Book Review: A Deeper Look at the Confederate Soldier

"Faces of the Confederacy is an indispensable new window on the Civil War and the society that fought it," writes Dr. John L.S. Daley in a review of my book that has just appeared in the Civil War Book Review by the Louisiana State University Libraries' Special Collections.

Daley, an associate professor of history and chair of the Department of History at Pittsburg State University in southeastern Kansas, mentioned a number of details that other reviewers passed by, including this opening line: "Consciously taking cues from Thomas Macaulay and Thomas Carlyle, Ronald S. Coddington has presented history as a sum of individual experiences in this collection of seventy-seven short biographies of Confederate soldiers..."

Daley compares the book to Bell J. Wiley's classic, The Life of Johnny Reb (1962), and adds a paragraph that accurately reflects my research: "The Internet and Interlibrary Loan have allowed Coddington to tread where Wiley and other predecessors could not. While awaiting responses to his Civil War Message Board Portal and GenForum.com queries, he mined Ancestry.com, digitized Library of Congress records and pension files in state archives. On-site research in the Library of Congress and National Archives turned up service records, as did the Southern Historical Society Papers, newspapers and regimental histories. Even with internet help, it took him an average of two months to piece together each life.

I am particularly pleased with this review. You can read the complete version on my web site, or view the original on the Civil War Book Review.

Manassas Museum Memories

Just back from a speaking engagement and Faces of the Confederacy book signing at the Manassas Museum. Memories:

• Store Manager Jane Riley's efficiency. She made the event go off without a hitch and brought in a respectable crowd! I owe her a debt of gratitude.
• Ethel's excellent feedback: She appreciated my new introduction — The Photo Generation — and purchased the lone copy of Faces of the Civil War, the Union counterpart.
• Charlotte and Patty's late arrival: They missed the presentation due to traffic, and generously purchased copies of the book.

Speaking and Book Signing at Manassas Museum

This Saturday, Aug. 15, I'll be at the Manassas Museum speaking about Faces of the Confederacy: An Album of Southern Soldiers and Their Stories. Afterwards, I will sign copies of the book. My presentation includes profiles of several Virginians featured in Faces, including the soldier on the cover, Sgt. William Crawford Smith of the Twelfth Virginia Infantry. Also included is a statistical survey of soldiers from my database of 200 Civil War veterans.

This event is part of the Civil War Trails Old Town Walking Tour. Led by guides in period clothes, the tour is focused on the Second Battle of Manassas (Bull Run), fought on Aug. 28–30, 1862. This year marks the 147th anniversary of the Confederate victory. The tour begins at 10 a.m. Cost: $10/person. For more information about this tour contact the Manassas Museum at 703-368-1873.

The museum is located at 9101 Prince William St., Manassas, VA 20110-5615.

New Review Appears in Latest CWN

The August issue of Civil War News — on of the few publications I read from cover to cover — includes a generous review of Faces of the Confederacy by Michael J. Winey, familiar to many historians as a curator (now retired) at the U.S. Army Military History Institute in Carlisle Barracks, Pa.

My favorite part of Mike's review: "It is a book that you just want to read one more story before you put it down, and then you want to read one more."

I also like this quip: "Those of you who are Yankee lovers only probably won't want to dirty your hands holding this very Southern-oriented book! For myself, I was pleased with each and every image printed so I never needed to wash my hands."

Read the complete review.

Good News Times Three

In the space of a few hours yesterday, I received three very welcome pieces of news. In order of receipt:

1. The supply of Faces of the Confederacy has almost run out, and The Johns Hopkins University Press has decided to launch a second printing.
2. Nimrod Burke is found! The original tintype of this soldier who served with the Twenty-third U.S. Colored Infantry is in the hands of a private collector. Read related post.
3. I received a high-resolution scan of African American sailor Alfred Bailey, who served on several ships from 1864-1866, including the twin-turreted USS Monadnock and the sidewheel steamer USS Saginaw.

The week ends on a high note!

Interview on ACW Essays & Research

Greg Rowe, the author of American Civil War Essays & Research, posted an interview with me based on a series of email questions I recently answered at his request. The result, The stories of Civil War soldiers as told by a visual journalist, is an excellent account of my author experience. I am especially pleased that he included a number of details, including my days as a baseball card collector.

New Confederate Faces Review

The Faces of the Confederacy review by C.D. Myers of McClatchy-Tribune News Service begins with the story of Capt. Jesse Cunningham McNeill, the soldier who transforms from petulant subordinate officer to daring raider responsible for the capture of a pair of federal generals.

It is fitting that Myers led with McNeill's story, for it exemplifies the many untold and largely forgotten stories of the Civil War period.

Myers adds:

This exceptional companion edition to Coddington's 2004 book, "Faces of the Civil War: An Album of Union Soldiers and Their Stories," reconstructs the lives of 77 Confederate soldiers below the rank of colonel, through engaging narratives complemented by rare carte-de-visite (CDV) portrait photographs.

This review has been widely published online, including the Kansas City Star and The (Columbia, S.C.) State.

Impressive New Market Event

Spent today signing Faces of the Civil War and Faces of the Confederacy in the Museum tent along Sutler's Row at the New Market reenactment. I enjoyed meeting several people known previously by email, notably Nick Sekela and Nick Picerno, and meeting new friends, including Mike Zucchero, author of Loyal Hearts: Histories of American Civil War Canines.

I did manage to snap a few images during the battle reenactment, before a thunderstorm tore through the area, reminiscent of the rains reported during the battle 145 years ago today.

Book Signing at New Market

Thanks to sutler Nick Sekela, I will be signing copies of my books at the The Battle of New Market Reenactment. I'll be set up in the bookstore tent, adjacent to sutler's row, on Saturday, May 16, from 10-3, and Sunday, May 17, from 10-2. I am informed that this year's event will be especially impressive, due in part to the cancellation of the Spotsylvania reenactment.

Hope to meet you there!

MI Publishes Confederate Faces Review

Military Images publisher David Neville reviewed Faces of the Confederacy in the latest issue of the magazine (May/June 2008). This excerpt captures the essence of his words:

"These stories are not the often told ones of famous Confederate leaders like General Lee, Stonewall Jackson, or J.E.B. Stuart, but of enlisted men and lower ranking officers, whose life stories deserve to be heard by this generation of American history and Civil War readers."

The complete comments are available in the Confederate Reviews section of my web site.

Civil War Times Review

The June 2009 issue of Civil War Times Magazine includes a review of Faces of the Confederacy. Of particular interest is Jack Trammell's focus on the importance of the soldier cartes de visite, which is unusual, as most reviewers emphasize the stories of the volunteers. The review concludes with Trammell recognizing the combination of photographs and stories:

"Coddington's book reminds us that the face of war never really changes, and that conflict never comes at a convenient moment for anyone."

Thanks to my friend Alan Rudolph, who alerted me to the review's publication in CWT.

New Biography of the "Iron Man" by Jim Power

I met Jim Power during the search for the diary of Maj. Thomas B. Webber of the Second Kentucky Cavalry. Webber's story from Mississippi postmaster to one of Gen. John Hunt Morgan's trusted subordinates is one of the more dramatic transformations in my book, Faces of the Confederacy. Jim's generosity and helpfulness was invaluable, particularly his sharing of the Webber diary he painstakingly transcribed.

Jim dedicates an entire volume to Webber, a worthy biographical subject largely unknown today. The "Iron Man" and the "Mississippi Company" of Morgan's Raiders is available now from AuthorHouse.

From the book description: The "Iron Man" and the "Mississippi Company" of Morgan's Raiders tells of a company that joined John Hunt Morgan's Kentucky cavalry and participated in the "Great Raid" into Indiana and Ohio where most of the company was captured. Their leader, who due to health problems appeared to be a wimp from his 1861 diary, had to be helped to mount his horse, but his leadership gained him the title of "Iron Man" from his troops. After prison some of the troops were in Jefferson Davis' guard as he attempted to escape. The closing chapter tells more about the men and the hard life to which they returned. The book contains unpublished material and portrays southern life in the 1860s.

I can't wait to receive my copy.

CWBA Blog Review

Andrew Wagenhoffer of the Civil War Books and Authors blog reviewed Faces of the Confederacy. An excerpt:

"The overall presentation of this volume is first-rate. The full-page CDV images are crisp reproductions, and the full cloth binding and heavy, glossy paper make for a distinctly attractive and weighty volume. The book has the heft of a much larger tome. Faces of the Confederacy will appeal to serious photography enthusiasts and collectors, as well as those readers captivated by the personal stories of Civil War soldiers."

Read the full review.

Confederate Faces Reviewed by Fort Sumter Historian

Richard W. Hatcher, the historian of the Fort Sumter National Monument, reviewed Faces of the Confederacy for the The Post and Courier of Charleston, S.C. The complete review is available on the newspaper's website, charleston.net.

Hatcher ends the review by capturing an essential element that drives my interest in these citizen soldiers, "Coddington reveals the human face of a war fought by fathers, husbands, sons and brothers. Their faces provide a compelling and tangible link with some of the men who 'wore the gray.'"

One of the men in gray that likely caught Mr. Hatcher's attention is Capt. Francis Huger Harleston of the First South Carolina Artillery. A member of the Citadel's Class of 1860, Harleston spent most of the war defending Fort Sumter. The young South Carolinian's complete profile appears in Faces of the Confederacy, and is illustrated with a carte de visite portrait from the collection of William A. Turner.

I learned an interesting bit of information about cartes de visite from Mr. Hatcher, who noted, "Twenty-five of them could be purchased for $1, roughly $160 in today's currency." While the carte de visite is recognized for democratizing portrait photography in part by offering more affordable prices compared to earlier formats, clearly a photograph was still an investment.

Extended Version of the AJC Review

Writer Bill Hendrick informs me that an extended version of the review that originally appeared in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution has been published on the Georgia Online News Service. The article includes more details and quotes.

Gray Faces of War Reviewed in AJC

"Gray faces of war" is the headline of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution review of Faces of the Confederacy, which appeared today in print and online.

"Coddington’s prose is as unpretentious as the faces he shares, yet authoritative. It resurrects details that broaden our understanding of those sad times and sheds valuable light on the shape of modern culture," writes Bill Hendrick, a longtime AJC staff member who left the company last year. Bill interviewed me for this review, and also spoke with David Wynn Vaughan of Atlanta, one of the collectors whose contribution made this book come into its own.

I like this quote for two reasons. I write in a clear, direct style and try to use first-person narrative to advance the soldier's story. I also refrain from injecting my own point of view, for it is the soldier's story, not my own. I also stay away from generalization unless it helps put the soldier's experience into greater context or bring additional meaning to the story.

Also, Bill's reference to the Civil War period's influence on the shape of modern culture is spot on. Anything contemporary writers of history can do to convey the confusion and chaos of those times can only benefit those who continue on the American journey. Our story is one of shades of gray. As time marches on and memories fade and disappear, the subtle shades are reduced to a stark contrast of black and white. Lost is the complex and complicated tangle of cultural and political issues at the core of the wars, economic crisis, scientific milestones and other watershed events that make their way into our history books.

I first met Bill Hendrick twenty-three years ago at the AJC. Our careers overlapped in the late eighties: He had by then established a reputation as one of America's top business writers, having predicted the 1987 stock market crash; I was a rookie staff artist who had joined the company shortly before the first Apple computer landed in the department.

Bill descends from a Virginia family whose sons fought for the Confederacy.

ACRL Reviews Confederate Faces

George Eberhart of the Association of College & Research Libraries recently reviewed Confederate Faces. He writes:

"Faces of the Confederacy: An Album of Southern Soldiers and Their Stories, by Ronald S. Coddington (320 pages, December 2008), brings to life the fragmented backgrounds of 82 Confederate soldiers pictured on cartes de visite of the 1860s. Coddington has hit upon a unique and fascinating niche in the seemingly endless march of Civil War books. This one is a sequel to his Faces of the Civil War (2004), which matched the images of ordinary Union privates, sergeants, lieutenants, and captains with brief memoirs of their war experiences. With Southern veterans the documentary trail is much harder to pick up, making the author's biographical vignettes all the more extraordinary. The earnestness, defiance, and desperation on the faces of these men resonates with a modern audience, once their stories are known."

Confederate Faces is a History Book Club selection

Faces of the Confederacy is one of the January selections of the History Book Club.

Christmas Thanks

Jason Puckett of Bartlesvile, Oklahoma, collects old photographs with a passion and interest that reminds me of my own. He contacted me some time ago after reading Union Faces, and since then we've maintained a periodic correspondence. Last week, I sent him signed copies of Confederate Faces, and yesterday received with delight a package containing several beautiful cartes de visite — a thoughtful gift from a generous spirit that I will treasure.

He also sent me a card that reads, in part, "I have truly enjoyed your correspondence, and being able to read the stories of the men who I consider to be my heroes. You have given a voice, as well as a rebirth to men long gone."

Jason's words remind me that the remembrance of those who came before us, the sacrifices that they made in times of great peril and national crisis, are a reminder that we are challenged to muster courage and inner strength to make our country and our world a better place for those who come after us.

Thank you, Jason, for sharing your thought.

Web 5.0

Spent time over the past week redesigning the web site. The old design had a limited navigation bar that had outgrown its usefulness as I've added a number of new features and links during the past couple years. A major change is moving from a Flash-based environment to HTML, which is helpful for search engine optimization and text display.

New features include a page dedicated to purchasing signed copies of both books.

Thanks

Yesterday I mailed complimentary copies of Confederate Faces to individuals who played critical roles in the book's development. I struggled to find the correct words to express my gratitude for the generosity and support of so many people. I inscribed title pages with various phrases including "with deep appreciation," "profound thanks," and other expressions. These words are fitting and proper, and pay tribute to their contributions.

The key word is generosity. So many people gave freely of their time and expertise. I am indebted to them all. And, as I wrote words of thanks in each book, was awestruck by the genuine goodness of so many, not on my behalf, but for the preservation and memory of the millions of men, North and South, who went to war during our nation's greatest crisis.

"The history of the Civil War is the stories of its soldiers," I write in the introduction to this volume, and I thank each and every one of the individuals here today who helped to tell those stories.

"It's a Book"

This is the subject line of the email I received Monday from Anne Whitmore at The Johns Hopkins University Press, informing me that the first copy of Confederate Faces had arrived, and that it would be soon be on its way from her office in Baltimore to my home. Considering the holiday yesterday, I did not expect to receive it until tomorrow at the earliest.

It showed up on our doorstep today. Anne called me at the office, but got my voicemail, and decided then and there to make it a surprise. Tonight after dinner, she distracted me with YouTube videos and brought out a chocolate cake with candles, a card, and the package containing the book. She definitely caught me off guard and totally by surprise! After blowing out the candles, I opened the package. The fine folks at JHUP did a great job all around. I am truly pleased with it!

Confederate Book Jacket Arrives

Senior Manuscript Editor Anne Whitmore sent me several jackets for Confederate Faces with a note that really brightened my day: "When these were sitting in my in-box, everyone who walked by stopped and said, 'Wow.' It's just as handsome, arresting, and haunting as the jacket for the Union volume — a tough standard to meet."

I salute the design team for coming through again! I am delighted with it. I took one of the jackets and wrapped it around a copy of Union Faces for this picture.

FYI: The rest of the book is due at the end of November.