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Blackwater Publications offers two books by the editor of The Rappahannock Voice:
Irish Rebels, Confederate Tigers, by James P. Gannon
Long-lost history of the South’s Fighting Irish told in gripping narrative
A long-overlooked story of the role of New Orleans’ Irish immigrants in America’s Civil War has finally been told in a deeply researched and lovingly written book by a descendant of one of those New Orleans’ Irish Confederates.
Irish Rebels, Confederate Tigers traces the dramatic story of the 6th Louisiana Volunteers, an infantry regiment in General Robert E. Lee’s legendary Army of Northern Virginia. Composed mainly of immigrants from the city’s “Irish Channel” neighborhood, the 6th Louisiana earned a reputation as a rowdy regiment that was fierce on the battlefield and turbulent in camp.Written by Virginia author James P. Gannon, the 340-page narrative traces the regiment from its formation in Louisiana in June 1861 through all the great battles in which it fought—including General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson’s 1862 Valley Campaign, the Seven Days, Manassas, Sharpsburg, Gettysburg, Petersburg and more. The four years of horrendous war whittled the regiment, initially over 900 strong, down to 55 forlorn, ragged survivors who surrendered with Lee at Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865.
Gannon uses long-forgotten soldiers’ letters, diaries, official records and regimental documents to tell the story from the perspective of the men who fought the battles. The book comes with a full roster of the 1,215 officers and men who served in the 6th Louisiana, detailing their service records and biographical information in mini-profiles that will be invaluable to anyone doing genealogical research on New Orleans’ Irish. The detailed roster runs 65 pages.
“Exhaustively researched and well written, Irish Rebels tells the fascinating story of the 6th Louisiana Volunteers….In this scholarly, yet entertaining book, James Gannon recounts how the 6th Louisiana battled and bled its way to become one of the most highly regarded regiments among units known as the Louisiana Tigers,” commented Terry Jones, noted Louisiana Civil War historian and author of Lee’s Tigers (LSU Press).
A treasure trove of richly detailed events from the battlefields, camps and marches of this colorful Irish unit, the book tells a heart-rending story of sacrifice and loss by these men who were new to America, but no strangers to fighting. Their rowdy Irish spirits and good humor shine through the pages. Detailed battle maps guide the reader though the action, showing exactly how and where these Louisiana boys shed blood and fell, primarily in Virginia, where they spent the entire war.
This highly praised work of Civil War history is now available through Blackwater Publications at $19.98, 40% off the original publisher’s price, with free mailing. Hardcover, 453 pages, with 22 photos and 12 maps, full roster, indexed, bound in cloth with dust jacket. To order, mail check to Blackwater Publications, P.O. Box 595, Flint Hill, VA 22627. The book also may be ordered by phone (540-675-3657) or by sending e-mail to: blackwaterpub@comcast.net. Author-signed copies are available at no extra charge.
A Life in Print, by James P. Gannon
Veteran newspaperman James P. Gannon brings together his finest work over a 40-year career as writer and editor in A Life in Print, a collection of essays and columns that reads like a personal diary of a remarkable autobiographical journey.
Gannon, an award-winning journalist with a gift for graceful writing, wrote for The Wall Street Journal and was editor of The Des Moines Register and Washington Bureau Chief for The Detroit News. A Life in Print ranges in subject matter from Gannon’s boyhood in Minneapolis through his years covering economics, politics, and presidents in Washington, D.C.
Along the way there are personal triumphs, including Pulitzer Prizes won by The Des Moines Register while he was editor, and tragedies, including the death of his 2-year-old son, which give this book its poignant sense of a life fully lived.
Though the bulk of Gannon’s writing as a journalist involved covering business, politics, government and national issues, the emphasis in this collection is on the more personal, human experiences which became subjects of his columns.
The book has drawn high praise from critics and readers. Carol Stevens, Managing Editor/News, of USA Today, said, “Some columns yellow like the newspaper on which they originally appeared. The selections from the sterling career of newsman Jim Gannon are a happy exception. He writes with clarity and wit not so much about yesterday’s headlines as about universal themes that resonate through the years: family and roots and the timeless promise of land. You will like these crystalline vignettes of an American life. And you will like even more the man who lived them.”
Illustrated with photos of a life’s journey, Gannon’s book is as much autobiographical and philosophical as it is journalistic. There are pieces on wars and presidential campaigns, life in the newsroom, family and farming, his love of trains, county music, Civil War history, and travels in Ireland. A Life in Print may be ordered from Blackwater Publications, P.O. Box 595, Flint Hill, VA 22627. Price is $14.95, with free mailing. Order on-line or read an excerpt at www.BlackwaterPublications.com. You may also order by sending e-mail to: blackwaterpub@comcast.net.
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