Items related to Lamson of the Gettysburg: The Civil War Letters of...

Lamson of the Gettysburg: The Civil War Letters of Lieutenant Roswell H. Lamson, U.S. Navy - Hardcover

 
9780195116984: Lamson of the Gettysburg: The Civil War Letters of Lieutenant Roswell H. Lamson, U.S. Navy
View all copies of this ISBN edition:
 
 
Roswell Lamson was one of the boldest and most skillful young officers in the Union navy. Second in the class of 1862 at Annapolis (he took his final exam while at sea during the war), he commanded more ships and flotillas than any other officer of his age or rank in the service, climaxed by his captaincy of the navy's fastest ship in 1864, USS Gettysburg. Now, in Lamson of the Gettysburg, we have the war-time letters of this striking naval figure. What's more, these are letters of exceptional quality. James M. McPherson, co-editor of the collection with his wife Patricia and one of America's preeminent Civil War historians, writes that "few sets of letters equal and none surpass those of Lamson for richness of description, scope of coverage, or keenness of perception and analysis." Indeed, the McPhersons term Lamson's correspondence "the best Civil War navy letters we have ever read or expect to read."
Throughout the war, Lamson always seemed to be where the action was on the South Atlantic coast, and these letters describe with striking immediacy the part he played in these events. While serving on the USS Wabash, for instance, he directed the big deck guns that did the most damage to enemy forts at Hatteras Inlet and Port Royal, two major naval victories. He was the officer who took command of the CSS Planter in May 1862, when slaves led by Robert Smalls ran her past Confederate fortifications in Charleston harbor and delivered her to the Union fleet. He commanded a gunboat fleet on the Nansemond River that helped stop James Longstreet's advance on Norfolk. In a daring attempt to blow up Fort Fisher, the huge earthwork fortress that guarded the entrance into the Cape Fear river, he towed the USS Louisiana (packed with more than two hundred tons of gunpowder) directly under the guns of the fort, sneaking into the shallows behind a rebel blockade runner, (Lamson describes "a terrific explosion. An immense column of flame rose towards the sky, and four distinct reports like that of sharp heavy thunder were heard and a dense mass of smoke enveloped everything"). And a few weeks later, he led a contingent of seventy men from the Gettysburg as part of the January 15, 1865 assault on the sea-face parapets of Fort Fisher, where he himself was wounded and his close friend, Samuel W. Preston, died. The letters also capture the spirited personality of Lamson himself, resolved to "stand by the Union as long as there is a plank afloat," but also deeply ambivalent about the war. In a moving passage early in the collection, he describes leaving Annapolis for war duty on the USS Constitution (Old Ironsides): "We gave three cheers for Capt R., three for the troops, and for old friendship's sake three for those of our number who intending to resign [to join the Confederacy] were requested not to go on board. Some of my best friends were among them. This will be a sad sad war. It will be more painful to strike than to be struck."
The publication of the letters of Roswell Lamson marks a major addition to Civil War literature. Featuring superb introductions to each section as well as informative notes that explain references in the correspondence to people, ships, land and sea battles, or homefront news, Lamson of The Gettysburg now joins the first rank of Civil War sources. One of the few accounts we have from the perspective of a navy officer, it is a book that everyone interested in the Civil War or in American naval history will want to read.

"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.

About the Author:

James M. McPherson is the George Henry Davis '86 Professor of American History at Princeton University. He is the author of Battle Cry of Freedom, which won the Pulitzer Prize in History in 1989.

Patricia R. McPherson is an independent researcher.
From Kirkus Reviews:
A unique collection of wartime letters from naval officer Roswell H. Lamson, US Naval Academy class of 1862, ably edited and annotated by Pulitzer Prizewinning historian James McPherson and independent researcher Patricia McPherson. Lamson grew up in the Oregon Territory, where he fought Indians as a boy, got his first glimpse of the sea, and learned his devotion to the Union from his father, whose westward itch had brought the family from Massachusetts. He matriculated at Annapolis in 1858 and excelled there, finishing second in a class decimated by resignations due either to wartime allegiance to the South or to failure to make the grade. As the war loomed, Lamson, in letters home to his cousins Kate (whom he later married) and Flora, noted that he intended to defend the Union ``as long as there's a star in the flag.'' Lamson's final year as a student was hardly an academic exercise: He served in the blockade of Southern ports, participated in the victorious bombardment of Port Royal and Hatteras Inlet, and was the officer who took charge of the CSS Planter, which was hijacked by slaves in May 1862 in the middle of the battle for Charleston and surrendered to the Union fleet. Lamson played a significant role in the war, as his letters show: In 1863, he commanded a gunboat fleet that captured Fort Huger, a Confederate battery; stopped Gen. Longstreet's attach on Suffolk, Va.; and later was instrumental in the North's long campaign to reduce Fort Fisher, a key Confederate stronghold. Throughout the war, the editors observe, Lamson ``had an uncanny knack for being where the action was.'' His life after the war did not match these early brilliant prospects: His wife and five of seven children died, and success in civilian life eluded him. He died in 1903. A rare correspondence from one who was part of the great blockade, and an absorbing contribution to Civil War literature. -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.

Other Popular Editions of the Same Title

9780195130935: Lamson of the Gettysburg: The Civil War Letters of Lieutenant Roswell H. Lamson, U.S. Navy

Featured Edition

ISBN 10:  ISBN 13:  9780195130935
Publisher: Oxford University Press, 1999
Softcover

Top Search Results from the AbeBooks Marketplace

Stock Image

Lamson, Roswell H.;McPherson, James M.;McPherson, Patricia R.
ISBN 10: 0195116984 ISBN 13: 9780195116984
New Hardcover Quantity: 1
Seller:
Nilbog Books
(Portland, ME, U.S.A.)

Book Description Hardcover. Condition: New. Dust Jacket Condition: New. First Edition (1st printing). This is a New and Unread copy of the first edition (1st printing)l. Seller Inventory # 026524

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 18.95
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 4.50
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

James M. McPherson (Editor), Patricia R. McPherson (Editor)
Published by Oxford University Press, USA (1997)
ISBN 10: 0195116984 ISBN 13: 9780195116984
New Hardcover Quantity: 1
Seller:
Ergodebooks
(Houston, TX, U.S.A.)

Book Description Hardcover. Condition: New. Seller Inventory # DADAX0195116984

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 24.69
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: FREE
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

McPherson, James M.
Published by Oxford University Press (1997)
ISBN 10: 0195116984 ISBN 13: 9780195116984
New Hardcover Quantity: 1
Seller:
GoldenWavesOfBooks
(Fayetteville, TX, U.S.A.)

Book Description Hardcover. Condition: new. New. Fast Shipping and good customer service. Seller Inventory # Holz_New_0195116984

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 22.18
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 4.00
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

McPherson, James M.
Published by Oxford University Press (1997)
ISBN 10: 0195116984 ISBN 13: 9780195116984
New Hardcover Quantity: 1
Seller:
Wizard Books
(Long Beach, CA, U.S.A.)

Book Description Hardcover. Condition: new. New. Seller Inventory # Wizard0195116984

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 27.28
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 3.50
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

McPherson, James M.
Published by Oxford University Press (1997)
ISBN 10: 0195116984 ISBN 13: 9780195116984
New Hardcover Quantity: 1
Seller:
GoldBooks
(Austin, TX, U.S.A.)

Book Description Hardcover. Condition: new. New Copy. Customer Service Guaranteed. Seller Inventory # think0195116984

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 26.74
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 4.25
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

McPherson, James M.
Published by Oxford University Press (1997)
ISBN 10: 0195116984 ISBN 13: 9780195116984
New Hardcover Quantity: 1
Seller:
Front Cover Books
(Denver, CO, U.S.A.)

Book Description Condition: new. Seller Inventory # FrontCover0195116984

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 30.22
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 4.30
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

McPherson, James M.
Published by Oxford University Press, USA (1997)
ISBN 10: 0195116984 ISBN 13: 9780195116984
New Hardcover Quantity: > 20
Print on Demand
Seller:
PBShop.store US
(Wood Dale, IL, U.S.A.)

Book Description HRD. Condition: New. New Book. Shipped from UK. THIS BOOK IS PRINTED ON DEMAND. Established seller since 2000. Seller Inventory # L1-9780195116984

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 37.25
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: FREE
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Lamson, Roswell Hawks
Published by Oxford University Press (1997)
ISBN 10: 0195116984 ISBN 13: 9780195116984
New Hardcover Quantity: 1
Seller:
Marches Books
(Hereford, United Kingdom)

Book Description Hardcover. Condition: New. Same day/next day dispatch (Monday-Friday). Seller Inventory # mar0000021313

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 20.72
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 19.56
From United Kingdom to U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Roswell Hawks Lamson
Published by Oxford University Press (1997)
ISBN 10: 0195116984 ISBN 13: 9780195116984
New Hardcover Quantity: > 20
Print on Demand
Seller:
Ria Christie Collections
(Uxbridge, United Kingdom)

Book Description Condition: New. PRINT ON DEMAND Book; New; Fast Shipping from the UK. No. book. Seller Inventory # ria9780195116984_lsuk

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 33.31
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 12.59
From United Kingdom to U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

James M. McPherson
Published by Oxford University Press Inc (1997)
ISBN 10: 0195116984 ISBN 13: 9780195116984
New Hardcover Quantity: > 20
Print on Demand
Seller:
THE SAINT BOOKSTORE
(Southport, United Kingdom)

Book Description Hardback. Condition: New. This item is printed on demand. New copy - Usually dispatched within 5-9 working days. Seller Inventory # C9780195116984

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 38.75
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 11.29
From United Kingdom to U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds

There are more copies of this book

View all search results for this book