Brand of Infamy ― A Biography of John Buchanan Floyd

Historians have labeled John Buchanan Floyd a traitor and a coward for his actions during the Civil War, and this view has persisted largely unchallenged. This study reopens the case of this reform-minded Virginia governor and one-time Secretary of War to examine all aspects of Floyd's career. Pinnegar contends that partisan congressional investigations and wild newspaper claims branded Floyd as a traitor to the Union, and that the historical profession's tendency to focus solely on his connections to the Civil War era have ensured that Floyd's reputation was never leavened by the successes of his first fifty years. Pinnegar hopes to demonstrate that charges of malfeasance in office were exaggerated, while prevailing administrative routines were ignored, tactics that result in an unfair portrait of Floyd.

CHARLES PINNEGAR, a retired high school mathematics and computer science teacher, resides in Fonthill, Ontario, with his wife Ann and youngest son Chris. He is currently researching antebellum state rights.