Father Abraham's Children

Collects anecdotes, legends, stories, and reminiscences of Civil War veterans from a wide variety of written sources and personal interviews, in paperback for the first time.

Father Abraham's Children was first published in 1961, the eve of the 100th anniversary of the Civil War. This volume is a collection of anecdotes and legends, a retelling of stories and reminiscences culled from a wide variety of written sources and from personal interviews with Civil War veterans.

Among the episodes recounted with a wealth of colorful detail are: Michigan's participation
in the Underground Railroad; the strange tale of Sarah Emma Edmonds, alias Private Franklin Thompson; the ill-fated strategy that led to the slaughter at the Crater; an odyssey of escape from Danville and from Libby Prison; the bizarre plot of the Confederates to capture a Federal sloop-of-war on Lake Erie; the Michigan Cavalry Brigade's exploits under the picturesque George Custer; the chance encounter with a Michigan soldier that brought death to the gallant Jeb Stuart; impressions and description of camp life and the ordinary routine of a soldier from the diary of Private Frank Lane; the disaster of the First Michigan at Bull Run; the story of Michigan's medical services and the origin of Harper Hospital; the Detroit Riot of 1863; and the nightmare explosion of the steamer Sultana with a death toll of over 1,200 soldiers on their way home from Confederate prisons.