A Nation Transformed: How the Civil War Changed America Forever

By Gerald S. Henig and Eric Niderost
Figures, chapter endnotes, acknowledgements, bibliography, index, softcover, 496 pp., 2007. Cumberland House Publishing, 431 Harding Industrial Dr., Nashville, TN 37211, $18.95 plus shipping.

Reviewer: Richard J. Blumberg
Richard J. Blumberg has a master's degree with honors in Civil War studies. He is past president of the Houston Civil War Round Table and is a speaker for that group and the Society of Women in the Civil War. He also reviews books for the Blue and Gray Education Society.

Review:
While it might sound like a clichˆ©, what is in a name can be very important. Gerald Henig's and Eric Niderost's new book, A Nation Transformed: How the Civil War Changed America Forever, is a prime example.

The title misleads readers to expect they will study why the Civil War brought forth many changes in America. One would also expect to see background information providing detailed explanations of how the political, social, economic and military influences were changed. Instead, the audience gets a hodge-podge listing of Civil War "firsts" scattered among 14 loosely connected categories.

The book is arranged "along topical lines in an attempt to allow readers to open it at random and peruse any chapter or section without the need for additional information."

Unfortunately, this topical organization is very weak because of the difficulty in referencing specific items. The primary weakness is that the index is incomplete and inadequate.

Here are three examples of subjects that have 2-3 pages of textual information, yet no reference or mention in the index: 1) United States Military Railroad (USMRR); 2) Hospital transports, "floating hospitals" and hospital ships; and 3) the United States Sanitary Commission and state appointed Sanitary Agents.

If readers looked at the index for any of the above items, they would be led to believe the book provides no coverage on them. Quite to the contrary, the book provides good coverage on these subjects.

Henig and Niderost use sound sources to create their encyclopedia-type references for each topic. Many well-respected Civil War historians like Bruce Catton, James Robertson, Bell Wiley, and James McPherson are cited.

With so many works already published by these well-respected authors, one must ask if is this book really needed. Readers could argue that it provides a comprehensive listing of the known Civil War firsts in one volume. Yet the poor index makes it very difficult to find where things are. Additionally, items from a military history standpoint are not grouped together. For example, there is no logistics section containing such topics as supply, subsistence, transportation, medical care and ammunition in one grouping.

Although the writers use solid sources, the presentation on many topics leads the discriminating reader to ask the question, "So what?"

Many of the firsts described in the book fail to show cause and effect relationships between a need arising and that need being met by an invention, innovation, etc. For example, one listing states that Chicago is where the first presidential nominating convention was held, and that more nominating conventions have been held there than in any other city.

The author's note that geography was the notable and logical reason for this. However, many other towns could have satisfied the demographics, so why was it important that Chicago was selected?

The book is extremely weighted toward secondary source materials. There is more than a 4:1 ratio of secondary sources used, compared to primary sources (314/76). Again, one must ask, Why this new book?

This reviewer simply cannot justify $18.95 for this paperback edition, due to the horrible index. The bibliography and chapter endnotes are adequate. If the book were better organized and better priced, I could recommend it to those wanting to gain statistical or trivia-related information. Otherwise, this book from two authors in the academic profession was a real disappointment.

[Editor's note: This volume was originally published by Stackpole Books in 2001 under the title Civil War Firsts: The Legacies of America's Bloodiest Conflict.]