The Second United States Sharpshooters in the Civil War:
In 1961 author Robert Penn Warren published The Legacy of the Civil War — a short volume in observance of the Civil War’s centennial. Amid his musings on the conflict’s impact he stated that the Civil War brought our American Republic into the era of modernity and in many ways became the “secret school” for both world wars. Fifty years later historians do little to refute that claim. Oftentimes referred to as the “first modern war,” the Civil War was marked by an era of innovation and invention. Among the many elements that helped create the stigma of our nation’s great epic struggle as the first modern war, was the creation of two regiments of elite marksmen under the guidance of Col. Hiram Berdan. Although a superb concept, Berdan’s marksmen were often misled, misused and misunderstood. Even today there are certain areas of Civil War scholarship where the role of Berdan’s skilled marksmen is misunderstood and overshadowed by other regiments. Fortunately historian and Vietnam War veteran Gerald L. Earley has produced an extensively researched and masterfully written regimental history of one of Berdan’s regiments in The Second United States Sharpshooters in the Civil War: A History and Roster. Throughout the book’s 12 chapters the author relies on a sizable collection of published and unpublished primary material to construct the regiment’s organization and service. Attached to the Army of the Potomac this truly “pan-Yankee ground unit,” as the author refers to the 2nd U.S.S.S., experienced some of the conflict’s most significant engagements. Some authors of regimental histories oftentimes get bogged down discussing background and details of campaigns and battles so much so that the regiment’s story is lost. Fortunately Earley does not make that error. He provides enough contextual detail to place the regiment in time and place allowing the Sharpshooters’ story to take center stage. While Earley ably discusses the regiment’s organization, the criteria necessary to qualify for the regiment, the lack of Hiram Berdan’s military knowledge and penchant for self-promotion, and their role in battle, this book in many ways represents the struggle between the officers of the old-Army and the innovators of a new, modern American military. Earley illustrates throughout how the 2nd U.S.S.S. was misunderstood by officers, including the aged chief of ordnance Gen. James Ripley. In the war’s first year the 2nd U.S.S.S. dealt with numerous obstacles. The author discusses the regiment’s struggle to obtain the deadly accurate Sharps Rifle, something not accomplished until June 1862. He examines the misuse of the regiment at places such as Fredericksburg and how some officers, such as Gen. Fitz-John Porter, viewed the unit as useless during the Seven Days’ Campaign. By 1863 the 2nd U.S.S.S. started to be used in a more appropriate role. They performed “at their best” at Chancellorsville and did important work at Gettysburg. In his discussion of the 2nd U.S.S.S. at Gettysburg, Earley ably rescues the regiment’s legacy, long overshadowed by the 20th Maine at Little Round Top. He presents a compelling argument, based on primary material from Col. William C. Oates, that the 2nd played a more significant role in protecting the army’s left flank than Col. Joshua Chamberlain’s 20th Maine. Aside from discussion of the 2nd U.S.S.S. in battle, the book provides additional nuggets of information that are valuable to Civil War scholarship. For example, Earley discusses the reaction of the 2nd to Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, problems of discipline in the regiment, and how in April 1863 the regiment held a series of competitions to boost morale. Gerald L. Earley’s history of the 2nd U.S.S.S. is a model regimental history and is strongly recommended. Reviewer: Jonathan A. Noyalas Jonathan A. Noyalas is assistant professor of history and director of the Center for Civil War History at Lord Fairfax Community College in Middletown, Va., and the author or editor of six books on Civil War era history.
|
Illustrated, maps, appendix, notes, bibliography, index, hardcover, 253 pp., 2009. McFarland, Box 611, Jefferson, NC 28640, $55 plus shipping.