Freedom for Themselves: North Carolina's Black Soldiers in the Civil War Era

by Richard M. Reid

Overview

More than 5,000 North Carolina slaves escaped from their white owners to serve in the Union army during the Civil War. In Freedom for Themselves Richard Reid explores the stories of black soldiers from four regiments raised in North Carolina. Constructing a multidimensional portrait of the soldiers and their families, he provides a new understanding of the spectrum of black experience during and aftger the war.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780807837276
Publisher:	The University of North Carolina Press
Publication date:	02/01/2012
Series:	Civil War America
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	440
File size:	4 MB

About the Author

Richard M. Reid is associate professor of history at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada. He is author of The Upper Ottawa Valley to 1855.

Table of Contents

Preface     xi
Introduction     1
Raising and Training the Black Regiments     19
A Fine, Fighting Regiment     67
Issues of "Civilized" Warfare     111
A Unit of Last Resort     153
Black Workers in Blue Uniforms     187
Families of the Soldiers during the War     215
Service in the Postwar South     255
Black Veterans in a Gray State     297
Conclusion     323
Notes     329
Bibliography     389
Index     407

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

This well-researched and well-argued book should stand as the definitive history of North Carolina's four black regiments in the Civil War. Reid is the first scholar to examine several USCT regiments from one state and utilize them collectively to sketch a composite view of black troops recruited in the South during the Civil War. Freedom for Themselves offers much new detail that completes our understanding of who constituted the men of the USCT, how they experienced the war and its immediate aftermath, and the impact of their service on their families.—John David Smith, University of North Carolina at Charlotte

Editorial Reviews

“The first state study of African American soldiers in the Union Army. . . . Promises new research possibilities beyond the traditional view of patriotic black troops sacrificing for the Union. . . . Recommended.” — CHOICE

“A valuable contribution to the growing body of literature on the African American experience during the Civil War era. . . . Yield[s] fresh insights into some neglected areas of the black soldiers' experience.” — American Historical Review

“An excellent social history of North Carolina’s African American regiments in the civil war. . . . Superb scholarship and a model for future state-level social histories of Civil War military service.” — Journal of American History

“Well researched, written, and annotated. . . . A most welcome addition to the growing body of literature about the military service of African Americans during the Civil War.” — The Journal of America’s Military Past

“The best study of an African American unit during the Civil War. . . . Provides a new and much fuller understanding of how African American soldiers experienced the Civil War.” — Civil War History

“Outstanding. . . . Provides an invaluable window on the black experience in the Civil War era.” — Journal of Southern History

“The most thoughtful and thorough regimental history of the U.S. colored Troops yet to appear. . . . Points the way toward state and regional studies as a fruitful approach to the history of black military participation in the Civil War.” — North Carolina Historical Review

“Informative, well-written, and has enriched the historical literature on African American men in the ranks of the Union army.” — Journal of Military History

“An admirable addition to our knowledge of a cross-section of black regiments.” — America’s Civil War

“A richly detailed account. . . . Skillfully combines military and social history.” — The Register of the Kentucky Historical Society

From the Publisher