1 Reply Latest reply on May 29, 2018 9:42 AM by Michael Pierce

    The War of the Rebellion: a Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies

    Luci J Baker Johnson Adventurer
    Luci J Baker Johnson May 26, 2018 12:41 PM

      I recently became aware of the publication listed below:

      The War of the Rebellion: a Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies

      Author: United States. War Dept.
      Title: The War of the Rebellion: a Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies
      Other Title: Official records of the Union and Confederate armies
      Publisher: Govt. Printing Office
      Place of Publication: Washington

       

      There are, just in the first of four series, 53 Volumes. Thats a lot!  The publication has been digitized and is available at Making of America: http://collections.library.cornell.edu/moa_new/waro.html .

       

      I'm interested in a couple of regiments (15th WI Inf., 12th IA inf., 34th IA Inf., and 2nd CA Cav) and possibly a few others. The first two of these regiments were heavily engaged in the Battle of Chickamauga and the Battle of Shiloh, respectively.

       

      My question is this, with such a vast amount of text, how best should I attack this material? Does anyone have advise on the best tactics used to 'dig deeper' without getting lost?  Might there be a periodical article or blog post about this series? I don't want to get overwhelmed and loose interest. Any suggestions are welcome.

        • Re: The War of the Rebellion: a Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies
          Adventurer
          Michael Pierce Expert May 29, 2018 9:42 AM (in response to Luci J Baker Johnson)

          Hello Luci:

          Thanks for your submission to History Hub.

          Yes, that is a lot of material! Speaking from personal experience, I always go through the digitized version by chapter when I’m searching for something, using only the name of the state, since the reports don’t always designate infantry, artillery or cavalry. Yes, it is time consuming, but you’ll develop a pattern. If you’re looking for something specific to Shiloh, you can go straight to the chapter that would contain info on operations in Tennessee during March and April 1862.

          Good luck with your research, and feel free to contact us with additional questions.

           

          Mikey

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