Introduction

When Slavery & Rebellion Are Destroyed is the ninth book in the New Perspectives on the Civil War Era series, edited by Judkin Browning and Susanna Lee, for the University of Georgia Press. Information about this exciting series and the books on its list can be found here.

A gubernatorial-appointed member (including President) of the Michigan Historical Commission from 2007-2018, Jack Dempsey also served as chairman of the Michigan Civil War Sesquicentennial Committee. He served on the Board of Directors of the Clarke Historical Library, located in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan. In July 2014, a fellow history enthusiast made him aware of a typescript collection of letters between a soldier and his spouse exchanged from 1863 to 1865. The Clarke held the original unpublished journal. Verifying with a Civil War scholar that such a manuscript is rare, the two commenced an effort to place the material in a context that readers would find interesting: first, woven into a work of historical fiction; then, as a largely stand-alone volume that is compelling in its own right.