Historian Tim Smith of the Adams County Historical Society will be the guest speaker at this month's CWRT meeting in York.

Background post: 2008 speaker schedule - York CWRT

The monthly meeting of the York Civil War Round Table will feature author, historian, and Licensed Battlefield Guide Timothy H. Smith as the special guest speaker. He is speaking on his latest book, Farms at Gettysburg: The Fields of Battle: Selected Images From the Adams County Historical Society. Tim has a PowerPoint presentation, and he will interject, when appropriate, information about the Gettysburg civilians.

The meeting will be Wednesday evening, July 16, 2008, at 7:00 p.m. in the auditorium of the York County Heritage Trust's headquarters at 250 E. Market Street in downtown York. Parking and admission are free. Why not come and hear one of the most entertaining and knowledgeable Civil War experts in the region?

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Pennsylvania author J. David Petruzzi is the featured guest speaker for the May meeting of the York CWRT.

From June 30 through the wee morning hours of July 2, elements of J.E.B. Stuart's vaunted, but road-weary and exhausted Confederate cavalry column trudged through western York County. They fought a pitched battle at Hanover, as well as a couple of very minor rear guard skirmishes near Jefferson and Dover. Stuart did not arrive on the Gettysburg battlefield until late on July 2, having fought yet again at Hunterstown.

Historians for 145 years have argued the merits of Stuart's controversial ride around the Union army, one that put him out of touch with the main force of the Army of Northern Virginia for part of the campaign. Some critics blame Stuart for leaving Lee blind while in enemy country; others argue that the move made military sense and circumstances beyond Stuart's (and Lee's) control contributed to the delayed reunion with the infantry.

Brockway, PA author J. D. Petruzzi will present a FREE talk at the York County Civil War Round Table on Wednesday, May 21, at 7:00 p.m. at the York County Heritage Trust at 250 East Market Street in downtown York. This promises to be of strong interest to anyone interested in exploring the Civil War history of this region, and a chance to see and hear one of America's leading cavalry experts deliver his personal opinion on Stuart's ride.

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The new book is available from Borders in York and at leading retailers in Gettysburg. It's also for sale at Internet retailers such as amazon.com and target.com.

Here is an anecdote from my recent Human Interest Stories of the Gettysburg Campaign, Volume 2, which was published by Colecraft Industries of Ortanna, PA. This is just one of more than two hundred such true stories from Gettysburg. You will not find any ghosts of Gettysburg or other such tales in this book, but rather stories as related directly by the participants themselves about their experiences. Nothing supernatural, just extraordinary in many cases.

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Wargamer and Gettysburg buff Billy Ray Wagenseller greets author Scott L. Mingus, Sr. at the 4/19/08 book signing during the History Meets the Arts spring festival. Photo by Curt Daniels taken at the Gettysburg Gift Center.

Gettysburg annually holds a spring festival known as History Meets the Arts, a celebration of historical art, music, literary accomplishments, and other arts. Artists such as Dale Gallon, John Paul Strain, Keith Rocco, and many others were present yesterday, and attendance throughout the town was exceptional. The combination of glorious weather, some big-name artists, the first weekend for the new Visitors Center, and good advertising helped boost attendance versus last year’s wind-blown freeze-fest.

Maryland author Bradley Gottfried and I signed books together in the afternoon. He is quite a gentleman and a very nice guy, not to mention an extremely talented cartographer and writer. His latest book is entitled The Artillery of Gettysburg, and seemed to be selling well, along with his other titles such as The Maps of Gettysburg. I sold quite of few of my three books, and thoroughly enjoyed the conversations with Brad and with many of my friends who stopped by. Brad also agreed to come speak to the York CWRT sometime in 2009; more details to come when next year's schedule comes out.

HMTA continues today in Gettysburg. A French & Indian War reeenactor camp site replete with a small fort are highlights of the main display at the Fire Hall, as well as the impressive array of original painting by a host of talented F&I artists. There is no admission charge for this annual event.

Posted in Books Gettysburg battlefield Local ACW events One-tank road trips

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Few events in American history have sparked as much controversy as presidential assassinations. As a papermaker, the industry I work in has been blessed by the dizzying array of books and magazine articles written on the killings of John F. Kennedy and Abraham Lincoln, two events that stunned their generations and created firestorms of opinions and agendas. The CIA. The Mafia. The U.S. government. Cuba. The Illuminati. The Confederate States of America. The U.S. Secretary of War. The Pope. All have been blamed in some fashion for one (or both) of these events.

While some of the public has been fascinated by theories and speculations, Gettysburg Licensed Battlefield Guide Michael Kanazawich has focused his energies and studies on finding and communicating some of the more obscure vignettes and remarkable true stories from the assassination of the 16th President. You won't find long accounts of Edwin Stanton's alleged betrayal of his commander-in-chief, or of Jeff Davis's secret plot to take care of his rival and counterpart. Instead, this new book offers a diverse collection of short accounts and stories that are perfect for light reading.

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One of the trends in tradebook publishing in the past two decades has been the strong growth of historical fiction, particularly those books aimed at women. Combining plots that strongly emphasis character development and personal interrelationships with believable historical situations and settings, these books generally sell very well and appeal to a broad audience. Some, like Cold Mountain, have become best sellers that have cut across across wide genre of readers.

The most recent addition to this segment of the book industry comes from a Gettysburg author, Jessica James. Shades of Gray: A Novel of the Civil War in Virginia (ISBN 978-0-9796000-0-5, softback, 524 pages) is a worthy addition to the line up. Published by Patriot Press, the novel concerns the growing relationship between a Virginian who is a ardent secessionist and Confederate advocate. The lead female character, by contrast, is a devoted Unionist. The interplay of their divergent beliefs, coupled with the backdrop of the growing war, is well written and sustaining. Crisp, well flowing, and with a storyline that holds your attention, James shows off her talents as a novelist, as well as revealing a solid understanding of the Civil War era.

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Roll Call to Destiny
The Soldier’s Eye View of Civil War Battles

Roll Call to Destiny puts readers on the frontlines of the Civil War by providing the point of view of small bands of men who braved unique combat situations. Acclaimed military historian Brent Nosworthy answers such questions as what it was like for artillery to beat back an aggressive infantry assault or to take part in a fast-paced cavalry charge, and how Civil War infantry conflict was waged in thick, forest foliage.

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Some of you have recently asked me about the progress of my latest manuscripts. Here is a brief update on my writing activities.

1. Human Interest Stories from the Gettysburg Campaign, Volume 3 is about halfway finished. There is no timetable for completing this, as Colecraft Industries and I have published three of these human interest books in the past 2 years, and it's time to slow down to allow the market to catch up. The formal introduction of Volume 2 will be this spring, with the same sales channels as the first two books.

2. Flames Beyond Gettysburg: The Gordon Expedition, June 1862 is finally ready for printing. The next step will be to receive the galley proofs, approve them, and then it's off to the printing press. This book is being published by Ironclad Publishing and is Volume 5 in their Discovering Civil War America series. I cover Gordon's brigade from Virginia to the burning of the Columbia-Wrightsville Bridge, and then on to Gettysburg a second time.

3. A Spirit of Daring: The Louisiana Tigers in the Gettysburg Campaign has been completed and just now sent off to the publisher. This should be in print by 2010. I have a lot of material on the Tigers' brief stay in York County, much of it rarely or never before published.

4. Brothers Divided is my latest full-color wargaming scenario book, chock full of great photos of some of the best Civil War dioramas and wargaming table layouts. Volume 1 of this new series will be published late in 2008 by Marek/Janci Design of Chicago.

Work is just beginning on my latest project - a regimental history of the 51st Ohio.

Also, watch for Roll Call to Destiny, a new book by Brent Nosworthy. I helped research and write the Seven Pines / Fair Oaks chapter.

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Our family moved to York County in 2001 from the shores of scenic Lake Erie. My oldest son (now a college history professor) was soon accepted to grad school in history at Millersville, and his master's level report on the burning of the Columbia-Wrightsville Bridge inspired me to write a full-length book on John B. Gordon's brigade in the Gettysburg Campaign (and the subsequent follow-up book on the Louisiana Tigers that has just been submitted to the publisher).

Among the many resources we found for the bridge burning was a series of articles written by local professor Thomas L. Schaefer. Tom also made an interesting VHS tape which we purchased early on. Entitled Defend or Destroy?, this program offers a walking tour of Wrightsville and examines the bridge burning. It's worth a look if you haven't seen it.

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Background post - Yorktown Square: York has produced its fair share of high-ranking naval officers.

Many leading Civil War generals who were quite famous in the 19th Century have slipped into obscurity, and today are only remembered by hard-core Civil War buffs. Ignored by the popular media, their contributions are largely forgotten. One such man was Maj. Gen. William B. Franklin, a York native who rose by the autumn of 1862 to be one of the most powerful men in the Army of the Potomac, and yet, by the time of the Gettysburg Campaign, was an backdrop to the unfolding action.

General Franklin is the subject of an excellent book published in 2002 by another York native, Dr. Mark Snell, the chair of Shepherd University's Civil War Studies program. This outstanding biography, From First to Last: The Life of William B. Franklin, brings Franklin's contributions (and failures) back to life for the modern reader.

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