Leaders of the American Civil War : a biographical and historiographical dictionary /

Thousands of books published every year on the American Civil War bear witness that after 130 years, Americans are still obsessed with this conflict. Jumping into this crowded field is this reference title. It includes brief biographical sketches of military leaders, politicians, and authors, both Confederate and Union. The usual Civil War celebrities are included, along with a few lesser-known individuals such as Thomas Bocock and Raphael Semmes. All contributors are academics specializing in the Civil War. Each essay has a short bibliography. This not a bad book but it offers libraries little that is new; it is only for libraries with comprehensive Civil War collections or those with few or no holdings in this area. R. Dyson; Kutztown University of Pennsylvania

This volume presents biographical essays on 47 men and women for whom the Civil War was "the major event in their lives." Each person is shown to have had an impact on the war, one that has heretofore been overlooked in some cases. Military leaders such as Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee have naturally been included, but so have political leaders, politicians, civilian leaders, businessmen, bankers, and manufacturers. Civilians who had an important effect on morale, from either side, and the women who were in "key positions to counsel and provide support" for others are also included as leaders. Among the nonmilitary figures covered are Clara Barton, Henry Ward Beecher, Varina Davis, Frederick Douglass, and Walt Whitman. The entries, arranged alphabetically, are around 10 pages in length. Close attention is paid to influences on each leader's early life; in fact, all chapters include a discussion of whatever forces were in play during the subject's formative years. Likewise, the question of their activities after the war has not been overlooked. However, those who have been included devoted some of their greatest energies to the war, and analysis of their wartime experiences and accomplishments is the main purpose of the volume. A second purpose is to consider how the subjects have fared in history. What has been their legacy and how have they been perceived? The evolution of scholarship on each person and the views of modern historians are discussed. Each essay concludes with a bibliography, which cites primary and other source materials. Although the title of this work refers to it as a dictionary, the lives are not treated cursorily but at some length, much as in an encyclopedia. The contributors, like the editors, are professional historians or have historical training. The essays are accurate, objective, and authoritative. More words have been written about many of these persons, and certainly about President Lincoln, than almost any other American leaders, so it is not surprising that the editors have plowed again some well-worn ground. But the scope of the entries, the particular context provided by focusing on the war, and the readabilty of the prose mean that the volume will be a useful addition to public and academic libraries.

Civil War buffs will welcome this biographical dictionary, edited by Ritter (Coll. of Notre Dame) and Wakelyn (Kent State Univ.), which includes 47 articles on outstanding military and civilian Union and Confederate leaders as well as entries for other significant figures, including Frederick Douglass, Clara Barton, Dorothea Dix, and even Walt Whitman (a volunteer nurse in Washington). Missing, however, is Admiral David Farragut, the Union's most successful naval officer. Each article discusses prewar and wartime careers as well as postwar activities. A valuable feature is an extended commentary and analysis of some of the outstanding items of the vast historiography about the Civil War. For Civil War collections in academic and larger public libraries.‘Harry Frumerman, formerly with Hunter Coll., New York (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.