The Civil War journal of John Jackman is one of the richest and most literate of all Confederate soldier narratives to survive the war. It is also the only surviving war period diary of a soldier in the famed First Kentucky or "orphan" Brigade. Jackman follows his brigade across the war-torn South, from Shiloh to Vicksburg, to Baton Rouge, through all the battles for Tennessee, and on through the Atlanta Campaign and the resistance to Sherman's march to the sea. Jackman is an observer right up to the end, when Jefferson Davis and his fleeing cabinet meet for the last time at Washington, Georgia. Written with wit and insight, and unfailingly entertaining. Jackman's journal catches the spirit of the common soldier of the Confederacy in camp and field, as well as some of the excitement and confusion of battle. His opinions are frank, his prejudices few, and his warm and generous nature show through in his remarks on his fellow "orphans". Especially significant for its behind-the-lines vignettes of the Army of Tennessee, this journal is one of the most important soldier journals to come from that troubled yet fascinating army.

Volume editor: William C. Davis