Black Americans and Their Contributions Toward Union Victory in the American Civil War, 1861-1865 (review)

BOOK REVIEWS359 liefs in the happiness and loyalty of their slaves and to accept the fact that they did not know the black mind. For the blacks, the "ultimate significance of the Confederacy lay in its destruction" (p. 59) . That destruction did not bring revolutionary change in the day-to-day status of southern blacks, however, who though free suffered new forms of white coercion and control. Michael Barton's "Did the Confederacy Change Southern Soldiers? Some Obvious and Some Unobtrusive Measures" approaches through diaries kept by officers and enlisted men the question ofwhether thewar created a Confederate identity significantly different from that of antebellum southerners. While admittingthat Thomas's thesis is "plausible and deliciously ironic" (p. 78) , Barton reports that his research reveals continuity rather than change. Thomas B. Alexander's summary essay "The Dimensions of Continuity Across the Civil War" discusses recent scholarly literature, citing examples of continuity and of change, and points to topics historians might explore in the future. He ends with the observation that "The South Shall Rise Again was not written of Southern history; that has never fallen, and has never shown fewer signs of ever falling than it does right now" (p. 97). The essays in this collection attest to the vigor of current Confederate scholarship. They not only introduce the reader to some of thebest recent work on the Confederacy, but also suggest many areas of potential inquiry. For anyone interested in the debate over the war's impact on the southern people, this slim volume is an excellent place to begin. Gary W. Gallagher Lyndon B. Johnson Library, Austin, Texas Black Americans and Their Contributions Toward Union Victory in the American Civil War, 1861-1865. By Joe H. Mays. (Lanham, Maryland: University PressoiAmerica, 1984. Pp. xii, 176. $19.75 cloth. $9.75paper.) "American history textbooks often fail to note the contributions black Americans have made toward the development to today's society, particularly their efforts toward Union victory in the Civil War" (p. ix). Joe H. Mays, the author of Black Americans, has attempted to fill that gap by providing resource materials for students and teachers of American history survey classes. His work has chapters dealing with the contrabands , black soldiers, black sailors, espionage and intelligence gathering , and a teaching unit on black Americans in the Civil War. In addition, Mays provides a list of Civil War battles in which black troops participated, a list of black servicemen who received the Congressional Medal of Honor, and the number of black soldiers from each state. There is also an excellent bibliography which would provide a beginning point for one who wished to read further. The author did achieve his purpose of creating a resource unit on the 360CIVIL WAR HISTORY contributions of blacks to Union victory. For the uninitiated reader there is much of value; this is not the case for the Civil War historian. Most of the monograph is a synthesis of other historians' research. Only in a few instances did this reviewer discover something new. There were also numerous typographical errors and Mays tended to repeat himself in the text. (See for example pp. 41-42.) Finally, the author omitted several works which could have been cited for the reader's further study. In discussing espionage and the collection of intelligence data (p. 73), Mays might have cited R. G. Mangrum's Route Step March (1980), which has a chapter on Marsena R. Patrick and the Bureau of Military Information. In discussing the organization of schools for the freedmen (p. 78), mention should be made of W. P. Vaughn's Schools for All (1974). Lastly, in detailing reconstruction in New Orleans after 1862 (p. 93), the author should note J. G. Dawson's Army Generals and Reconstruction: Louisiana 1862-1877 (1982). Overall, this volume does have a place in the classroom. It is a good resource and starting point for a more detailed, comprehensive study of the subject. Mays has produced the basic tools for the integration of black Americans and their contributions into the teaching unit on the Civil War. Robert G. Mangrum Howard Payne University Sfovery and Race in American Popular Culture. By William L. Van Deburg . (Madison...