Observations of an Illinois Boy in Battle, Camp and Prisons—1861 to 1865

Eby, Henry Harrison, 1841-1932Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 3.6

Word count: 288K words
Chapters: 29

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.Observations of an Illinois Boy in Battle, Camp and Prisons—1861 to 1865 by EbyAuthor: Eby, Henry Harrison, 1841-1932,Language: English, Class: E456: History: America: Civil War period (1861-1865), Release Date: Dec 13, 2018

Editor's review

This is a firsthand memoir of the American Civil War, in which the author, as a young Illinois soldier, records what he saw and experienced in battle, camp, and prisoner-of-war camps between 1861 and 1865. Its value lies not in grand military history but in everyday details seen from an ordinary soldier's perspective: marching, encampment, supply, wounds and illness, capture, and prison life, allowing readers to feel the concrete impact of war on individual lives. The prose is plain and direct, carrying the tone of its era, and it is suitable as a supplement of primary-source reading for the history of the American Civil War, as well as for readers interested in nineteenth-century American society and military life. There is no need to read for narrative continuity; readers may select chapters by topic of interest, and understanding will be smoother if paired with a Civil War timeline or map. As a public-domain e-book, it is easy to obtain and well suited to thematic reading or excerpting historical sources.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Enthusiasts of American Civil War history who want firsthand material from an ordinary soldier's perspective
Readers of military history interested in details of nineteenth-century camp life, marching, and prisoners of war
Beginners in historical writing or research who need firsthand accounts for reference
Readers of English public-domain books who prefer documentary memoirs and diary-style narratives

Not a good fit for

Readers seeking systematic analysis of Civil War campaigns or grand strategic interpretation
Readers who prefer strong plot, literary narrative, or fast-paced stories
Beginners impatient with nineteenth-century English expression and spelling conventions

Reading tips

Read the table of contents first, choose chapters by the three themes of battle, camp, and prisoner-of-war camp, and do not feel obliged to read from beginning to end.
While reading, consult an American Civil War timeline and note how the author's experiences correspond to major battles.
Jot down unfamiliar place names or military terms as you go, and look them up after finishing a chapter so as not to interrupt the rhythm.
If using the book for writing or research, excerpt specific details of daily life as supplementary material to grand historical narratives.

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.

FAQ

Is this book suitable as an introductory reader for American Civil War history?

Not very suitable as the only introductory book. It is a firsthand memoir that offers an individual perspective and details of daily life, but it lacks systematic campaign overview and background explanation. It is advisable to read a general history first to establish a framework, then use this book to supplement soldiers' everyday experience.

How difficult is the original English to read?

On the whole it is plain documentary narrative with uncomplicated sentences, but it carries nineteenth-century English spelling, punctuation, and military usage, and some passages require looking up words. Readers with intermediate English reading ability can attempt it, and it will be smoother with notes or reference works.

Does the book contain concrete descriptions of prisoner-of-war camp life?

The title explicitly includes prisoner-of-war camp experience, and the text does deal with capture and prison life, but the specific length and detail should be judged from the original text. Readers may consult the relevant chapters first to learn about the author's observations of daily life in the camps.

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

Eby, Henry Harrison, 1841-1932 Author

Henry Harrison Eby (1841–1932) was an American author of a soldier's memoir. Beyond his name and dates, public information is limited, and reliable records of his early life, education, and postwar career are currently lacking. As reflected in the single work held in this collection, Eby wrote from personal experience in Observations of an Illinois Boy in Battle, Camp and Prisons—1861 to 1865. The book records, through the eyes of an Illinois youth, what he saw and endured on battlefields, in camps, and in prisoner-of-war prisons during the American Civil War. It is a typical nineteenth-century soldier's memoir, plain and direct in narration, focusing on everyday details of marching, encampment, combat, and captivity rather than on broad military analysis. Such first-hand accounts are valuable historical sources for understanding the circumstances and mentality of ordinary soldiers during the Civil War, and they offer later researchers evidence from a common soldier's perspective.