Louisianians in the Western Confederacy: The Adams-Gibson Brigade in the Civil War
Stuart Salling’s book on the Adams-Gibson Brigade of Louisianians follows the brigade as it fought in the Army of Tennessee. It participated in all the battles of that army until after Nashville, when it was transferred to Mobile Bay rather than being sent to North Carolina. The brigade also served as part of Joe Johnston’s army in Mississippi during the summer of 1863. The brigade went through many reorganizations, but its main elements were banded together in August 1862. The ravages of war reduced the Louisiana regiments to the point that they had to be consolidated. Sometimes they were able to gain enough recruits to regain their individual status. Salling does a good job explaining the many confusing command and structure changes in and among with the brigade’s regiments. Salling also clearly explains the political infighting between Gen. Braxton Bragg and his generals. Brigade commander Daniel Adams was a Bragg supporter; in fact, he received his brigade command to prevent Randall Gibson, a Bragg opponent, from commanding a brigade. Adams and Gibson, though, appear to have gotten along quite nicely. After Bragg resigned his army command following the Battle of Missionary Ridge, Adams was one of many officers who successfully recommended Gibson for promotion to brigadier general. Gibson commanded the brigade in all its actions thereafter. One of the book’s strengths is the many photos with detailed captions that supplement the text. For example, in a battle chapter there are a few photos of men who were killed or wounded or distinguished themselves in some other way during the battle. The photo captions sometimes provide the only information on specific individuals, especially those who were casualties. The maps are another strength of the book. Usually the first map in a battle chapter shows the entire battlefield and subsequent maps focus on the area where the Adams-Gibson Brigade fought. Many show the alignment of the regiments within the brigade. There are a few minor errors. In the Battle of Missionary Ridge chapter, the 15th Indiana is correctly credited with the capture of the 13th Louisiana’s flag. At the bottom of the page the flag is shown, but the caption incorrectly credits the 15th Illinois with the capture. In the section on the July 22 battle for Atlanta there is a minor editing error: “Baker and Stovall were deployed in the first line with Gibson and Baker in the second, Gibson behind Stovall and Jones behind Baker.” Clearly it was Gibson and Jones in the second line. In the description of the fighting around Spanish Fort near Mobile, the author says Gibson asked for “Negro troops” and was given them. This is a bit troubling as the author does not make clear if they were soldiers or laborers; the text implies they were soldiers. I am not well versed on the battles for Mobile Bay, but I think if there had been a large number of Negro soldiers in the Confederate army there that would be a major story in itself. This book is a worthy addition to any Civil War library, especially for someone who follows the war in the West. It provides enough detail about individual soldiers without going overboard like some regimental histories. And it never loses sight of the larger picture of the war. Reviewer: Nicholas Kurtz Nicholas Kurtz graduated from the University of Colorado-Denver in 2001 with a B.A. in history. He loves wandering battlefields and is an aspiring author. Although he finds all aspects of the war interesting his primary interest is the Western Theater.
|
Photographs, maps, bibliography, index, 260 pp., 2010, McFarland,