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Battlefield by Peter Svenson
Farming a Civil War Battleground
The author recounts his experiences building a farmhouse on a 40-acre site near Harrisonburg, Virginia, which 125 years before had been the site of a Civil War battle: the 1862 Battle of Cross Keys, in which Confederate forces stopped a Union advance and provided Stonewall Jackson with an important victory in his guerrilla campaign in the Shenandoah Valley. Peter Svenson intertwines a detailed description of the battle based on field reports, dispatches, letters and other first-hand accounts with anecdotes about attempting to farm his land using traditional methods while staving off mini-mall developers.
Svenson describes the learning process of fixing up an old property, trying to grow hay on long-neglected farmland and digging a pond. He unearths spent cartridges and artillery shells, hears from neighbours who relate oft-told tales of the Confederacy's victory, pursues minute details of the battle in archives and at often contentious meetings of the local historical society, and meditates on how best to commemorate the men who fell in battle on his 40 acres. Exploring the intimate connections between landscape and history, the book offers a personal view of the Civil War and its ongoing legacy. |
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| Author(s) : Peter Svenson | Format : Paperback Book |
| ISBN-10 : 080186447X | ISBN-13 : 9780801864476 |
| RRP : £14.50 | Best available price : £ / $ |
| Prices as of : BST check live prices | |
Product Details:
Country Publication : United States
Publication Date : 07/07/2000
Publisher : Johns Hopkins University Press
Page Length : 256mm
Page Size : 229mm