In the Presence of Mine Enemies: War in the Heart of America, 1859-1863 (review)

Over a decade ago, Edward Ayers first proposed writing a comparative study of two similar communities divided by slavery and the Civil War. He soon turned to computer technology to bring order to a chaos of documentary evidence. That decision led ultimately to the award-winning Valley of the Shadow website. That site and subsequent CD-ROM quickly became favorites of students and instructors who delved into every facet of wartime Augusta County, Virginia, and Franklin County, Pennsylvania. Indeed, few teachers of the Civil War have not encountered in students' papers the diarists Nancy Emerson and Rachel Cormany, or the fierce editorialists of the Staunton Vindicator and the Valley Star. What remained lacking until now was Ayers's interpretation of his now familiar source materials. This work, the first of a projected two volumes, remedies that lacunae.

Ayers's stated goal is to tell the story of the war "from the viewpoints of everyday people who could glimpse only parts of the drama they were living" (p. xvii). On the eve of civil war, they had much in common. Slavery divided Augusta from Franklin, but comparable crops, politics, and racial attitudes aligned with proximity to create both moderation and relative sympathy for the other side. That sympathy did not lead to understanding, however, and the rhetoric surrounding the election of 1860 stirred up anger and irrationality that were hard to contain. In Ayers's words, "people voted for icons and symbols more than policies and issues" (p. 91). When the war came—and the author minces no words in placing a defense of slavery at the heart of secession—both communities temporarily united to defeat an enemy they now saw as godless hypocrites. Militarism and spread-eagle nationalism developed quickly in both places, but dissent reappeared as well. While Augusta residents worried about invasion, speculation, and deprivation, Franklin's Unionists complained about an influx of African Americans seeking freedom. Growing racism in Franklin led to fierce party infighting and Democratic resurgence. By the summer of 1863, as Confederates passed through Franklin on the way to Gettysburg, the great question was what would collapse first, the Confederate army or the Union home front.

Ironically, volunteering proved dissimilar in the two ostensibly similar counties. While all recruits tended to be poorer men than average, and the war truly a "poor man's fight," men from Augusta were much more likely to enlist, especially in the beginning. Even by mid-1863, Augusta had placed 75 percent of men of military age in uniform, as compared to only 40 percent in Franklin. The great exceptions in Franklin were African Americans; more men from Franklin enlisted in the 54th and 55th Massachusetts regiments than from any other county in the Union. Ayers follows the counties' soldiers into battle, and discusses as well military affairs at home.

Readers familiar with Ayers's previous works will recognize both his innovative style and sure hand with sources. The book should find appreciative readers among both scholars and the general public.