Customer Reviews (2)

A Solid Study of the Home Front in Alabama During the Civil War
In this intriguing study, Malcolm McMillan focuses on the office of the governor of Alabama to elucidate the demise of one Confederate state during the Civil War. McMillan, as emeritus Hollifield Professor of Southern History at Auburn University, has spent a lifetime studying and reflecting. When first published in 1986 this short study pointed toward new avenues of research yielding valuable insights about the southern homefront during the Civil War.

The three governors of Alabama who served during the Civil War era each had different perspectives, priorities, and problems. Each sought to conduct state affairs efficiently and resolve crises effectively. Tracing chronologically the challenges faced by each of the wartime governors--Andrew Barry Moore (serving 1857-1861), John Gill Shorter (serving 1861-1863), and Thomas Hill Watts (serving 1863-l865)--McMillan seeks to discover the failure of the Confederacy at the state level. More important, he has tried to tell how a Confederate governor thought and acted as he executed his office in the midst of war and internal crisis.

The author's approach is semi-biographical, taking each governor in turn. Andrew Moore was a moderate politician who supported Stephen A. Douglas for the Presidency in 1860, with the hope that a united Democratic party would hold the nation together as it had during the l850s. Once the election of Lincoln was assured, however, Moore moved swiftly to help guide the accelerating secession sentiment. He sought to ensure it was not premature, was well developed from a legal perspective, and that the state supported secession after Lincoln's election only because he thought it was the best answer to the South's problems. With the formation of the Confederacy, Moore supported the new entity's prerogatives with as much steadfastness as his own political position would allow.

The second wartime governor, John Shorter, was more supportive of the Confederacy than Moore. His governorship coincided with the high tide of the Confederacy, which Shorter believed was because God had granted "inward approval" to it. It was his duty, therefore, to cooperate with the Confederate government despite a growing instability in Alabama because of its policies. The result was a deteriorization of local economic conditions, the stripping of the state of valuable resources and a rise in dissention from the population.

The last of Alabama's Confederate governors, Thomas Watts, was the quintessential practical politician. Watts had served the Confederacy as Attorney General, where he had been a persistent advocate of a strong central government. During his administration as Alabama governor, however, Watts defended strongly his states' prerogatives. Perhaps inadvertently, he obstructed the prosecution of the war effort and contributed to the collapse of his state.

This is a fine book, pointing toward several important possibilities of further research. The author delves into such questions as desertion as a factor in the disruption of the state's stability: the differences in ideas, priorities, and commitments between various individuals and sections of the state: and economic issues as seemingly esoteric but really as critical as the manufacture, distribution, and hoarding of salt. All are insightful areas of consideration. His biographical and chronological approach, however, hampers the consideration of some of these questions, and this deficiency is mildly disturbing. Without criticizing too harshly in this regard, it would seem that a different organizational approach--one that was less wedded to the biographies of the governors--would have been more appropriate. Despite this rather mild reservation, "Disintegration of a Confederate State" is an important addition to the literature of the home front of the Civil War.

Best of its kind so far...
Dr McMillan has done a great service to Civil War historians in particuliar and American historians in general with this book.Though an older book, it still is the best survey of a Confderate state's experiences on the home front both before and during the Civil War.He relied heavily on the state archives in Montgomery to furnish much of his information.There are numerous first person accounts in his book along with much information from the state of Alabama (various offical/wartime papers).

He recounts Governor Moore's manuevering prior to the Lincoln inaugaration to place Alabama on the side of the seccessionists.This he did despite a considerable minority,(if not majority)of the population wanting to conduct a wait and see first on the election, then on any Lincoln moves towards the South.He froze the specie (metal monies) in state banks, purchased firearms, and before the election sent troops to help seize Federal posts in Florida.The history of the three wartime Governors alone makes this an interesting read.

The story shows almost 1/4 of the state(northern part and coastal regions)becoming a home to then thousands of deserters from Confederate service who joined up with local Unionists to make Confederate control of the areas at best weak.Picture the Confed homefront that was portrayed in the movie Cold Mtn for some clues of the abuse and lawlessness

Deserters, starving civilians, embittered Unionists, battling guerillas from both sides, a crumbling infrastructure, all are written of here.It is a story that few know or even want to know anymore.The Solid South is shown, at least in Alabama, to have never been very solid and before the war's end to not even exist.... ... Read more

Product Description
Includes 22 songs: Alabama Sky * Born Country * Feels So Right * Love in the First Degree * Lovin' Man * Mountain Music * Red River * Take Me Down * Very Special Love * and more. ... Read more

Product Description
Titles are: Anytime (I'm Your Man)
* Calling All Angels
* Dancin', Shaggin' on the Boulevard
* Hey Baby
* I Couldn't Just Say No
* Is the Magic Still There
* My Girl
* Of Course I'm Alright
* One More Time Around
* Sad Lookin' Moon
* She's Got That Look in Her Eyes. ... Read more

Product Description
This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

Product Description
This album-matching folio offers: Heartbreak Express
* In Pictures
* It Works
* I've Loved a Lot More Than I've Hurt
* The Maker Said Take Her
* My Love Belongs to You
* Nothing Comes Close
* Say I
* She Ain't Your Ordinary Girl
* Spin the Wheel
* Sunday Drive. ... Read more

Product Description
This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR’d book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description
Still Goin' Strong
* T.L.C.A.S.A.P.
* Katy Brought My Guitar Back Today
* On This Side of the Moon
* The Cheap Seats
* Reckless
* That Feelin
* This Love's on Me
* Clear Water Blues
* A Better Word for Love
* Angels Among Us. ... Read more

Product Description
This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishings Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the worlds literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

Product Description
This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process.We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide.We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description
Down Home
* Fire on Fire
* Forever's As Far As I'll Go
* Goodbye (Kelly's Song)
* Here We Are
* I Ain't Got No Business Doin' Business Today
* Jukebox in My Mind
* Moonlight Lounge
* Pass It on Down
* Starting Tonight
* Until It Happens to You. ... Read more

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A must for every hiker, this handy pocket guide provides information on the many hiking trails available in the beautiful state of Alabama. An avid hiker, Sharpe knows the terrain, flora and fauna, pitfalls, and the spectacular scenery of Alabama. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Dangerously out of date, not very inclusive.
This guide is 15 years old and with that age many of the trails have been changed substantially (Pinhoti Trl) and some no longer exist at all (ie Lookout Mountain Trail). Do not use this book as a stand alone resource.

Also in the past 15 years there have been alot of new trails opened that are not included (Huntsville Land Trust trails).

Good book to orient yourself on many trails in Alabama
Probably the best, if not the only, book availiable on trails in the state.I have met Patricia and she is a very informed person on the state of our trails in the state. This book is a good book to carry with you in a backpack though it could have been a little smaller for better packing.If you plan on hiking any trails in AL, I recommend you buy this book first. ... Read more