Edwin Rutan has produced a labor of love in this history of the 179th New York,
a late war regiment that experienced the worst of campaigning and battle while
serving with the Ninth Corps during the Petersburg campaign. Digging deeply into
the personal records and papers of its members, Rutan's social history of the
regiment that his great-great grandfather served in pays rich dividends for those
interested in the experiences of Civil War soldiers caught up in the last grueling
year of the conflict. The electronic format also allows for more depth, more
illustrations, and a lingering look into the lives of a forgotten regiment of
New Yorkers in Virginia. If I Have Got to Go and Fight, I Am Willing is
highly recommended for all Civil War students and historians.
Earl J. HessInto the Crater: The Mine Attack at PetersburgIn the Trenches at Petersburg: Field Fortifications & Confederate Defeat Driven by a passion to uncover the story of the 179th New York Volunteer Infantry and the men that composed it, Ed Rutan has combined extensive research in nineteenth-century resources with twenty-first-century methods to produce a unique regimental history. If they could, the veterans of the 179th would no doubt be amazed to see their experiences related on screens with pixels, but they would be grateful to the author for using those tools to tell their tale comprehensively, analytically, and entertainingly. Mark H. DunkelmanBrothers One and All: Esprit de Corps in a Civil War Regiment |
Available at AMAZON.COM Paperback |