History of the Forty-second Regiment Infantry, Massachusetts Volunteers, 1862

Bosson, Charles P.Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 2.9
Word count
824K words
Chapters
83

Tags

English Originals World HistoryMilitary Military StrategyHeroismPatriotismHistorical SourcesDocumentary Narrative

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.History of the Forty-second regiment infantry, Massachusetts volunteers, 1862,Author: Bosson, Charles P. (Charles Palfray),Language: English, Class: E456: History: America: Civil War period (1861-1865), Release Date: May 16, 2016

Editor's review

This is a historical record of the Forty-second Regiment Infantry, Massachusetts Volunteers, during the American Civil War, written by Charles P. Bosson, and is a typical regimental combat history. Such works usually chronicle the unit's formation, marches, battles, and personnel changes in chronological order, offering primary-source value for the study of Civil War military history, local history, and family genealogy. Readers can see the experiences of ordinary soldiers within specific battle contexts rather than a macro-strategic narrative. As a public-domain e-book, it is easy to search and cite, making it suitable as research support material rather than a book to read straight through. It is advisable to read alongside an overall Civil War timeline and maps, and to note that the book may interweave rosters, orders, and personal accounts. Because it was written in an earlier era, its style and narrative perspective bear the marks of its time and should be read with a critical eye toward historical sources.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Not a good fit for

Reading tips

  1. First consult a Civil War timeline and background on Massachusetts's participation, then move into specific chapters.
  2. Read march and battle passages alongside maps, marking place names and unit designations.
  3. Use rosters and orders in the book as search leads, jumping between topics as needed.
  4. Keep reading notes on names, dates, and events for later cross-checking against historical sources.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

Contents

  1. 1
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  62. 62
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FAQ

Is this book suitable as an introductory reader for Civil War history? Not really. It is a regimental combat history focused on the Forty-second Infantry's experience, lacking macro-strategic background and overall narrative. Beginners should first read a comprehensive Civil War history, then use this book as a case supplement.
Does the book contain complete personnel rosters? Regimental combat histories usually include officer and soldier rosters, casualty and transfer records, but the exact completeness depends on the actual edition. It is best used as a search lead rather than the sole source.
What background is needed to read the original English edition? Intermediate or higher English reading ability is needed, along with familiarity with nineteenth-century military terminology and place names. A dictionary and a table of military terms will help; consult reference materials when encountering abbreviations and unit designations.

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

Bosson, Charles P. Author

Charles P. Bosson is an author about whom relatively little is publicly known; his nationality, dates of birth and death, and educational background are not clearly documented. What can be confirmed is his association with the history of the Forty-second Regiment Infantry, Massachusetts Volunteers, represented in the collection by a single work, History of the Forty-second Regiment Infantry, Massachusetts Volunteers, 1862. Judging from its title and subject, the book is a regimental history of the American Civil War, typically compiled from military records, combat reports, and participants' recollections. Such works are documentary and commemorative in character, serving the descendants of veterans and local historians. They usually follow a chronological account of marches, camp life, and battles, and often include rosters of officers and men, making them valuable sources for the study of local military history and Union Army units. Given the limited material, Bosson's other writings and personal career await further verification.