A Week of Losses

This week has been a tough one for those of us who study history.

April 14 and 15 mark the 150th anniversary of the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln.

April 15 marks the 103rd anniversary of the sinking of the RMS Titanic.

Today I also received the news of the passing of a true Civil War scholar; Elizabeth Brown Pryor who passed away in an automobile accident yesterday. You may read more about her and the accident here. The book she is most known for in Civil War circles would be Reading the Man: A Portrait of Robert E. Lee Through His Private Letters.

Video Review--PBS American Experience Death and the Civil War

The PBS show American Experience has been broadcasting Death and the Civil War over the last week. The good people there were kind enough to send along a DVD review copy that I have been able to watch. Overall I was quite impressed.

Taking it's inspiration from Drew Gilpin Faust's excellent book This Republic of Suffering: Death and the American Civil War (Vintage Civil War Library) this is a show that anybody interested in the Civil War should take the two hours needed to watch. While not breaking any new academic ground viewers can see photos of and hear the horror of the war. Despite early hopes this was not to be a quick event. With over 700,000 dead nearly every family in the country was affected.

Narration is broken up several ways. The main narrator is Oliver Platt and his voice lends a solemnity to the show befitting the subject. Letter excerpts are read by several others including Amy Madigan. Every documentary like this will have it's share of "talking heads" and this one is no exception. Dr. Faust of course plays a main role. Others, such as George Will, J. David Hacker, and Vincent Brown may or may not be known by viewers. I personally found the contribution by David Blight a highlight. I came to know of him after downloading a course of his from the Apple University site and find him to be an engaging speaker. I have not read any of his books so I can say what I feel about those however. Another surprisingly interesting speaker was Thomas Lynch. Lynch is an undertaker by trade but also an author of note. You can read an interesting, but older, interview with him here.

The video portion of the program is really quite haunting. The photos used are a nice mix of well known and those I have not seen before. The lighting of the whole program is done in such a manner as to constantly remind the viewer of the seriousness of the subject. The background music for the program should be payed attention to. It helps set the mood but at no point is it overwhelming. I was not familiar with the name Brian Keane until searching out the music credits here. He is however quite well known and has scored numerous films and documentaries and has won multiple major awards.

Overall the program is broken into six major subjects including: dying, burying, naming, believing and doubting, accounting, and remembering. A major question that is asked by the program is if it's citizens are expected to make the ultimate sacrifice (death) for the government what does the government owe to it's citizens who make this sacrifice. At the time of the war neither government was able or ready to answer this. Out of the war however came improved medical care including the formation of an ambulance service, an improved ability and desire to remove soldiers remains from the field and to identify them thus giving families closure, and with the formation of national cemeteries soldiers and their families are able to give a proper burial to their brave men (and now women).

Again, while not breaking any new ground this is a show I can highly recommend. The images and subject are likely to stick with you for quite a while after watching this. Be sure to check your local PBS station for times or watch it online at your convenience.

Book Review--Burying the Dead But Not the Past

Janney, Caroline E. Burying the Dead but Not the Past: Ladies' Memorial Associations and the Lost Cause (Civil War America) . University of North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill, NC. 2008. 290 pages, 199 pages text. Index, bibliography, notes, b/w photos. ISBN 9780807872253, $24.95.


The "Lost Cause" is a standard mythology in Confederate history as to why the states in rebellion against the Union were unable to secure their freedom. One of the groups responsible for the Lost Cause mythology were the Ladies Memorial Associations, the subject of a fascinating book by Caroline Janney.


Ladies Memorial Associations, or LMAs as they are called in the book, were groups of mostly elite, solidly white women that took shape almost immediately after the war. Within a year of the surrender at Appomattox there were more than seventy such groups. With the federal government of course giving priority to Union soldiers and dead the LMAs in effect took on a governmental role. Some of their goals were the helping of the poor and injured but most important was memorializing the dead and bringing dead Confederate soldiers home for a proper burial.

For Janney the women of the LMAs were becoming more political despite the traditional view that women were not interested in politics. Janney's definition of politics is the "ability of individuals or groups to wield influence in their community, state, or region". Using this definition there can be little doubt that many Southern women were indeed becoming more political.

While there were Associations across the former Confederate states this book focuses almost exclusively on those from Virginia with those from the cities of Richmond, Fredericksburg, Petersburg, Lynchburg, and Winchester. The Hollywood Memorial Association and Oakwood Memorial Association, both of Richmond, appear to have been the leading organizations and take the lead in this work.

These groups experienced much success including the formation of Confederate Memorial Day which helped lead to the celebrating of our current Memorial Day. Due to the hard work and fund raising undertaken by various LMAs many Confederate monuments, including the famous Pyramid at Hollywood Cemetery, were built. Perhaps the greatest achievement however was the finding and returning of Confederate dead and burying them in what Janey calls National Confederate Cemeteries. Thousands of Confederate dead were eventually brought "home" due to the efforts of these women.

While there were great accomplishments all was not roses for these groups. There was the constant struggle to raise money. In fact the Hollywood Memorial Association was unable to pay for the removal of all the Confederate dead from the Gettysburg battlefield. This debt haunted them for many years. Another struggle was with former Confederate men who were regaining their ability to be active politically. The men who had played a supporting role to women for many years in the immediate aftermath of the war expected the women to return to their prewar social position. These women were having no part in this and fought the men bitterly. Another struggle was declining membership as time went on. During the 1890's the rise of the United Daughters of the Confederacy also raised concerns as the UDC was seen as a younger and more vibrant organization.

Janey has put together an impressive listing of sources. She has scouted through many manuscript repositories, has referenced the remaining records of several LMAs, and has a large listing of other primary and secondary sources. The research looks to be very thorough and it shows in the writing which is smooth and easy to read.

This is a book that should be read by anybody with an interest in the post Civil War period, those wanting to learn about a seldom discussed aspect of Confederate women's history, or those interested in the memorializing of Confederate dead. Highly recommended!

American Experience--Death and the Civil War

A recent mail delivery brought a preview copy of an upcoming PBS episode of American Experience. The episode scheduled to air on September 18 from 8pm-10pm is titled Death and the Civil War. The work is directed by Ric Burns, the brother of filmmaker Ken Burns, with whom he produced The Civil War.

Based upon the book This Republic of Suffering: Death and the American Civil War (Vintage Civil War Library) written by Harvard President Drew Gilpin Faust, Death and the Civil War traces the history of how the war became more deadly as it went along through the nations attempt to deal with the resulting huge death toll after the last shot was fired. With an estimate of up to 750,000 dead the country saw a nearly two and a half percent drop in population. That would translate to approximately seven million deaths today.

I have not yet watched this but am eagerly looking forward to it. I really enjoyed This Republic of Suffering and invite you to see my review here. Once I get a chance to sit down and watch this I will post my thoughts.

Book Review--This Republic of Suffering

Faust, Drew Gilpin. This Republic of Suffering: Death and the American Civil War. Alfred A. Knopf, New York, New York. 346 pages, 271 pages text. B/w photos, notes, index.

The Civil War was an event unprecedented in American history. Casualties on a scale never seen before or since affected life in every way. With approximately 620,000 deaths (2% of the population) Faust estimates this would equate to around six million deaths today. 1 in 5 Southern men of military age did not survive the war.

Faust puts forth that each generation approaches death in ways shaped by history, culture, and conditions that change based upon space and time. The focus of this book is not to compare these approaches but rather to try and explain how those living at the time were affected by these deaths and how they dealt with them.

Central to this work is "the good death" or Ars moriendi. As a way to lessen the mental burden soldiers tended to look at the war with a focus on dying rather than killing. Dying on a battlefield prevented soldiers from achieving all aims of a "good death". Being far from family and loved ones prevented both the dying and the family from observing the death and preparing for the meeting in the afterlife. In place of the family it was important for fellow soldiers to witness the death. This allowed the final words to be heard and for those left behind to understand that the dying was ready to meet his fate. These witnesses often promised to visit family or deliver written word proclaiming that the soldier had passes in a proper way. Obviously many were unable to have a "good death". Sudden death on a battlefield flew in the face of the tradition and left family wondering as to the eternal soul of the departed.

Killing was a difficult factor for many in the war. Often times fighting was in close confines or even face to face. To combat this soldiers would mentaly try to dehumanize the enemy and often times atrocities were committed against officers or blacks. With the magnitude of death the next aspect of the book becomes the burying of the dead. Both sides were unprepared for the numbers of dead and many men were buried on the spot often times in graves so shallow they were dug up by animals. Families were left to try and sort out the remains if they wished to bring their loved one home for a proper burial. Officers would often be accorded more respect. Many times officers bodies were gathered from the field of battle and shipped home or to more formal cemeteries which in some cases became national cemeteries. Embalming was rare on the battlefield and only available to those families able to afford it.

With the large number of dead and the violence of the war it was common for soldiers to be wounded beyond recognition. Many soldiers died without identification and were buried in large plots marked unknown. After battle casualty lists were put together but many times these lists contained inaccurate information. Those at home would not know for sure that they had lost a loved one without a body. Unfortunately many were in graves marked unknown. Mourning rituals were important at this time. Symbols of grief were common and expected. To not participate in such rituals was considered disrespectful. For those left behind they often dealt with the issue of the fate of the soul. Death was often redefined as the beginning of eternal life and there was the assumption of meeting again. For those who just couldn't wait spiritualism began to become more prominent promising to help the dead and living communicate.

After the war was over many still felt an obligation to the dead and attempts to bring the physical bodies of relatives home began in earnest. Helping to keep sectional differences going was the federal government spending $4 million to help find and bury Union soldiers while those with Confederate relatives were left to their own devices. This led to grass roots movements such as the Hollywood Memorial Association of the Ladies of Richmond. Groups such as these helped find, bring home, and properly bury Confederate soldier bodies. Closure could often only be had with the burial at home.

Faust has written an excellent book. The reader does not have to have a large knowledge of the time frame to understand her points. A basic knowledge of the Civil War is helpful but not required. The research is thorough and the book contains almost 50 pages of notes. Included is much research in library archives using primary sources. The book is illustrated with many b/w photos that help further the discussion. Overall a highly recommended book for anybody interested in the Civil War or death customs.