The Civil War Diary of Sarah Morgan

by Charles East (Editor)

Morgan, Sarah, Dawson, Sarah Morgan

Genres: History, Civil War, Nonfiction, Biography Memoir, Biography, American History, War

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1913

Reviews

[Rachel]

Considering that it’s a diary, not to mention a diary by an upper-middle-class Southern woman, I had mixed hopes regarding the book. I found it, for the most part, well-written, with several interesting anecdotes, and occasional mention of how specific battles affected the Morgan family’s life.

That said, Sarah herself seemed to be a particularly self-absorbed, whiny, egotistical teenager, despite being 19 when she began her diaries. She constantly describes herself as unattractive and unpleasant, while in the next sentence brags about the number of men who call on her- married men, in many cases. She accuses several of the wives of these married men as being mentally unstable due to their jealousy at the attention paid to Sarah by their husbands… while she then goes on to proclaim that no one could ever take her flirting seriously- and states that she will continue flirting. Throughout the course of the book she knowingly leads on several young men, only to write about her shock when they announce their intentions.

At one point during the book, Sarah suffered what appears to be a bruised or cracked tailbone- which is painful (I couldn’t sit for a week after I bruised mine), but not life-threatening- and spends the next few months bemoaning her state, claiming she will die (this, after she has already frequently wailed over how she would be the least missed of all her siblings, were she to die) from her terrible injury. The medical treatments she is subjected to surely only prolonged her invalid state- bleeding and blistering, administration of strychnine, forced bed rest when she actually would have been better off walking around, rather than losing muscle mass for months… If I could have been spoiled so every time I so much as bruised myself, I would have turned into the biggest brat that ever was.

In the introduction, Sarah is described as a feminist- I can’t think where they would have gotten this impression! She does repeatedly state that she wishes she could be a man, so as to help fight the war (and because men are naturally smarter), and that she does not intend to marry unless she can find a man who is her intellectual better (of which she believes there are none besides her brothers and the aforementioned married men), but those statements, no matter how vehement, do not a feminist make. I should think that denigrating one’s own sex would actually make one an anti-feminist…

What irritated me the most was her slavish devotion to class circles. While glorifying the noble Confederate army, she still considers it the greatest of impertinence when one of the common soldiers so much as doffs his cap or bows to her. She refuses to associate with those she considers “beneath” her, which is nearly everyone- her father was a judge, and thus she believes herself a cut above the rest. At one point, an officer with whom she had previously been friendly revealed himself as the son of Baton Rouge’s brewer, at which point she cut him from her society- and reasoned that the cut was acceptable because he should have known better than to aspire to her acquaintance. Sarah also expresses her surprise and horror at the gossip that surrounds her family- gossip that is based on their desire to associate as little as possible with the lower classes.

The little details regarding daily life in the Confederate South were fascinating, and Sarah’s lack of political discussion was refreshing- she knew that her knowledge of the political situation was lacking, and thus only maintained opinions on those things with which she was familiar- very rare, no matter the time period.

I am glad to have read it, but Sarah is exactly the kind of person who would drive me mad if I knew her… transparently self-serving, but with a firm belief that everything she does is for the benefit of others.

She did have quite a gift for eloquence, though.

[Pat]

Historically accurate but tedious and shallow , perhaps not the fault of the narrator who was, unfortunately , only 19 when she started her diary , absence of the insight, life experience and maturity that comes with age.What struck me most about this diary, written largely in 1862 and 1863, from Sarah's vantage point as the cossetted daughter of a privileged citizen of Baton Rouge, is how limited the choices and roles for women were, especially Southern women, during the Confederacy.Sarah is little more than a cheerleader(A "Secesh woman") for "our brave boys in gray", has little close contact with the real fighting(with the exception of the initial struggle for Baton Rouge and its occupation by the Union forces, the best part of the diary), and poor information on the general progress and consequences of the war.Most of the diary is occupied with the mind-numbing social life of a young belle and the petty rifts,rivalrys and psuedo-dramas that informed that sheltered life. Sarah clearly had a sharp mind and a talent for writing.She frequently bemoans her lack of education and the absence of opportunities for her to do something significant: "Oh that I were a man" and could fight in the war, carry some of the burden, have duties of consequence etc etc. She know that her only validation will come from whom she marries and she vows(vainly as we know from history) to remain a spinster rather than pledge her troth to a man she can't respect. If there were more introspection of that nature and more reflection upon the changes in her world necessitated by the war, the journal would sparkle. Sadly, there were far too many riding parties,evening of singing and "gentleman callers" to sustain my interest.This was a slog-your-way-to-the-end-and-long-for Scarlett-O'Hara book for me.

[Julie]

Sarah Morgan was a young woman when the Civil War broke out. This is her actual diary from Jan. of 1862 to June 1865. She details her sentiments about the politics of the era, her hatred of Yankees and loyalty to the Confederacy. She relates her sadness at the loss of family members to the war and other means. She and her mother and other family members flee their home due to the war. She is from Louisiana and is a well educated, well bred young woman. If you like Civil War history and would like to hear it from her perspective, you will enjoy this book. I did get distracted during parts of it but overall, it was a great book to help you understand the mindset and behavior of the Southern woman during the late 1800's.

[Karyl]

Sarah Morgan, at the tender age of 19, began her diary nine months after the start of the Civil War. Living in Baton Rouge, she was near the heart of the conflict throughout much of the war and witnessed first-hand the effects of several battles. Her diary gives the modern reader a vivid account of many of the privations suffered by the Confederates, though her family's wealth seems to have insulated her from the worst of the food shortages that many poorer people suffered from. Can you imagine wearing ill-fitting shoes and walking for miles, simply because shoes have been impossible to find due to the war? But that's exactly what Sarah Morgan did on her flight from Baton Rouge. The book is a fascinating account of what the southerners experienced during the American Civil War and their personal devastation over being forced to remain part of the Union, though one also gets a good sense of Miss Morgan growing and maturing as a woman in her personal life.

This is a very fascinating read, as Miss Morgan wrote in great detail about her life as a staunch supporter of the Confederacy. It was even more fascinating when I realized that she was the aunt to Gloria Vanderbilt's grandfather. I came away from this book with more sympathy towards the Confederates than I had had previously.

[Teri Reck]

Phew, I hate to say this about any book, but I have finally finished! This was a hard book to get through because of its length, but I think that it was an important book to finish. It gives an fascinating view of the Civil War by a young Southern woman--a resident of Baton Rouge, whose home is destroyed when overtaken by the Union soldiers. One of the reasons that I found it hard to get through quickly was the enormity of the things that she faced as she and the other women left behind in Baton Rouge abandoned their homes to escape bombardment and invasion. And then the next thing you know, I was plowing through pages and pages of the tedium of a young woman's adolescent self loathing and her descriptions of all of her suitors and how she couldn't be bothered with them. Then returning to the struggles of being occupied during a war, and how she and her family members managed to cope. There is also quite a bit of her heartbreak for the loss of her favorite brother in a duel, her father to illness, and then more brothers lost in the war. This book is chewy, and there is much to ruminate about as it is read. But in some ways, it is universal---there were some occasions on which it was reminiscent of Anne Frank's diary of her wartime experiences. Worth reading, but it may take a bit to get through it.

[Cassie Young]

I started this book a week ago, and I'm almost finished reading it's 500+ pages. I have never found a primary source document to be so enthralling. Quotes like, "Oh! For a slice of bread! but if I were to choose between Wheat bread in the Union, and cornbread in the confederacy, I would say Sawdust and Independence forever!" Makes you want to stand up and sing "Dixie". : )

[Laura Edwards]

A good accounting of what the people in Louisiana went through during the Civil War and the difficulties of having people you love on both sides of the conflict. Sarah acted fairly and with respect towards her siblings, no matter differing personal beliefs.

I think identifying with Sarah was one of the main reasons I liked this book. Like Sarah, I'm only too happy to be left alone with my books, writings and thoughts. So too, I grow nervous at the idea of mingling in company and dread large gatherings and parties. A humorous touch was added in the way she seemed to be, for lack of a better term, "a loser magnet". The following passage sums up her unfortunate meetings with gentleman she'd rather not have encountered. "As I seem to possess irresistible attractions for every fool, the biggest one in the room fastened himself to me" (page 538), a circumstance which happens with great frequency throughout the book.

A nice peek at a budding feminist of the time. Sarah was a refreshing change from the conformity of most other women of the time without losing her sense of propriety. Intelligent, witty and unwilling to yield to the whims of any man without good reason. No wonder so many men fell in love with her (much to her chagrin and amazement) without her even trying to curry their favor. A beautiful wordsmith who can inspire longing and patriotic fervor along with a humorous touch which found me laughing out loud at intervals. A true treasure even if she repeatedly dismisses her writing as unworthy foolishness. I also appreciated the introduction which gives a glimpse of Sarah's later years, so her story doesn't end abruptly at twenty-three years of age.

When Sarah writes about the death of her two brothers in early 1864, my grief was palpable and I was moved to tears. One of the saddest things I have ever read in my life. Her sorrow cuts like a blade! I think the huge lapse in diary entries in 1864 (after her brothers' deaths) speaks more eloquently than any words regarding the effects of her grief. Thereafter, her writing takes on a more subdued tone, too, and you can sense a change in her. A spark seems to have died with her brothers.

The only reason I took off one star is because she definitely acts the snob at times without even realizing, despite her sincere piousness. I do, however, have great admiration for the way she stoically endured a crippling back injury for many months. As the book ended, I felt as if I was parting from an old friend.

An interesting side note. Sarah Morgan is the great-great aunt of Gloria Vanderbilt.

[Tessa]

It is a lie to say I read the whole book. I read the first 2 or 3 chapters. At that point, I went and read some reviews. Most of what I read echoed exactly how I felt about the book. First of all, it's basically 19th century female whining at its best. It was annoying enough that I couldn't finish the book. I'm not making this accusation lightly; I have an MA in History, so reading first person historical accounts, diaries, etc. is something I've done a lot of and am used to doing. This one just takes the cake, though. I found little redeeming qualities in it. Read something by Austin or Bronte instead if you want CONSTRUCTIVE and WELL WRITTEN 19th century female "catty" writing. Or find something by another woman during the time period entirely.

Secondly, I was hoping that between her whining there would be more substance about what was going on war/society wise. I understand that since this is a diary (often diarists write about their personal lives...not the world) that there won't be a truck load of information, but there was so little that many times if dates weren't provided, you could read and read and have no idea what year any of it was taking place. I felt like I was hardly getting any information about what life was like.

[Jessica Jewett]

One of my favorite Civil War books. It has an unexpected glimpse into life as a temporary paraplegic in the 1800s as well. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

[Jasmine (Lady Bookmont Reads)]

It was really neat to read about the live of Sarah Morgan from her perspective. I learned things from the Civil War that I hadn't heard of before. It did take me a while to get through this, but considering the length, it shouldn't be surprising, and it did seem to drag in a few places, but I am very glad that I stuck with this book and read it till the end!

[Chana]

Sarah Morgan was a young woman,almost 20 years old, from a high ranking family in Baton Rouge LA. She is very intelligent, a gifted writer, extremely attached to her family, and very much not an adult yet. Her feelings and behavior are immature, as well they might be at 19 and 20. She is however, as I said, really smart. She thinks rings around many of the people around her and can't stop herself from being unkind in a charming Southern way. She finds her own witty sarcasm amusing, and she often puts people down for the fun of it. She seems to find most people boring and has a problem with hating young men who show an interest in her. She thinks her father and brothers and sisters are exalted people and has a very strong sense of her entitled privilege. Her feelings about the lower classes, if she ever has to think about them, is dismissive at best and often disgusted. She views slaves like simple children who should be kindly but strictly disciplined. I don't think it occurs to her at all that they have brains that might be the equivalent of hers. So even though this is called "A Civil War Diary" it often has nothing to do with war and everything to do with being a young girl's diary.
The books starts out with several sad events; the devastating death of her favorite older brother in a duel, and then a few months later the death of her beloved father. These were obviously terrible events for her family, but to make everything worse the Civil War had started and pretty soon Baton Rouge was being shelled and her family had to flee their home. In the beginning Sarah is not a rabid anti-Unionist, she would like the Union to make the necessary concessions to the South and if possible for the country to be re-united. As the war progresses and the deaths and privation mount she becomes a person who hates Yankees with a passion. To make things more complicated, of her 4 remaining brothers 3 are fighting for the Confederacy and one is on the side of the Union. Family is everything for Sarah though, she continues to love and think highly of her Union brother. The family is admirable in this way even though Sarah seems to have an unbelievable superiority complex (kind of mixed with a hatred of herself that could be artful but I think has a real basis). Her beau relationships are sad I think. She rejects the possible (she intends to never marry or have children although she does eventually) and sees nothing wrong with an older married man who comes repeatedly to their house for parties and evenings and outings who is obviously very infatuated with her. Well, like I said, she was young. Re-reading some pages I am again struck with how brilliant she is. It is too long to print here but I recommend reading her description of of what she wants in a husband on pages 60,61,62 and 63.
Everything that she wrote about the Civil War was, like war itself I guess, alternately boring and horrific and terribly, terribly sad.

[Marisa]

People are so harsh to poor Sarah in their reviews. I think that whenever people read real life people's diaries, we tend to expect a very succinct novel-esque feel to it kind of like Anne Frank's diary does. That being said, the most popular version of Anne Frank's diary is a heavily edited version, both from underneath her own hand as well as her father's. So for diaries like Sarah Morgan's, they're a bit more candid and not as carefully wrapped up in a bow. (Not a criticism, by the way.)

For the most part, everyone leaving negative comments about Sarah seems to forget that she was a 19 year old girl who really had 0 experience in the world and was as sheltered and shallow as someone of that time period and background would expect. It's natural even now for 19 year olds to worry about their appearances or what they're going to say to young men. If anything, she's a victim of her circumstances, which is really what anyone back then who wasn't a straight white man was. Sarah did the best that she could, and I think it's safe to say that she matured the older she got and the more she was exposed to.

Now onto a historic level: this collection is really an invaluable look into the minds of young southern women at that time. And yes, that might be an overdone demographic of primary sources to uncover, but no one woman's experience was the same. Mary Chestnut's diary is completely different from Sarah's, and there are certainly more women from that time period whose diaries differ greatly from both Mary's and Sarah's.

For anyone who loves history, especially American civil war history, I would definitely recommend Sarah's diaries!

[Rita]

I read this several years ago. Interesting diary of a somewhat spoiled and immature young woman during the civil war in Louisiana. She was 19 when the diary starts and it details the activities of her family during the war. Sarah, her sister and widowed mother leave Baton Rouge when it is occupied by the Union and go live with another family on a plantation. she is injured and spent what i think was way too much time in bed (months) for a broken or cracked tailbone. Much of the book relates visits and flirting with young Confederate officers. I have the image of Scarlet O'Hara sitting on the lawn at the picnic, surrounded by young men, all wanting to bring her a dessert or whatever it was.
One small section remains in my memory, when she writes about slavery and how the slaves are happy to be taken care of, or something to that effect. I got the impression she believed she was being generous and magnanimous in her comments. It made me believe she was sheltered and very naive about the reality of the world around her,

[Geoff Sebesta]

An excellent book by an interesting person. Absolutely an essential perspective on the Civil War. It's difficult to critique a diary without sounding like one is critiquing a person, but there are a few things:

1. This is one of the best day-by-day looks at the Civil War I've seen yet. It really gets across the chronology and what it was like to see it unfold, to not know how it ends.
2. Morgan must have been an exceptionally perceptive and compassionate person by the standards of her day.
3. Her lack of sympathy for the slaves is still shocking.
4. Nevertheless, one really feels for her at the end. Her family survived adroitly for the first couple years of the war, but at the end, they suffered terribly. The Civil War didn't work out for anybody.

In conclusion, this is an excellent resource and also the Civil War was super unpleasant. I wish she had written more. If someone is looking for a good view of the Civil War from the point of view of the people who lived it, this is an excellent place to start.

[Hilary]

I had high hopes for this book and started out with an open mind. If there was any bias, it was in favor of Sarah's work- not the opposite. I a relatively high reading ability, and comprehension, as well as being a fairly quick reader (when I set my mind to it); but as someone else said it was "tedious and shallow". I couldn't finish it. Her words didn't paint clear or interesting pictures. It was stuffy and slightly impersonal even for the time period. I was originally excited that i was reading a completely unedited version- but there is a reason why diaries get edited and this one might be better with some lengthy passages cut out. I'd much rather read someone else's professional analysis of this particular diary than the diary itself. I am sad to say that because I love autobiographies and nonfiction, and I love historical settings. I even enjoyed the introduction more, which talked about the woman Sarah was.

[Bobbie Monroe Boyne]

It was a diary of every day life in the 1860s during the Civil War, so that makes it interesting. I live in Baton Rouge, where Sarah Morgan lived, and it’s very interesting to read about certain parts of the city where I can go today.

I know just where the cemetery is where her father is buried. And when she writes about walking to the cemetery to visit his grave, I know where she is and how far it is from her home.


There’s a small plaque on a parking garage in downtown Baton Rouge that states that it was the site where her Home was.

However, she is 19 years old, and inmature, and spends a lot of time just talking about herself and how she is flirting with the soldiers, some married.

It was a very long book.

[Deborah]

I just couldn't slog through it and finally gave up. It is wonderful that this woman's diaries survived to tell us a story of life during the Civil War, but there is just too much minutiae to hold the reader's interest all the way through so many pages. An edited or abridged version might be more readable.

[Jocelyn Green]

Wonderful account.

[Ora]

Good for research.

[Elizabeth]

Sarah Morgan: The Civil War Diary Of A Southern Woman (Paperback)
by Sarah Morgan Dawson

[E.]

I feel like I’ve been through the civil war these last 2 weeks as I plow through Sarah Morgan’s 2 inch thick diary. Just today I found this photo of her online! Now I know what she looks like. What a time in history the civil war was, especially hard on the southern women.

Miss Morgan didn’t take kindly to the ladies around her spitting at the Yankee soldiers and officers as they walked by in Baton Rouge which was her home town. She had some decency and wasn’t going to stoop to that. where I got the photo from

It seems as though I met her through her diary entries. When her dad died, it was so touching as she loved him very much and her brother died- her favorite brother. She was so close to her sister too. There were 6 books in all she wrote which are compiled in one big book that you can get from the library and of course there is Amazon to go to for a dozen reviews .

I’ll do a few excerpts from her book in the next few days.

Here’s 2 short ones:

August 15th,

I am in despair, Miss Jones who has just made her escape from town, brings a most dreadful account. She, with seventy five others, took refuge at Dr Enders, more than a mile and a half below town, at Hall’s. It was there we sent the two trunks containing father’s papers and our clothing and silver. Hearing that guerillas had been there, the Yankees went down, shelled the house in the night, turning all those women and children out, who barely escaped with their clothing and let the soldiers loose on it. They destroyed everything they could lay their hands on…. they even stole Miss Jones’ braid! she got here with nothing but the clothes she wore.


August 17,

Thursday we heard from a lady just from town, that our house was standing the day before, which somewhat consoled us for the loss of our silver and clothing…

[Hanna]

This was by no means a breeze to get through, but it went (at times) much faster than other published diaries, because Sarah had such a narrators' style. Everyone has a style of diary-writing, and Sarah's style makes for a much more interesting and evocative story.

She presented her struggles incredibly clearly, as well. No, she didn't dwell 24/7 on the hardships of war and the food they scraped together, or the day-to-day absences of her fighting brothers. And what about their refugee status? Sure, they had to flee their home, and they experienced stressful times, unprotected by a man of the family. But they always had a place to go, and it was sometimes difficult to completely understand the straits in which they found themselves.

No, her most pressing, recurring trials came in the form of awkward situations with adoring men. Really, some things endure through the centuries. I enjoyed reading Sarah's perspective on the nature of young love, because it's the opposite of an head-in-the-clouds attitude. It was fascinating to me to try to discern reality while having only her observations. I imagine many of the young men preferred Sarah over her "perfect"' sister Miriam than she realized. It came across as a humble attitude which Sarah possessed, which was quite endearing.

Speaking of godly qualities, as the diary books went on, I was able to perceive a true relationship with God that Sarah had. Again, sometimes it's hard to discern the Christian culture, which all the high-society families adopt, from a true understanding of the gospel. And, in certain reflections on the topic of Spirits (read: demons), Sarah showed a lack of biblical wisdom. But the latter struggles Sarah faced in 1864 and 1865, both inner and outer, allowed her to respond beautifully with a godly attitude.

Oh --! And John Halsey! The object of much laughter.

[Michaela]

Pretty good, although there wasn't as much in Sarah's character development as the back portrays it. Still an interesting read, although parts of it were filled with more war detail than others. They never witnessed any battles, other than when Baton Rouge, her hometown, was invaded, which wasn't really a battle because every single man was on the border.

There were several aspects to the Confederacy that never really come up in a text book, and the biggest one was the oppression. While starving out the other side is a normal war tactic, it doesn't seem like fair play when the civilians take the brunt it. After having their city attacked by the Union when the city was only filled with women and children, and then being starved, wouldn't that only fuel you to not surrender?

Kind of a long read, but there were lots of good nuggets of truth mixed in with a lot of 19th century drama.

[Graceann]

Charles East compiles Sarah Morgan's diaries of living in Civil War New Orleans and gives us an exhaustive glimpse into the life of a young Southern woman at a time of national upheaval. Not everything that Sarah writes is particularly interesting - it is, after all, a day-to-day account of anyone's life is bound to have some dull spots. However, her escape from New Orleans is thrilling and the detail is impressive.

[Shirley Brown]

I found this to be an interesting book. There is not so much history of the Civil War as related to Louisianna, but since Sarah was just a young woman at the time, she tells mostly of her social life, her feelings and her love for her family. She appears to have been a very unique woman for her time.

[Mary Montgomery]

I didn't get to finish it so this is cheating, but it was a really absorbing book. It's humongous long (626 pages but that includes the index) and of course it's not fiction and meant to move quickly, but I have to say Ms. Morgan is very compelling. I'd like to pick it up again when I have more time. It's due at the library and I can't renew it anymore.

[Teresa]

I enjoyed the look inside the day to day live of a young woman living in the midst of Civil War. One thing I observed was though the Yankees were occupying New Orleans the officers Sarah encountered were very respectul and polite to a young woman. A civility no longer seen today.

[Diane Cox]

One must remember that Southern women of means were very sheltered and also that the diarist was very young, but I am amazed that this diary could ever be compared to that of Mary Chestnut. I found it tedious

[Pat Wahler]

This book is a collection of diary entries made by a young woman during the Civil War era. It was helpful for me as a writer to get a feel for this period directly from someone who lived during the time. Sarah Morgan had a few delightful observations that made me smile.

[Jenna ( Chicken Mama )]

This novel reveals what the south was like during the civil war, Morgan was a bit of a spoiled girl who lived in the time of the " Southern Bell " era. It is overall a great read. Great details into the society.