Being there . . . . for the three-day, 1863, Battle of Gettysburg, a fight so horrendous between
American men it not only determined a turning point in the Civil War, but also established with
certainty who would win it two years later. It was a war long in coming over the issue of
secession, the separation of a state from the Union of States, a subject on which the
Constitution of 1789 is silent. But secession only became a divisive issue when there developed
significant social, cultural, and economic differences between the Southern states and the rest
of the nation. The war ended on April 26, 1865, four years to the day, when Joseph E. Johnston,
a full General in the Confederate Army, surrendered his Army of Tennessee to Union General
William T. Sherman. Be there for the continuing debate over General Robert E. Lee (1807-70),
an aristocratic Confederate who was at heart a Unionist who, despite owning slaves himself,
felt the practice was evil. Early on, President Lincoln offered him the entire leadership
command of the Union Armies. But Lee politely declined indicating he had to remain loyal to his
people and would soon return to them. Much later, as far as the Battle of Gettysburg was
concerned, Lee successfully argued that the best way to win their dreadful Civil War was for the
Southern forces to invade the North. Big mistake! Although “Lee’s Boys” suffered a crushing
defeat at Gettysburg, Lincoln’s men did not entirely devastate the Southern armies.
Because the Unionists were reluctant to immediately mount a vigorous pursuit, most of the
“Johnny Rebs” who survived the Battle got safely back to Virginia. Lee was not to regain his gift
of strategic initiative.
FOUR NEW BOOKS, TWO FROM CASEMATE PUBLISHERS AND TWO FROM GETTYSBURG PRESS,
VITALIZE THE CIVIL WAR – – THE ROUTES AND ROADS TO GETTYSBURG; THE BATTLES FOR
GETTYSBURG AND ANTIETAM; HOW POMP ENDED IN HUMILIATION; THE COSTS OF
GETTYSBURG AND ANTIETAM
Reviewed and Recommended by Don DeNevi
The casualties of the Gettysburg campaign made the hardest veteran shudder. Of rank and
file, the killed were computed at 2,592, the wounded at 12,709 and the missing at 5,150, a total
of 20,451. If this figure was materially in error, it was below the actual loss and, as estimated,
was a bare 2,598 under the Federal aggregate of 23,049.
“GETTYSBURG FACES – Portraits and Personal Accounts”, by Ronald S. Coddington. Gettysburg
Publishing, LLC, Dist. by CASEMATE PUBLISHERS: 2022, 362 pages, 6”x 9”, softcover; $29.95.
Visit, www.gettysburgpublishers.com.
“THE HORSES AT GETTYSBURG – Prepared for the Day of Battle”, by Chris Bagley. Gettysburg
Publishing, LLC, Dist. by CASEMATE PUBLISHERS: 2021, 211 pages, 7”x 10”, softcover; $26.95.
Visit, www.gettysburgpublishers.com.
“THE CORNFIELD – Antietam’s Bloody Turning Point”, by David A Welker. CASEMATE
PUBLISHERS, Military History/Civil War, LLC: 2022, 356 pages, 6”x 9”, softcover, $24.95. Visit,
www.gettysburgpublishers.com.
“THE BLUE AND GRAY ALMANAC – – The Civil War in Facts and Figures; Recipes and Slang”, by
Albert Nofi. CASEMATE PUBLISHERS: 2017, 346 pagers, 6”x 9”, softcover, $22.95. Visit,
www.gettyburgpublishers.com.
In “Gettysburg Faces – Portraits and Personal Accounts”, Ron Coddington has added to our
knowledge and enjoyment with a unique collection of 100 rare photographs of identified
soldiers and other participants in the Campaign, each accompanied by an account of his or her
war experiences. Their stories describe in vivid detail the triumphant and tragic events before,
during and after the three-day fight. Each profile is a microhistory based on letters, journals,
newspaper reports, regimental histories and other documents. Author Coddington is Editor and
Publisher of Military Images Magazine, and has been collecting Civil War photos virtually all his
life. Without reservation or qualification, this reviewer shares that it is one of the best Civil War
histories he has ever encountered.
“The Horse at Gettysburg – Prepared for the Day of Battle”, by Chris Bagley proudly
announces, “Horses are one of the many unsung heroes of the Civil War. These majestic
animals were pressed into service, trained, prepared for battle, and turned into expendable
implements of war. There is more to their story, however. When an army’s means and survival
is predicated upon an animal whose instincts are to flee rather than fight, a bond of mutual
trust and respect between hand and horse must be forged. Ultimately, the Battle of Gettysburg
resulted in thousands of horses being killed and wounded. Their story deserves telling from a
time not so far removed of Gettysburg’s year.” All one needs to do is thumb to page 212 and
peruse the photos of Chris with his horse. Chris’s expressions tell you all you need to know
about his personal love for his own horse, nay, his absolute devotion to all the world’s horses. a
Thus every page, paragraph, and sentence throughout this most superlative text and photos
come alive, perhaps testing your own emotions of what many consider the most beautiful
animal on earth. Roy Rogers loved horses from the moment of his birth to the final moment of
his life. I won’t mention his name, because he is, and will always be, a true American hero, but
guess who among all the male movie stars of countless westerns, especially as a young actor,
regarded horses as nuisances, until middle age then finally began considering them as much a
family member as Chris does.
“The Cornfield – Antietam’s Bloody Turning Point” begins with: “At dawn on September 17,
1862, David Miller’s peaceful farmland was the location for the opening scene of a battle to
determine our nation’s fate in which 22,000 men became casualties on America’s single
bloodiest day. Here, Lee’s resolve to preserve his Maryland campaign first clashed with
McClellan’s stubborn determination to end that campaign by implementing his own carefully
crafted battle plan. This is a true story of human struggle against fearful odds, of men seeking
to do their duty, of simply trying to survive in a contest which had implication that echoed
decisively throughout Antietam’s other actions that reverberated beyond the close of fighting
that evening. This is ‘The Cornfield’ “. Such is author David A. Welker’s lead into one of the best
Civil War books of the past decade, by many accounts. “Military Heritage Magazine” couldn’t
say it better, “ . . . . a tantalizing narrative that sheds new light on the famous battle that
became known as one of the most tragic single days in American history. If you know little of
that four-year war, and that terrible, terrible day of death, this is the book to build your
foundation on for further, if not life-long, reading all else that occurred in those dark days.
Needless to say, every Civil War buff, bibliophile, enthusiast, casual reader owns, “The Blue
and Gray Almanac – The Civil War in Facts and Figures, Recipes and Slang”. Or he and she
should. Author Albert Nofi tells the story of the American War through a range of insightful
essays, anecdotes, and facts. And there is no one better suited to write it than Albert, a military
historian, defense analyst, and wargame designer. He has published a ton of books (Google his
name as author and see for yourself) on a variety of subjects. For many years he served as an
Associate Fellow of the U.S. Civil War Center. He is a deputy editor and regular columnist for
“North & South”, and a contributing editor to “Strategy Page”. All this is mentioned to certify
Albert as legitimate imprimatur to compile, organize, classify, then narrate a work of this size
(346 pages) to assist us novices who know so little, but eager to learn. At times, weeping is
inevitable when being there to witness American men killing fellow Americans, attacking, and
destroying each other’s towns and villages.
