Eyewitness to the Civil War ─ The Complete History from Secession to Reconstruction

The men and women who endured the Civil War created a remarkable first-hand chronicle of America's most tumultuous era. Soldiers penned letters and journals, their uncensored words revealing emotions and actions born of unimaginable circumstances. Wives and mothers wrote back, attempting to boost the soldiers' morale while fighting their own battles to keep families fed and sheltered. Photographers lugged their cumbersome tools into war zones, compiling a visual record whose like the world had never seen. Soldiers and civilians carefully tucked away keepsakes of the momentous events they had witnessed.
Their efforts live on today as the raw material of history. And in the pages of this compelling reference, they summon for us the era's drama, destruction, and daily routine from a uniquely intimate perspective. Drawing from scores of precious archival documents and images, National Geographic's Eyewitness to the Civil War blends personal accounts with haunting photography and a wealth of hard-to-find information. More than 440 photographs, illustrations, journals, and artifacts - many lost from public view until now - evoke the essence of these turbulent years.
From John Brown's raid to Reconstruction, Eyewitness to the Civil War examines every significant battle and initiative through detailed maps, pictures, and the participants own words.

Neil Kagan, editor, heads Kagan & Associates Inc., a firm specializing in innovative illustrated books, and is the guiding spirit behind numerous book series including Voices of the Civil War and Our American Century. Recently he edited Great Battles of the Civil War, Great Photographs of the Civil War,and National Geographic Concise History of the World. He lives in Falls Church, Virginia.

Stephen G. Hyslop is a writer and editor of books on American and world history, including National Geographic Almanac of World History (with Patricia Daniels). He served as editor for the history series Time Frame, What Life Was Like, and American Indians. He is a contributing writer for History Channel Magazine.