The Captain Departs: Ulysses S. Grant's Last Campaign

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The Captain Departs Ulysses S. Grant’s Last Campaign Thomas M. Pitkin Foreword by John Y. Simon AMERICAN HISTORY / BIOGRAPHY Early in 1885 Americans learned that General Ulysses S. Grant was writing his memoirs in a desperate race against time due to an incurable cancer. Newspaper readers followed the dramatic contest for six months, and the hearts of Americans were touched by the general’s last battle. In this book Thomas M. Pitkin tells the story of the last campaign of the general who was called “the great captain of the Union’s salvation.” Ultimately more than three hundred thousand sets of the twovolume Personal Memoirs of U. S. Grant were sold, and Grant’s memoirs are a model of straightforward and unassuming dramatic narrative covering a tremendous epoch in American history. As Thomas M. Pitkin shows in this memorable and inspiring book, Grant’s last year was one of both personal and literary triumph in the midst of tragedy. Thomas M. Pitkin is the author of several books including Grant the Soldier and Keepers of the Gate: A History of Ellis Island. John Y. Simon is the editor of The Papers of Ulysses S. Grant. Cover illustration: Ulysses S. Grant leaving his home in spring 1885, during a brief improvement in his health. From Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper, May 2, 1885; courtesy of General Research and Humanities Division, The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox, and Tilden Foundations. Southern Illinois University Press 1915 University Press Drive Mail Code 6806 Carbondale, IL 62901 www.siupress.com Printed in the United States of America PITKIN Th e Captain Departs: Ulysses S. Grant’s Last Campaign $17.95 USD ISBN 0-8093-2976-X ISBN 978-0-8093-2976-2 Southern Illinois University Press Pitkin_NIP_cvr_mech.indd 1 12/23/09 8:21 AM ...