The Civil War Letters of Joshua K. Callaway

by Joshua K. Callaway, Judith Lee Hallock (Editor)

From the Kentucky Campaign to Tullahoma, Chickamauga to Missionary Ridge, junior officer Joshua K. Callaway took part in some of the most critical campaigns of the Civil War. His twice-weekly letters home, written between April 1862 and November 1863, chronicle his gradual change from an ardent Confederate soldier to a weary veteran who longs to be at home.

Callaway was a schoolteacher, husband, and father of two when he enlisted in the 28th Alabama Infantry Regiment at the age of twenty-seven. Serving with the Army of the Tennessee, he campaigned in Mississippi, Kentucky, Tennessee, and north Georgia. Along the way this perceptive observer and gifted writer wrote a continuous narrative detailing the activities, concerns, hopes, fears, discomforts, and pleasures of a Confederate soldier in the field.

Whether writing about combat, illness, encampments, or homesickness, Callaway makes even the everyday aspects of soldiering interesting. This large collection, seventy-four letters in all, is a valuable historical reference that provides new insights into life behind the front lines of the Civil War.

Genres: Civil War, History

248 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 1997

Reviews

[Kara Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible. This book isn’t just for history students. It is fascinating and emotional. Joshua’s letters are compiled for a short and easy read. He talks about camp, marches, a few battles, his health, lack of necessities, newfound appreciation for life, hope for physical and spiritual salvation, and love for his family- especially his wife, Dulcinea. The emotion in the letters certainly pulls at the heartstrings. I couldn’t stop reading once I started. As I read, I became Joshua’s Dulcinea, sharing her worries and anxiety over my husband’s military service. I absolutely bawled when I “received” the letter of his death.

[kayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection of letters from the civil war provides an intimate look at the perspective of the confederacy. It's important to know how and why people think the way that they do, and it's equally important to learn from history so as not to make the same mistake twice. There are many parallels that can be drawn to our current political and social climate. Religion plays a major role throughout the letters that make up this book, and in present day people rely on their religious views to justify hateful actions.

[Mark Joubert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stirring glimpse into the realities of war.

[Douglas · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you are remotely interested in the Civil War, you will find this book an absolute treasure. This is the collection of personal letters written by a Southern junior officer to his wife during the years April 1862 - November 1863.

[Art · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of letters from a Alabama officer in the Western theater. Written to his wife, this former school teacher turned soldier puts his feelings to pen in a way you can feel.