NF American Citizen: The Civil War writings of Captain George A. Brooks

Non-Fiction

CivilWarTalk

Lieutenant General
- ★★★ -
Managing Member & Webmaster
Joined
Apr 1, 1999
Location
Martinsburg, WV
51aehkszcdl-_sx331_bo1-204-203-200_-jpg.jpg


American Citizen:
The Civil War writings of Captain George A. Brooks,
46th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry

by Benjamin E. Myers - @fortysixthregiment

Published July 31, 2019
Belatedly Launched on CWT on 8/16/2019

In the spring of 1861, America was pulling apart at the seams and George Brooks’ life was in shambles. Destitute and reeling from a failed business venture and familial disagreement following a turbulent love affair, Brooks spent the years before the Civil War traveling in search of work. His wife and young son, of whom he saw little, remained at home in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. When war broke out, soldiering offered the first steady job he had held in years.

Sent off to war as a scourge to his family instead of a hero, Brooks became Captain of Company D of the 46th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry. He proved an admirable leader and recruiter, writing to his hometown paper in patriotic prose about his wartime experiences. Brooks chronicled his regiment’s pursuit of Stonewall Jackson in Northern Virginia in 1862, during which the Union suffered a series of devastating losses, and “Seeing the Elephant” at First Winchester, Cedar Mountain, and Antietam. "American Citizen" combines Brooks’ personal diary, newspaper articles, and personal correspondence to tell the story of a young man trying to balance a life left behind while leading a company of soldiers through some of the Civil War’s most studied campaigns.


vote now
First and foremost, if you like the book or movie that a person has posted, upvote the suggestion.
If you want to participate in the discussion below, go for it, but don't forget to vote!


You can vote for a suggestion by clicking/tapping
1601947738396.png

on the grey arrow at the right of the first post:
(Or at the bottom of the first post on your phone!)

Once your vote has been recorded, the counter will
1601947747883.png

increase and it and the arrow will change colors:​
 
Last edited:
Back
Top