General Sherman and the Georgia Belles: Tales from Women Left Behind

by Cathy J. Kaemmerlen

Cathy Kaemmerlen, a renowned storyteller and historical interpreter, provides a colorful collection of tales of exceptional Georgia women who made great sacrifices in an effort to save their families and homes. From the innocent diary of a 10-year-old girl to the words of a woman who risks everything to see her husband one last time, Kaemmerlen exposes the grit and gumption of these remarkable Southern women in inspiring and entertaining fashion.

128 pages, Paperback

First published October 18, 2006

About the author

Cathy Kaemmerlen is a professional actress, dancer, playwright, storyteller, author known for her variety of one-woman shows and characters. Developing and performing over thirty in-school and college living history and storytelling programs. Hambidge Fellow, booked through Young Audiences of Atlanta, JoannaMaddox.com she is a featured artist on the Southern Artist Profile/Southern Arts Exchange website. You can read more about her at www.tattlingtales.com"

Reviews

[Phillip Steinmetz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderfully Engaging

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this engaging book. I relished reading every story, with the author brings to life in a series of vignettes about the women left behind in Georgia during Sherman’s Atlanta campaign and March to the Sea. Many of the stories illustrate the tenacity and unbroken courage and strength of these women on the home front and their sometimes humorous responses to the dreaded Yankee invaders. Definitely recommend to anyone interested in Civil War history or just want a refreshing historical read

[Graceann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cathy J. Kaemmerlen has put together a collection of letters, diaries and other reminiscences of the women in the path of Sherman during his infamous March to the Sea in November/December 1864.

The book is concise, and follows a chronological pattern (starting in Atlanta just before the March began and ending in Savannah during the Occupation). Several diarists are included, and sprinkled throughout are anecdotes of various incidents along the route. The stories are as full of Southern pride in the Cause as you might expect, though there is more evidence of mercy and kindness than I expected to find. As ugly as things got for the Georgia that Sherman wanted to make howl, there were soldiers who protected women on their own and who retrieved stolen items of sentimental value.

I found the book overall to be a good primer on the subject, but given that I've been reading on it for many years, a fair number of the anecdotes were familiar to me so it was a little disappointing in that regard. It was nice to read them combined in a single volume, however, and it was a fast read.