Guerrilla Warfare in Civil War Missouri, Volume I - by Bruce Nichols (Paperback)

About the Book

"The present work is a reprint of the illustrated case bound edition ... published in 2004"--T.p. verso v. 1.

Book Synopsis

This book is a thorough study of all known guerrilla operations in Civil War Missouri in 1862, the year such warfare became the primary type of military action there and the year that the state saw almost constant fighting.

An enormous variety of sources--military and government records, private accounts, county and other local histories, period and later newspapers, and secondary sources published after the war--are used to identify which Southern partisan leaders and groups operated in which areas of Missouri, and to describe how they operated and how their kinds of warfare evolved.

The actions of Southern guerrilla forces and Confederate behind-enemy-lines recruiters are presented chronologically by region so that readers may see the relationship of seemingly isolated events to other events over a period of time in a given area. The counter-actions of an array of different types of Union troops are also covered to show how differences in training, leadership, and experiences affected behaviors and actions in the field.

Review Quotes

"detailed, fast-paced, descriptive catalogue...colorful...fine, well-illustrated study"-Military Heritage; "a detailed study...includes both guerrilla raids and recruitment efforts along with descriptions of the Union efforts to thwart their activities...richly illustrated with period photographs, sketches, and maps"-Civil War Book Review; "Bruce Nichols gives us a welcome opportunity to probe more deeply into Missouri's singular experience with this type of conflict in 1862"-The Civil War Courier; "Nichols' impressive four volumes will undoubtedly be the standard encyclopedia of guerilla activities in Missouri for years to come. No historian interested in Civil War guerrilla warfare should be without the entire set. Nichols is to be congratulated for his excellent work in documenting this dark but pivotal time in Missouri's history...highly recommended"-Civil War News; "monumental...nothing remotely approaching the scale of this undertaking has been attempted before on this topic, and these meticulously researched tomes will almost certainly stand the test of time as essential reference tools"-The Civil War Monitor; "no previous chronicler has undertaken what Nichols does here-a discussion of every known action in the state for a given year...Nichols makes every effort to tell the story in a balanced and thoughtful way for both Union and Confederate...a welcome and worthy addition to the field"-Civil War St. Louis.

About the Author

Bruce Nichols is an analyst for the United States Government in the Department of Defense. He lives in St. Louis, Missouri.