NF The Andrews Railroad Raid

[major bill]

I was looking at upcoming CWRT discussions to be given at the Ann Arbor CWRT and thought about the fact I know very little about the Andrews Railroad Raid. Bob Goulding will be giving a presentation on this subject in March. This would give me plenty of time to learn more about it, but what should I read? Does anyone some good book or magazine suggestions on this subject?

 

[Zack]

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1594160783/?tag=civilwartalkc-20

I've seen this described as pretty definitive. I read a portion of it a while ago and can't remember anything about it.

 

[major bill]

I always start out with great intentions. I purchase books about a subject and plan to read them. Sadly I see other books I want to read and the books I purchased to prepare for a presentation get put on a shelf and I never get back to them.

 

[chellers]

I always start out with great intentions. I purchase books about a subject and plan to read them. Sadly I see other books I want to read and the books I purchased to prepare for a presentation get put on a shelf and I never get back to them.

If I don't purchase a single book in 2018, I shall still have enough books to read through 2018, and then some.

 

[diane]

I can highly recommend Stealing the General - I've read it! Very good detail and a lot of information few others have on this remarkable event. I particularly liked the introduction to Old Stars, Ormsby Mitchel. He was one of those promising generals who bit the dust way too early.

 

[major bill]

If I don't purchase a single book in 2018, I shall still have enough books to read through 2018, and then some.

If the speaker at the CWRT has a book, I usually purchase it. I have already purchased two of the books upcoming presentations are about so I will not add "new" books to my shelves I will not read.

 

[WJC]

I was looking at upcoming CWRT discussions to be given at the Ann Arbor CWRT and thought about the fact I know very little about the Andrews Railroad Raid. Bob Goulding will be giving a presentation on this subject in March. This would give me plenty of time to learn more about it, but what should I read? Does anyone some good book or magazine suggestions on this subject?

The first hand account of the raid is William Pittenger, The Great Locomotive Chase: A History of the Andrews Railroad Raid Into Georgia. Printed in several editions, it is available on-line at https://archive.org/stream/greatlocomotivec00pitt/greatlocomotivec00pitt#page/n8/mode/1up
and, as a reprint, at Amazon.com.
I am fortunate to have a first edition copy signed by Mr. Pittenger, a friend of my great, great grandfather.

 

[mofederal]

I can highly recommend Stealing the General - I've read it! Very good detail and a lot of information few others have on this remarkable event. I particularly liked the introduction to Old Stars, Ormsby Mitchel. He was one of those promising generals who bit the dust way too early.

This books sounds interesting. I know something about Mitchel. I used to work at Fort Mitchel, Ky. There were actually several Forts in the area including Fort Thomas. I would like to find a copy of the book some time. I think I read a book on the subject years ago in High School. Of course many of us of a certain age have seen the Disney production with Fess Parker. I have seen the General, it was a great exhibit, and an impressive sight. Thanks for the post.

 

[major bill]

So I should attend the Ann Arbor CWRT that month so I can hear about the Andrews Railroad Raid? I usually go, it is about a 50 mile drive and I do skip a meeting now and then.

 

[Zack]

I'm sorry y'all I misspoke earlier.

THIS is THE definitive work on the Andrew's Raid.

 

[redbob]

One day when I had a little time to kill in Atlanta, as peculiar as it sounds, I chased down the locations of the Raider's and Andrew's places of execution and the site of Andrew's burial. I thoroughly enjoyed Bonds book and would recommend it to anyone interested in the subject.

 

[bdtex]

I was looking at upcoming CWRT discussions to be given at the Ann Arbor CWRT and thought about the fact I know very little about the Andrews Railroad Raid. Bob Goulding will be giving a presentation on this subject in March. This would give me plenty of time to learn more about it, but what should I read? Does anyone some good book or magazine suggestions on this subject?

If you follow through with getting a book and going to the CWRT presentation,your trip to Chickamauga in October next year won't be complete without a visit to the nearby Chattanooga National Cemetery.

 

[diane]

View attachment 166580
I'm sorry y'all I misspoke earlier.

THIS is THE definitive work on the Andrew's Raid.

Love Buster! He wasn't all that far off, either... Fuller, the conductor, ran after the train for literally miles before he and another guy got a hand cart and went pumping away after the General. Then engineer Peter Bracken drove his train, Texas, backward after them. They kept throwing 2x4s onto the tracks, even stopped to chop up some logs. There was a lot of stuff for Keaton to work with!

General Mitchel was very unusual, a real boy genius. He'd mostly gotten through everything the colleges knew before he was out of his teens and decided to see what they knew in the military! Besides which he was patriotic. Had some good ideas about what to do with the blacks, which was way better than Butler's idea of 'contraband'.

That raid was planned to work in conjunction with Mitchel's operations against Chattanooga - disrupt the main railroad line into there - but his plans were gone with the wind due to Shiloh. The massive troop movements deprived him of forces he'd planned to use to support Andrews...and then Andrews was literally twisting in the wind.