TOCWOC – A Civil War Blog

Category: Civil War Books

Review: Sharpshooting Rifles of the American Civil War: Colt, Sharps, Spencer, and Whitworth by Martin Pegler

Sharpshooting Rifles of the American Civil War: Colt, Sharps, Spencer, and Whitworth By Martin Pegler Illustrated by Johnny Shumate, Alan Gilliland Publication Date: 24 Aug 2017 80 pages ISBN 9781472815910 $20 Martin Pegler is a prolific chronicler on military sniping, perhaps best known for his 2004 book Out of Nowhere: A History of the Military […]

November 22, 2017
McFarland Book of the Week: Civil War Hospital Newspapers: Histories and Excerpts of Nine Union Publications

Civil War Hospital Newspapers: Histories and Excerpts of Nine Union Publications by Ira Spar, M.D. TOCWOC’s Take: I appreciate the niche in Civil War publishing which McFarland fills. They are known for original reference works as well as reprints of long-forgotten items of importance to students of the Civil War. In addition, they cover obscure but […]

June 30, 2017
McFarland Book of the Week: Joseph Brown and His Civil War Ironclads: The USS Chillicothe, Indianola, and Tuscumbia

Joseph Brown and His Civil War Ironclads: The USS Chillicothe, Indianola, and Tuscumbia by Myron J. Smith, Jr. TOCWOC’s Take: Author Myron J. Smith is no stranger to the naval war on the Western waters, as he has published multiple books on various ships which participated in these conflicts. Here he covers the three ironclads built […]

May 20, 2017
New 109th New York Book from the Author of Dear Friend Amelia

I was pleasantly surprised to receive a short note from Mary Jordan, editor of Dear Friend Amelia: The Civil War Letters of Private John Tidd. Since editing that collection of letters, she has been busy in a collaboration with Joyce Hatch working on a larger effort transcribing and preserving the writings of other soldiers from […]

March 7, 2017
Author Interview: Dennis Rasbach, Author of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain and the Petersburg Campaign

Editor’s Note: This post originally appeared earlier today at The Siege of Petersburg Online and has been cross-posted here. Medical doctor Dennis Rasbach became interested in his ancestor’s unit during the Civil War. In the course of his research, he realized the 21st Pennsylvania (Dismounted) fought in a brigade from the same division as that […]

August 30, 2016
Eugene Blackford letter excerpt January 5, 1861

I will be periodically posting excerpts from Eugene Blackford’s letters in the next few months, all of which are included in Volume I of my upcoming book (which may still be ordered at a prepublication discount). This letter finds Blackford, a Virginian, in the small town of Clayton, Alabama (near Eufaula) working as a school […]

February 28, 2016
Civil War Book Review: Cold Harbor to the Crater: The End of the Overland Campaign

Gallagher, Gary W. (ed.) & Janney, Caroline E. (ed.). Cold Harbor to the Crater: The End of the Overland Campaign. (University of North Carolina Press: September 2015). 360 pp., 6.125 x 9.25, 31 halftones, 5 maps, notes, bibliography, index. ISBN: 978-1-4696-2533-1. $35.00 (Hardcover) Gary Gallagher and the University of North Carolina Press return to the […]

January 18, 2016