Stedman was a well-known abolitionist who was quite active in the Underground Railroad, and was president of the Western Anti-Slavery Society. He fought in many cavalry battles on the eastern front, and at one time he commanded a brigade of Union Cavalry. His service record was outstanding, and the official records of the war verify his bravery. He also served in the Ohio State Legislature. During the Civil War, the soldiers were free to write to their hometown newspapers, and in some cases their relatives and friends furnished the letters to the editors. A number of those letters appear in this work, to illustrate and fill in the narrative of the 6th Ohio's record under Stedman. Letters between the colonel and his family add warmth to the text. The typical reminiscences of Civil War veterans in their later years often had a rosy hue. The author of this work has used such material sparingly and only as needed. The accent is on what they and their contemporaries thought and expressed at or near the time they lived it. The result is a lively biography of "a man of convictions," and a well-written narrative of the military and political battles of that turbulent time. Rounding out this book are maps and illustrations, footnotes, a bibliography and a name and subject index.
Richard J. Staats
(2003), 2007, 5.5" x 8.5", paper, index, 428 pp.
ISBN: 9780788422911
101-S2291
