In this Book

  • The Untried Life: The Twenty-Ninth Ohio Volunteer Infantry in the Civil War
  • Book
  • James T. Fritsch
  • 2012
  • Published by: Ohio University Press
summary
Told in unflinching detail, this is the story of the Twenty-Ninth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, also known as the Giddings Regiment or the Abolition Regiment, after its founder, radical abolitionist Congressman J. R. Giddings. The men who enlisted in the Twenty- Ninth OVI were, according to its lore, handpicked to ensure each was as pure in his antislavery beliefs as its founder. Whether these soldiers would fight harder than other soldiers, and whether the people of their hometowns would remain devoted to the ideals of the regiment, were questions that could only be tested by the experiment of war.

The Untried Life
is the story of these men from their very first regimental formation in a county fairground to the devastation of Gettysburg and the march to Atlanta and back again, enduring disease and Confederate prisons. It brings to vivid life the comradeship and loneliness that pervaded their days on the march. Dozens of unforgettable characters emerge, animated by their own letters and diaries: Corporal Nathan Parmenter, whose modest upbringing belies the eloquence of his writings; Colonel Lewis Buckley, one of the Twenty-Ninth’s most charismatic officers; and Chaplain Lyman Ames, whose care of the sick and wounded challenged his spiritual beliefs.

The Untried Life
shows how the common soldier lived­—his entertainments, methods of cooking, medical treatment, and struggle to maintain family connections­—and separates the facts from the mythology created in the decades after the war.

Table of Contents

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  1. Cover
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  1. Title Page, Copyright, Dedication
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  1. Contents
  2. pp. vii-viii
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  1. Preface
  2. pp. ix-xii
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  1. Acknowledgments
  2. pp. xiii-xiv
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  1. Prologue
  2. pp. 1-8
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  1. Part I: “Madly from Their Spheres": The Long Road into Battle
  1. 1. “We Are All War”: April–July 1861
  2. pp. 11-22
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  1. 2. Founders’ Club: July–September 1861
  2. pp. 23-28
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  1. 3. Camp Giddings: Early Promise, Fall 1861
  2. pp. 29-38
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  1. 4. Recruiting Wars: Fall 1861
  2. pp. 39-51
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  1. 5. Camp Giddings: Season of Complaint, Late Fall 1861
  2. pp. 52-60
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  1. 6. “The Emblem of Universal Freedom”: Late Fall 1861
  2. pp. 61-69
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  1. 7. “At the Threshold of an Untried Life”: Camp Chase, Columbus, December 1861–January 1862
  2. pp. 70-80
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  1. Part II: With the Eastern Armies
  1. 8. A Good “Breaking-In”: Winter on the Upper Potomac, 1862
  2. pp. 83-101
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  1. 9. The Ball Opens: The Battle of Kernstown, March 23, 1862
  2. pp. 102-116
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  1. 10. Chasing Jackson: March–June 1862
  2. pp. 117-128
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  1. 11. “Up the River and Back of the Mountains”: The Battle of Port Republic, June 9, 1862
  2. pp. 129-141
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  1. 12. “Rest Now, Rest”: Alexandria, Virginia, June–July 1862
  2. pp. 142-155
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  1. 13. “South of Anywhere”: The Battle of Cedar Mountain, Virginia, August 9, 1862
  2. pp. 156-165
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  1. 14. “In the Hands of Devils”: Prison Stories, 1862
  2. pp. 166-174
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  1. 15. Narrow Escapes: The Second Bull Run Campaign, August 1862
  2. pp. 175-184
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  1. 16. Restoration: Frederick, Maryland, Fall 1862
  2. pp. 185-200
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  1. 17. Our Valley Forge: Dumfries, Virginia, Winter 1863
  2. pp. 201-215
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  1. 18. Saving the Life of the Army: The Battle of Chancellorsville, May 1–3, 1863
  2. pp. 216-235
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  1. 19. Aquia Creek Interlude: May–June 1863
  2. pp. 236-247
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  1. 20. Saving the Life of the Nation: The Gettysburg Campaign, June–July 1863
  2. pp. 248-264
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  1. 21. Journeying Forth: Summer–Fall 1863
  2. pp. 265-276
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  1. Part III: With the Western Armies
  1. 22. The Battles around Chattanooga: Fall 1863
  2. pp. 279-291
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  1. 23. Home and Back Again: Bridgeport, Alabama, Winter 1864
  2. pp. 292-303
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  1. 24. “They Called It a Demonstration”: The Fight for Dug Gap, May 8, 1864
  2. pp. 304-317
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  1. 25. Continuous Battle: The Approach to Atlanta, May–August 1864
  2. pp. 318-338
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  1. 26. Closing on the Prize: The Fall and Occupation of Atlanta, July–November 1864
  2. pp. 339-352
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  1. 27. Tearing It Up: The March to the Sea, the Fall of Savannah, and the Carolinas Campaign, November 1864–April 1865
  2. pp. 353-367
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  1. 28. The Long Way Home: May–July 1865
  2. pp. 368-380
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  1. Images
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  1. Notes
  2. pp. 381-466
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  1. Bibliography
  2. pp. 467-476
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  1. Twenty-Ninth Ohio Volunteer Infantry Regiment Index
  2. pp. 477-486
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  1. General Index
  2. pp. 487-501
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