by John S. Sledge
The Civil War has left indelible marks on Alabama’s land,
culture, economy, and people. Despite its lasting influence, this wrenching
story has been too long neglected by historians preoccupied by events
elsewhere. In These Rugged Days: Alabama in the Civil War, John S.
Sledge provides a long overdue and riveting narrative of Alabama’s wartime
saga.
Focused on the conflict’s turning points within the state’s borders,
this book charts residents’ experiences from secession’s heady early days to
its tumultuous end, when 75,000 blue-coated soldiers were on the move
statewide. Sledge details this eventful history using an impressive array of
primary and secondary materials, including official records, diaries, newspapers,
memoirs, correspondence, sketches, and photographs. He also highlights such
colorful personalities as Nathan Bedford Forrest, the “Wizard of the Saddle”;
John Pelham, the youthful Jacksonville artillerist who was shipped home in an
iron casket with a glass faceplate; Gus Askew, a nine-year-old Barbour County
slave who vividly recalled the day the Yankees marched in; and Augusta Jane
Evans, the young novelist who was given a gold pen by a daring blockade runner.
Sledge offers a refreshing take on Alabama’s contributions to the Civil War
that will intrigue anyone who is interested in learning more about the state’s
war efforts. His narrative is a dramatic account that will be enjoyed by lay
readers as well as students and scholars of Alabama and the Civil War. These
Rugged Days is an enthralling tale of action, courage, pride, and tragedy,
making clear the relevance of many of the Civil War’s decisive moments for the
way Alabamians live today.
About the Author
John S. Sledge is a senior architectural
historian for the Mobile Historic Development Commission and a member of the
National Book Critics Circle. He is the author of Cities
of Silence: A Guide to Mobile’s Historic Cemeteries and The Mobile River. He and
his wife, Lynn, live in Fairhope, Alabama.
ISBN 978-0817319601, University Alabama Press, © 2017, Hardcover, 296
pages, Maps, Photographs & Illustrations, Endnotes, Bibliography &
Index. $34.95. To purchase this book click HERE.
