Our Boys: The Personal Experiences of a Soldier in the Army of the Potomac
Philadelphia, PA: John E. Potter, 1865. Hardcover. Rebound in recent leatherette, octavo, 412pp., sparsely illustrated in b&w. Book has handsome boards and tight binding, text toned and foxed but unmarked. Rare in the trade; there are no other original copies for sale at the time of this listing. Alonzo Hill was part of the 8th PA Reserves (he went on to write or edit a number of other books). The regiment was organized at Camp Wilkins near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in July 1861. George S. Hays served as colonel, S. D. Oliphant as lieutenant colonel, and J. B. Gardner as major. The book has been reprinted recently as "Reynolds' Reserves," where the publisher's blurb describes this book as a humorous insider's look at serving under Generals Reynolds, Meade, and McCall. "With a wonderful, self-deprecating, dry wit, Alonzo Hill tells the story of "Our Boys" of the Eighth Penn. At the Seven Days' Battle, Second Bull Run, and at Antietam, the Pennsylvania boys fought with distinction and bravery, fought with each other on occasion, and laughed more than they cried. Hill had a keen talent for capturing camp life and the confusion of battle." The regiment first fought at fought at the battles of Mechanicsville, Charles City Cross Roads and Glendale. The 8th Reserve fought at the Second Battle of Bull Run, where it lost 52 out of 100 men, and again at South Mountain, where it lost another 54 men. At the Battle of Antietam, it fought on the Union right in the Cornfield, losing twelve killed and forty three wounded. It played a part in the Union breakthrough on the Confederate right at the Battle of Fredericksburg but lost heavily, especially in officers. Twenty-eight were killed, eighty-six wounded, and twenty-two captured. Baily, five captains, and five lieutenants were among the wounded. In February 1863, the regiment was ordered to Washington, where it was rested and brought back up to strength. In the spring of 1864, the 8th Reserve, along with the rest of the division, was sent back to the army, as the Third Division, V Corps. It fought in the initial battles of the Overland Campaign, losing thirty three men at the Battle of the Wilderness and another nineteen at the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House. On May 17, it was relieved from duty since its term of service had expired. Those whose enlistments had not expired yet were transferred to the 191st Pennsylvania Infantry. The remainder of the regiment was sent back to Pittsburgh, where on May 24, it was mustered out of service. A rare book with significant Pittsburgh connections. Very good+. Item #B70590
Price: $200.00