The American Civil War & Reconstruction
Whistlestop Bookshop’s first store opened in Gettysburg in 1985. Eventually, over 19 years there, our Civil War section grew to be three large wall cases. A disproportionate percentage of it, naturally, was about the battle of Gettysburg and biographies of those who fought there. In addition to this book selling experience, my southern upbringing and Army family life created a lifelong interest in the War Between the States and all of its complexities. It is an understandable national obsession, considering how the first half of our nation’s history contributed to its ferocity, and the second half of our history has been the struggle to live with and understand the consequences.
Jefferson Davis: Private Letters 1823-1889
Jefferson Davis: Private Letters 1823-1889
This fascinating collection of intimate letters from and to Jefferson Davis (1808-1889) illuminates the character and personality of the President of the Confederacy.
These letters (the majority appearing fully in print for the first time) range widely over one of the most turbulent periods in American history, from his fifteenth year to his death at eighty-one. Here is Jefferson Davis in all aspects: in love and in house slippers; as wounded war hero; at dramatic heights of statesmanship; in grief over four dead sons; refusing Lee’s resignation after Gettysburg and expressing unwavering confidence; as shackled prisoner, stoic survivor, generous friend, adoring father and husband.
Equally revealing are the letters written to him by such notable figures as Franklin Pierce, Zachary Taylor, Judah P. Benjamin, General and Mrs. Robert E. Lee, Davis’s children, and of course his spirited wife, Varina. From this rich, varied correspondence there emerges a unique biography in letters, adding new dimensions and highlights to one of the most exalted, maligned, and remarkable men in American history.