ABOUT THE BOOK

During the fateful winter of 1865, General William T. Sherman led an army of over sixty thousand troops on a destructive march through the Palmetto State. Hundreds of the affected residents recorded their harrowing experiences in letters, diaries, memoirs and newspaper accounts, much of which is corroborated by the testimony of Sherman’s own officers and soldiers. Join South Carolina historian and archivist Karen Stokes as she brings together these stories from around the state. Stokes delves deep, including graphic accounts by civilians who were also affected by two lesser-known military operations that followed Sherman’s raid in the spring of 1865–Potter’s Raid, an expedition led by Union General E. E. Potter, and the raids conducted by Union troops pursuing Confederate president Jefferson Davis through the state.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Karen Stokes, an archivist at the South Carolina Historical Society who has worked with historical documents for nearly 20 years in beautiful Charleston, SC, has a passionate interest in the Confederate period of South Carolina history. Her non-fiction books open a window into the hearts and minds of men and women of that time through their letters, diaries, and other writings, in their own words.