for campaigning, which unfortunately meant new seasons of slaughter. In 1863 and 1864, in particular, there was so much action going on east and west that it can be hard to keep track of.

In my own front yard, Chancellorsville erupted on May 1, 1863. Along the Mississippi River, meanwhile, Ulysses S. Grant crossed to the east bank and began his overland campaign for Vicksburg. Confederate President Jefferson Davis, while worried about events in his home state, was distracted by the urgent and nearby events in Virginia to give the situation in Mississippi the attention it needed. Modern students of the war often find their own attention split—how to pay attention to both?

Add to that the events of early May 1864. Grant launched another overland campaign, this one through Virginia that became intense enough to earn its own capital letters: the Overland Campaign. He marched into the same Wilderness where Chancellorsville had taken place before—the “dark, close wood”—and the fighting and maneuvering lasted for six straight weeks. Meanwhile, out west, William T. Sherman began movements against Joseph E. Johnston (pictured, above, at his HQ in Dalton, GA) to open the Atlanta Campaign. We could also dip into the tail end of the Red River Campaign in the Trans-Mississippi.

That is a tremendous amount of action to study, east and west, and that’s not even considering the many smaller actions all across the map. Nor does it include the many compelling stories found on the homefront.

If we rewind to May 1862, we get the battle of Williamsburg on the James Peninsula. On May 8, we get the battle of McDowell as Stonewall Jackson begins zipping around the Shenandoah Valley. In Charleston Harbor, Robert Smalls and a crew of escaped slaves stole The Planter on May 13. We get Seven Pines/Fair Oaks at the end of the month.

Most Civil War buffs know all this, but I call it out as a way to invite you to really think about how much material we really have to study and learn and understand, even in just this short span of the calendar. Because, at the end of May, we’re called to commemorate the losses from this and other wars. When you pay your respects at Memorial Day, I hope you call to mind these “seasons of slaughter” and appreciate what they meant.

— Chris Mackowski, Ph.D.

Editor-in-Chief

ECW Bookshelf

The forty-third book in the Emerging Civil War Series is now available: Dreams of Victory: General P.G.T. Beauregard in the Civil War by Sean Michael Chick.

Beauregard was one of the most controversial Confederate generals of his time and he remains so to this day. Sean’s biography looks at the pros and cons of the Creole general and offers new insights for readers to consider.

Signed copies are available from publisher Savas Beatie: click here.

ECW News & Notes

The Midwest Book Review included a nice review of The Great What Ifs of the American Civil War. “Far from presenting alternative or counterfactual history, the volume examines some of the key pivotal moments of the Civil War and analyzes their importance,” explained reviewer Robin Friedman. "Although cast in terms of “what if's" most of the book is squarely within the responsible practice of history. . . . Each of these essays encourages the reader to look closely at the complexity of determining what happened before speculating on what might have happened.” You can read the full review here.

The American Battlefield Trust featured a slew of ECW talent at its annual conference in Chantilly, Virginia, in early May. Sarah Kay Bierle, Dan Davis, Phill Greenwalt, Chris Mackowski, Mark Maloy, Rob Orrison, and Kris White all assisted with various programs and tours. (Pictured, above: Chris and Kris, on their bus tour of Chancellorsville, had the pleasure of spending time with legendary college football coach Vince Dooley and his wife, Barbara.)

Steve Davis has not one, not two, but three pieces in the June 2022 issue of Civil War News. For his regular “Critics Corner” column, Steve traces the work of Confederate poet Henry Nimrod, whose poem “Carolina” became the lyrics to the South Carolina state song. Steve also contributed a piece, “The Atlanta Intelligencer Covers the War,” that looks at the work of one of the paper’s mysterious contributors, “Clio.” Steve has a book about the Intelligencer’s wartime coverage coming out later this year (watch this space for details). Finally, Steve covered the historiography of John Bell Hood in a lengthy article titled “New Perspectives on the Atlanta Campaign and General John Bell Hood.”

Bert Dunkerly recently visited Kentucky where he saw several Civil War and Revolutionary War sites and went to his first horse race!

Chris Kolakowski will be the keynote speaker for the rededication of the Hans Heg monument in Madison on May 29. (The original was destroyed by vandals in June 2020.) On June 8, just after the 80th anniversary, Chris is lecturing about the Battle of Midway online for the Commemorative Air Force. Details are at this link.

Jon Tracey recently delivered a program on the 130th Pennsylvania Infantry as a part of a lecture series by the Cedar Creek Battlefield Foundation that supports the restoration of a historic structure. He will also be attending the Society of Civil War Historians conference from June 2-4. He'll be presenting some of his research on wounded Civil War veterans as a part of a panel titled "Civil War Bodies, Past and Future."

Dan Welch is heading back to Gettysburg as a seasonal Park Ranger beginning Memorial Day weekend. If you're in Gettysburg over the summer stop in and say hi!

ECW was pleased in May to welcome new regular contributor Max Longley. “The Civil War is like a real-life Iliad,” he says, “a source of life-or-death drama that authors can recur to again and again while still uncovering new information and new perspectives.” Based in North Carolina, Max. loves to focus on lesser-known personalities of the Civil War, and he likes to write about the intersection between the war and religion. Max is available for roundtable talks on the following topics:

• Francis Lieber - From German revolutionary to South Carolina professor to Northern pioneer in the laws of war
• "He likes to argue" - Catholic editor Orestes Brownson versus Archbishop John Hughes on slavery and the war
• The Reaper Man - Cyrus McCormick and the Civil War
• Conscientious objectors in the Civil War
• Was Lincoln right about the existence of a slave-power conspiracy? 
• Civil War Stoic philosophy? Thomas Wentworth Higginson, Ambrose Bierce, and Ambrose’s uncle Lucius
• Amasa Converse: The minister who solemnized Edgar Allen Poe’s wedding and, during the Civil War, endured the confiscation of his newspaper
• The M(a)cMaster brothers: On opposite sides in the Civil War and in the American religious divide
• Did Thaddeus Stevens die a Catholic?
• North Carolina’s pro-Northern “governors” on Cape Hatteras and the coast
• The death throes of the Fugitive Slave Act in the Civil War North
• J. Williams Thorne: An antislavery Quaker in wartime Pennsylvania and Reconstruction North Carolina

Five Questions . . .

with Steve Davis

For our “Five Questions” feature, we’re focusing on the work being done by some of our stalwart ECW “staff.” We have an outstanding cadre of contributors at ECW, but many of them go above and beyond their writing duties to help run the organization. We’re an all-volunteer crew, so we’re spotlighting some of those great folks. ECW wouldn’t be possible without them.

This month, we’re talking with Steve Davis, ECW’s book review editor. You can read Steve’s full ECW bio here.

You’ve been a book review editor in various capacities for a few decades now. Can you please outline that history for us? 

Dave Roth got Blue & Gray going in 1984, I think. His first BRE was Rowena Reed (Combined Operations, 1978). When she quit in '85, Dave called me and asked if I'd take on the “job.” Of course I agreed. I served in that capacity for twenty years, retiring in 2005. 

Then early last year, when the ECW Board wanted to ramp up ECW’s book reviews, I accepted the invitation to step in. 

How did you become interested in serving as a book review editor as opposed to just a book reviewer?  

I get to keep up with the major publishers and their releases. It's a way of staying informed on what's of current interest in the CW community.

What’s involved with being the book review editor for ECW?  

I try to send out a book, on average, a week. Because we don't impose deadlines on our readers, I pretty much have to rely on them to finish up and either post their reviews or to send 'em to me. Then I ask Chris or Sarah to post them.

What’s your favorite part of the job?  

Working with enthusiastic, talented reviewers like—just to name one—Meg Groeling.

Why do you think book reviews are such an important part of the Civil War culture?  

I used to work for medical organizations, and saw that the physicians were every proud of their commitment to continuing medical education‑a.k.a. “keeping up in the field” and a lifetime of learning. Well, we Civil Warriors can take even more pride in keeping up with the literature. It's our passion, not our profession. So staying informed on what's out there is a proud trademark of Civil War enthusiasts’ identity. 

On the Emerging Civil War Podcast in May:

• Chris Mackowski and Dan Welch, co-editors of Grant vs. Lee, part of the ECW 10th Anniversary Series, talked about the book in conjunction with the launch of the 1864 Overland Campaign
• We also spoke with Darren Rawlings of American Civil War & UK History and Gina Denham’ of the Monuments for UK Veterans of the American Civil War Association an initiative underway to honor Civil War veterans who died in Great Britain by providing them with new headstones.

Check out the Emerging Civil War podcast on places like Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

You can also subscribe to our podcast through Patreon, where we are now also offering exclusive bonus content for subscribers. Along with episodes of our podcast, in May we also offered:

• An interview with Ben Kemp of Grant Cottage for the U.S. Grant Bicentennial
• An interview with ECW’s Phill Greenwalt about his trip earlier this year to visit sites in the far Trans-Mississippi theater
• An original Edward Alexander map, “Capture of The Planter, May 13, 1862”

That’s just $3.99/month, and proceeds go toward defraying the production costs of the podcast. Check us out here. We REALLY appreciate your financial support.

Meanwhile, on the ECW YouTube channel, we offered:

• A Red Badge of Courage battlefield tour of Chancellorsville from Chris Mackowski
• An overview of earthworks around Dalton, Georgia, with historian Bob Jenkins
• Recaps of the action at Rocky Face Ridge and Resaca with ECW Chief Historian Kris White
• An overview of Dug Gap with ECW’s David Powell
• An exploration of the implications of James McPherson’s caution at Snake Creek Gap will historian Will Greene (pictured, above, with Kris White)
• A visit to the death site of Brig. Gen. Thomas Greely Stevenson at Spotsylvania with Chris Mackowski
• A roundtable talk by Neil Chatelain, “Defending the Arteries of Rebellion: The Mississippi River Squadron”
• Plus videos of the Grant vs. Lee and Monuments for UK Veterans of the American Civil War Association podcasts

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You Can Help Support ECW

Emerging Civil War is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization. If you’re interested in supporting “emerging voices” by making a tax-deductible donation, you can do so by you can do so by visiting our website: www.emergingcivilwar.com.