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About the book
As a repository for old soldiers’ writings, The National Tribune is unequaled yet remains mostly unused. Indeed, it is so good one might call it the Confederate Veteran for Billy Yank.
From 1877 to 1943, The National Tribune served as a compendium for Union veteran reminiscences, war yarns, and postbellum reflections. The firsthand treasure-trove began as an eight-page monthly newspaper in 1881 and within a few years it became a weekly. The Washington-based paper was founded by George E. Lemon, a veteran of the 125th New York. Initially an advocate for Union veteran pensions, The National Tribune hit its stride when it began publishing articles about the war penned by the Northern soldiers themselves.
Within three years John McElroy, a Union veteran with editing experience and the author of a dramatic memoir about his confinement at Andersonville (1879), assumed the reins as managing editor. His keen eye for detail and deep connections elevated the quality and quantity of the content and resulted in the publication of thousands of exclusive firsthand accounts. The National Tribune’s final issue was on December 30, 1943. By that late date, the Union veterans who had fought the war were nearly all gone.
More than 1,000 items were published on the Atlanta Campaign alone—articles, memoirs, and letters on every topic imaginable sent in by Union soldiers who had followed General Sherman into Georgia in 1864. The first appeared in June 1879 on the battle of Kennesaw Mountain. The National Tribune Remembers the Atlanta Campaign, edited by Stephen Davis, offers 70 selections pertaining to the Atlanta Campaign. Our hope is that these entries advance the cause of Civil War scholarship by bringing back into print an array of some of the most important writing about the conflict penned by the men who fought in it.
Advance Praise
“The sheer scope of these Atlanta Campaign articles from the National Tribune is mind-boggling. Quite frankly, I could not put this book down. The campaign comes to life in articles written by both generals and common soldiers. I found myself making notes in the margins and highlighting paragraphs for future reference. Steve Davis's editorial comments are as riveting as the articles themselves. For any serious student of the Western Theater, this book is quite simply a must for your library.” — Larry J. Daniel, author of Conquered: Why the Army of the Tennessee Failed
“Historians of the Atlanta Campaign often overlook the 66-year run of the National Tribune, the Union equivalent of Confederate Veteran. In this thoughtful and carefully annotated selection of 118 Tribune articles, we now have the best of Billy Yank’s eyewitness accounts of hardships and battles as only an old soldier knew them.” — Gordon L. Jones, Atlanta History Center
