Booknotes III (Sept '15): an all-North Carolina affair

New Arrivals:

1. The 11th North Carolina Infantry in the Civil War: A History and Roster by William Thomas Venner (McFarland, 2015).

Venner is also the author of a regimental study of the 7th Tennessee. Like that unit, the 11th North Carolina served in the eastern theater with the Army of Northern Virginia. The two books are are also similar in style and format. There is substantial archival research, numerous and nice looking maps, and a well organized casualty list and unit roster to go along with a more than sufficiently detailed military narrative.

2. North Carolina Civil War Obituaries, Regiments 1 Through 46: A Collection of Tributes to the War Dead and Veterans compiled and ed. by E.B. Munson (McFarland, 2015).

Munson has gathered together for publication an impressive number of newspaper obituaries for soldiers from the First through Forty-sixth regiments of North Carolina Troops, which included infantry, cavalry and artillery units. "This compilation of obituaries from North Carolina newspapers documents the date and cause of death for hundreds of soldiers, with many providing place of burial, surviving relatives, last words, accounts by comrades and details of military service." One can imagine that this book would be a must-buy for those conducting serious research into North Carolina regiments and soldiers.

3. The Battle of Roanoke Island: Burnside and the Fight for North Carolina by Michael P. Zatarga (The Hist Pr, 2015).

For years, the History Press (now Arcadia Publishing and The History Press) has been publishing small, focused studies on various aspects of the 1861-62 Union combined operations conducted along the North Carolina coastline and most have been quite worthwhile. The initial impression of Zatarga's book is that it offers a fairly detailed account of the Roanoke Island battle, with pretty good maps.