Lucy Pier Stevens; a twenty-one-year-old woman from Ohio; began a visit to her aunt's family near Bellville; Texas; on Christmas Day; 1859. Little did she know how drastically her life would change on April 4; 1861; when the outbreak of the Civil War made returning home impossible. Stranded in enemy territory for the duration of the war; how would she reconcile her Northern upbringing with the Southern sentiments surrounding her?Lucy Stevens's diary—one of few women's diaries from Civil War–era Texas and the only one written by a Northerner—offers a unique perspective on daily life at the fringes of America's bloodiest conflict. An articulate; educated; and keen observer; Stevens took note of seemingly everything—the weather; illnesses; food shortages; parties; church attendance; chores; schools; childbirth; death; the family's slaves; and political and military news. As she confided her private thoughts to her journal; she unwittingly revealed how her love for her Texas family and the Confederate soldier boys she came to care for blurred her loyalties; even as she continued to long for her home in Ohio. Showing how the ties of heritage; kinship; friendship; and community transcended the sharpest division in US history; this rare diary and Vicki Adams Tongate's insightful historical commentary on it provide a trove of information on women's history; Texas history; and Civil War history.
#3090668 in Books 2012-04-26Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 10.00 x .71 x 7.00l; 1.21 #File Name: 1475254938314 pages
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. An interesting read for the civil war buffBy John D. FloydJames is a distant relative. I appreciate having this available as it is otherwise out of print. It gives a first hand account of what it is to be in the US Civil War as a Confederate soldier and in particular interest was the account of General Forrest capturing the USS Undine turning it against the Union garrison at Johnsonville; TN and the scuttling of it when the Union was about to recapture it. I was able to view the recent search for the remains in the Tennessee River and was unaware James had first hand knowledge of the Undine. If you are a civil war buff; this is a book by a private who rose to captain. It is calvary soldiers story; NOT a historians.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy CustomerLove to read about The War from the Soldiers point of view
