Mississippi in the Civil War
Mississippi in the Civil War

Author: Timothy B. Smith

Publisher: Univ. Press of Mississippi

Published: 2010-04-08

Total Pages: 503

ISBN-13: 1626744386

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In Mississippi in the Civil War: The Home Front, Timothy B. Smith examines Mississippi's Civil War defeat by both outside and inside forces. From without, the Union army dismantled the state's political system, infrastructure, economy, and fighting capability. The state saw extensive military operations, destruction, and bloodshed within her borders. One of the most frightful and extended sieges of the war ended in a crucial Confederate defeat at Vicksburg, the capstone to a tremendous Union campaign. As Confederate forces and Mississippi became overwhelmed militarily, the populace's morale began to crumble. Realizing that the enemy could roll unchecked over the state, civilians, Smith argues, began to lose the will to continue the struggle. Many white Confederates chose to return to the Union rather than see continued destruction in the name of a victory that seemed ever more improbable. When the tide turned, Unionists and African Americans boldly stepped up their endeavors. The result, Smith finds, was a state vanquished and destined to endure suffering far into its future. The first examination of the state's Civil War home front in seventy years, this book tells the story of all classes of Mississippians during the war, focusing new light on previously neglected groups such as women and African Americans. The result is a revelation of the heart of a populace facing the devastating impact of total war.

The Civil War in Mississippi
The Civil War in Mississippi

Author: Michael B. Ballard

Publisher: Heritage of Mississippi

Published: 2014-09-18

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781628461701

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From the first Union attack on Vicksburg in the spring of 1862 through Benjamin Grierson's last raid through Mississippi in late 1864 and early 1865, this book traces the campaigns, fighting, and causes and effects of armed conflict in central and North Mississippi, where major campaigns were waged and fighting occurred.

Mississippi River Gunboats of the American Civil War 1861–65
Mississippi River Gunboats of the American Civil War 1861–65

Author: Angus Konstam

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2013-01-20

Total Pages: 129

ISBN-13: 1472800613

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At the start of the American Civil War, neither side had warships on the Mississippi River and in the first few months both sides scrambled to gather a flotilla, converting existing riverboats for naval use. These ships were transformed into powerful naval weapons despite a lack of resources, trained manpower and suitable vessels. The creation of a river fleet was a miracle of ingenuity, improvisation and logistics, particularly for the South. This title describes their design, development and operation throughout the American Civil War.

The Real Horse Soldiers
The Real Horse Soldiers

Author: Timothy B. Smith

Publisher: Casemate Publishers

Published: 2020-02-08

Total Pages: 443

ISBN-13: 1611214297

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“This epic account is as thrilling and fast-paced as the raid itself and will quickly rival, if not surpass, Dee Brown’s Grierson’s Raid as the standard.” —Terrence J. Winschel, historian (ret.), Vicksburg National Military Park Winner, Operational/Battle History, Army Historical Foundation Distinguished Book Award Winner, Fletcher Pratt Literary Award, Civil War Round Table of New York There were other simultaneous operations to distract Confederate attention from the real threat posed by U. S. Grant’s Army of the Tennessee. Benjamin Grierson’s operation, however, mainly conducted with two Illinois cavalry regiments, has become the most famous, and for good reason: For 16 days (April 17 to May 2) Grierson led Confederate pursuers on a high-stakes chase through the entire state of Mississippi, entering the northern border with Tennessee and exiting its southern border with Louisiana. Throughout, he displayed outstanding leadership and cunning, destroyed railroad tracks, burned trestles and bridges, freed slaves, and created as much damage and chaos as possible. Grierson’s Raid broke a vital Confederate rail line at Newton Station that supplied Vicksburg and, perhaps most importantly, consumed the attention of the Confederate high command. While Confederate Lt. Gen. John Pemberton at Vicksburg and other Southern leaders looked in the wrong directions, Grant moved his entire Army of the Tennessee across the Mississippi River below Vicksburg, spelling the doom of that city, the Confederate chances of holding the river, and perhaps the Confederacy itself. Based upon years of research and presented in gripping, fast-paced prose, Timothy B. Smith’s The Real Horse Soldiers captures the high drama and tension of the 1863 horse soldiers in a modern, comprehensive, academic study. Readers will find it fills a wide void in Civil War literature.

Mr. Lincoln's Brown Water Navy
Mr. Lincoln's Brown Water Navy

Author: Gary D. Joiner

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Published: 2007

Total Pages: 220

ISBN-13: 9780742550988

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The Union inland navy that became the Mississippi Squadron is one of the greatest, yet least studied aspects of the Civil War. Without it, however, the war in the West may not have been won, and the war in the East might have lasted much longer and perhaps ended differently. The men who formed and commanded this large fighting force have, with few exceptions, not been as thoroughly studied as their army counterparts. The vessels they created were highly specialized craft which operated in the narrow confines of the Western rivers in places that could not otherwise receive fire support. Ironclads and gunboats protected army forces and convoyed much needed supplies to far-flung Federal forces. They patrolled thousands of miles of rivers and fought battles that were every bit as harrowing as land engagements yet inside iron monsters that created stifling heat with little ventilation. This book is about the intrepid men who fought under these conditions and the highly improvised boats in which they fought. The tactics their commanders developed were the basis for many later naval operations. Of equal importance were lessons learned about what not to do. The flag officers and admirals of the Mississippi Squadron wrote the rules for modern riverine warfare.

A Mississippi Rebel in the Army of Northern Virginia
A Mississippi Rebel in the Army of Northern Virginia

Author: Thomas D. Cockrell

Publisher: LSU Press

Published: 2001-09-01

Total Pages: 404

ISBN-13: 9780807127346

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Born the eighth child in a wealthy Mississippi plantation family in 1843, David Eldred Holt joined Company K of the 16th Mississippi Regiment in 1861 and served in the Eastern theater throughout the Civil War. Late in his life, at a time when many former soldiers, both Union and Confederate, were reliving their memories of that event, Holt penned this memoir, recounting the idyllic life of an affluent southern boy before the war and the exhilarating, sometimes humorous, often terrifying experiences of a common soldier in camp and in battle. This new edition has been expanded to include Holt's never-before-published diary entries from the last year of the war.

The Civil War in the West
The Civil War in the West

Author: Earl J. Hess

Publisher: UNC Press Books

Published: 2012-03-12

Total Pages: 411

ISBN-13: 0807869848

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The Western theater of the Civil War, rich in agricultural resources and manpower and home to a large number of slaves, stretched 600 miles north to south and 450 miles east to west from the Appalachians to the Mississippi. If the South lost the West, there would be little hope of preserving the Confederacy. Earl J. Hess's comprehensive study of how Federal forces conquered and held the West examines the geographical difficulties of conducting campaigns in a vast land, as well as the toll irregular warfare took on soldiers and civilians alike. Hess balances a thorough knowledge of the battle lines with a deep understanding of what was happening within the occupied territories. In addition to a mastery of logistics, Union victory hinged on making use of black manpower and developing policies for controlling constant unrest while winning campaigns. Effective use of technology, superior resource management, and an aggressive confidence went hand in hand with Federal success on the battlefield. In the end, Confederates did not have the manpower, supplies, transportation potential, or leadership to counter Union initiatives in this critical arena.

Behind the Rifle
Behind the Rifle

Author: Shelby Harriel-Hidlebaugh

Publisher: Univ. Press of Mississippi

Published: 2019-02-25

Total Pages: 206

ISBN-13: 1496822021

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During the Civil War, Mississippi’s strategic location bordering the Mississippi River and the state’s system of railroads drew the attention of opposing forces who clashed in major battles for control over these resources. The names of these engagements—Vicksburg, Jackson, Port Gibson, Corinth, Iuka, Tupelo, and Brice’s Crossroads—along with the narratives of the men who fought there resonate in Civil War literature. However, Mississippi’s chronicle of military involvement in the Civil War is not one of men alone. Surprisingly, there were a number of female soldiers disguised as males who stood shoulder to shoulder with them on the firing lines across the state. Behind the Rifle: Women Soldiers in Civil War Mississippi is a groundbreaking study that discusses women soldiers with a connection to Mississippi—either those who hailed from the Magnolia State or those from elsewhere who fought in Mississippi battles. Readers will learn who they were, why they chose to fight at a time when military service for women was banned, and the horrors they experienced. Included are two maps and over twenty period photographs of locations relative to the stories of these female fighters along with images of some of the women themselves. The product of over ten years of research, this work provides new details of formerly recorded female fighters, debunks some cases, and introduces over twenty previously undocumented ones. Among these are women soldiers who were involved in such battles beyond Mississippi as Shiloh, Antietam, and Gettysburg. Readers will also find new documentation regarding female fighters held as prisoners of war in such notorious prisons as Andersonville.

Mississippi's Civil War
Mississippi's Civil War

Author: Ben Wynne

Publisher: Mercer University Press

Published: 2006

Total Pages: 278

ISBN-13: 9780881460391

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This book examines Mississippi's Civil War experience. It begins with an introductory overview of the socio-political climate of the state during the1850s and ends with a treatment of Mississippi's post-war environment and the rise of Lost Cause mythology. In between, the work covers the pivotal events, issues, and personalities of the period. Wynne emphasizes the experiences of Mississippians?male and female, black and white?as they struggled to deal with the crisis. The political events leading to seces-sion, Mississippians? initial enthusiasm for war, voices of dissent, the disbursement of troops in and out of the state, the home front, freedom for the slave community, waning enthusiasm (both in the military and on the home front) as the war dragged on, defeat, and the ultimate struggle to turn defeat into a moral victory through Lost Cause mythology are also discussed. This book makes significant contributions to Civil War literature.