Looking for some input/feedback, please....

[Eric Wittenberg]

Sounds like a great idea.

Debunking myths is not junk history. How many people read "Lost Triumph" and believed it out of honest ignorance? Far more I think than believe it because they are diehard conspiracy theorists and/or Lee worshippers.

Gettysburg myths/semi-myths I can think of:

Battle happened because Heth wanted shoes

Buford's Spencers

Ewell/Jackson at Cemetery/Culp Hills on July 1

Meade wanted to retreat every night

Sickles' insubordination ruined Longstreet's attack on July 1 and was thus a good thing

Chamberlain & 20th ME saved the Union by themselves (while commonly debunked by any modern Gettysburg book it is probably still widely believed due to Killer Angels and the movie)

Longstreet screwed up Lee's masterplan for July 3 morning

Stuart's late arrival and actions on July 3 involves probably half a dozen myths by itself (would have won the battle, Lee chewed out Stuart, the Carhart Theory, etc)

Probably plenty of other things I'm forgetting. Killer Angels, Gettysburg movie, Lost Triumph, and Ken Burns & Shelby Foote are probably the best starting poin2t though because the vast majority of misconceptions probably stem from those sources being the most high profile ones.

All of those are on my preliminary list, Josh. Thank you.

 

[Yankeedave]

no pressure but write us a good one

 

[Paul Denbow]

It would be great to have a book that separates fiction/myth from the facts.

 

[Drew]

I'm looking for some feedback on this, positive and negative.

One of my missions in telling history is shattering myths. Some of them are particularly tenacious, such as the myth of Buford's troopers having Spencers at Gettysburg. The Battle of Gettysburg has an entire mythology that has sprung up around it.

Someone suggested that I do a book focused on shattering those myths. I must admit that it interests me, and I think it would be a fun book to write, and hopefully for folks to read.

The question is: what do y'all think of this idea? Would you think such a book to be a worthy addition to the body of knowledge? Would you read it?

The response will dictate whether I continue to explore the topic, so please be honest and candid with me. I have one other Gettysburg project in mind, with my friend Dave Powell, but until I started kicking this idea around, that 11th Corps project with Dave was intended to be my last Gettysburg project. Depending on the responses that I get here and on Facebook, where I have also posted this, that 11th Corps project may well remain my last Gettysburg project.*

*Fear not--it won't be my last Civil War project, although I do have a major Revolutionary War project in the works. It's just that I will have exhausted the Gettysburg topics that interest me enough to invest the time and effort into doing something book length and am ready to move on to something else.

No. There are too many myths for any one person to address. You'll get torn to pieces for anything you've missed.

You've floated another idea that I thought was great. choosing a Confederate cavalry commander and writing his history. Pick one, even one if you hate him. Get into his life, motivations and actions during the war.

It will be a character-building exercise and I will be a buyer.

 

[JerseyBart]

If you're writing it, I'm reading it.

 

[bdtex]

Well written and well argued/sourced/documented mythbusters are great. I read one recently and loved it and it certainly made me think about the subject and other subjects in a different light. Not gonna say more about it because I don't want this thread to drift into that subject. By the time you finish it and it goes to print,I might be in a position to read it. Already gotta healthy stack of books waiting their turn to be read including 2 on Gettysburg.

 

[nitrofd]

No. There are too many myths for any one person to address. You'll get torn to pieces for anything you've missed.

You've floated another idea that I thought was great. choosing a Confederate cavalry commander and writing his history. Pick one, even one if you hate him. Get into his life, motivations and actions during the war.

It will be a character-building exercise and I will be a buyer.

Eric has said he his working one for Abraham Buford.

 

[Drew]

Eric has said he his working one for Abraham Buford.

Right, the Revolutionary War. I'm suggesting he do a Confederate cavalry commander.

Just my two cents...

 

[nitrofd]

Right, the Revolutionary War. I'm suggesting he do a Confederate cavalry commander.

Just my two cents...

Abraham Buford rode for a while with Forrest,he was John Buford's cousin.

 

[LoyaltyOfDogs]

I hope you will write this book, @Eric Wittenberg. As the Civil War continues to recede further into the past, and with public schools deemphasizing the study of history, it will become increasingly important to dispel myths and the misunderstandings that they engender. I would read it, and it's the kind of book that should probably be required reading for anyone studying historical methods (the course I most regret not having taken in college).

 

[GABoy]

Here's my thing.....I grew up believing that all I was told in school I had to believe because, well, it was taught in school. As I grew I found that not all of what I was taught was true, a lot of it myths in fact. This has gradually made me a skeptic about just about anything (flying saucers, bigfoot, etc....) and especially if it is something that is presented as historical fact. Two of my modern day heroes are (stay with me here) Penn & Teller. They are first and foremost fantastical entertainers but also have made a name as debunkers. I admire them for being up front and telling their audience that hey, we're magicians and we make our living by lying and getting you to believe us. The distinction is divining the truth from bunk. If you can find a way to debunk Gettysburg myths and write about it, I applaud you beforehand. And I will read it. I fear too many people might know about Gettysburg through that movie Ted Turner made years ago!

 

[Eric Wittenberg]

Eric has said he his working one for Abraham Buford.

Correct. I am working on just that.

 

[War Horse]

Correct. I am working on just that.

An acomplished cusser as I recall. That will also be a worthwhile read. Forrest loved him. I'm sure we will also.

 

[Jamieva]

Id read it

 

[Patrick H]

What they all said. I would also like to see someone write a book that shattered myths out here in Missouri's war. All we seem to have out here are foregone conclusions and irreversible assumptions...and no one ever seems to get any wiser nor better informed when opinions are brought to bear.

 

[frontrank2]

It sounds like a great idea.

 

[Mary763]

That's a great idea and I agree with everyone else, you would do a great job with it!

 

[James_tiberous]

I haven't gotten that far yet. The first step is to decide whether there is sufficient interest to even take that next step.

That would sure be helpful in determining if it was something worth doing or for us, reading

 

[LostGettysburgAddress]

Eric: I love the idea. You could not only debunk the myths, but discuss how some myths do serve a good purpose, such as getting people interested in the Civil War. When someone finds out the truth, it may not be as colorful as the myth (or it may be more interesting), but by that time, the person is hooked. Historical fiction hooked me on history as a boy; but "real" history has sustained my interest as an adult.

The audience for this type of work could be much broader than your usual bulls eye target (Civil War enthusiasts). I think with your resume, a large trade press might pick it up., especially if it was, say, the top ten myths of the Civil War. I can see that on History Channel, PBS, or A and E. If you limit it to Gettysburg myths, then I think you are best off sticking with Ted Savas and your core group of readers.

I would like to see you use a platform like this and other future projects to expand your fan base., You already have the loyalty Civil War community. Why not expose more people to your painstaking research skills and no-nonsense prose style? I think it would challenge you.

 

[Albert Sailhorst]

Start at the "grass-roots" level.......Don't address an audience that may, or probably should, already know the myths (ie, people who study the war because the WANT to study it).......So, I digress.....What do I mean by "grass roots level"??.....Get with a publishing company that writes history books for the school systems.....Be the person that de-bunks the myths at the very start of a student's education, instead of writing a de-bunking myth book that a VERY small per centage of those very same students will read as they get older.....
Personally, I will not buy or read a myth-debunking book. On the surface, they appear revisionist, with an agenda to promote. They, in my opinion, are generic and kin to too may Civil War "trivia" books.....
Write a book that educates the beginner, first year student......Don't re-teach something that should have been taught correctly the first time.
......Just my thoughts......I don't mean to be critical.....