The loyal slave/black Confederate narrative is an insidious myth. As I argue in Searching for Black Confederates, it reduces African Americans to caricatures and has long treated them as a means to an end in the development and reinforcement of a Lost Cause narrative that for a long time helped to maintain legal segregation and Read more

As you might imagine my inbox has been flooded over the past few weeks by people interested in sharing their research on black Confederates. These messages usually open with the bold claim that the conclusions in my new book are fundamentally flawed. Turns out, there were plenty of black men serving as soldiers in the Read more

Start by reading it. I am happy to see that the book is shipping to those of you who pre-ordered it online. Though the official publication date is September 9, I expect that you will see it on bookshelves beforehand. It is encouraging to see people excited about finally having the opportunity to read and Read more

The latest issue of The Civil War Monitor includes and interview with me about Searching for Black Confederates. It covers many of the main points that I explore in great detail in the book. I will be doing a number of podcast interviews over the next few weeks about the book, which I will share Read more

Update: In 2010 the Georgia Historical Society dedicated a marker commemorating the 44th USCT and their treatment at the hands of Confederate soldiers near Dalton, Georgia. As Confederate officials in Richmond and citizens throughout the country debated whether to recruit slaves into the army as soldiers, black Union soldiers were being massacred on battlefields throughout Read more

There is nothing quite like holding a copy of your own book for the first time. Yesterday UNC Press sent along a single copy of Searching for Black Confederates: The Civil War’s Most Persistent Myth and it looks amazing. The cover art is stunning. I am still feeling overwhelmed over the fact that this book Read more

Here is a little taste of my forthcoming book, Searching for Black Confederates: The Civil War’s Most Persistent Myth, which was published last week at Smithsonian. I re-worked a few pages that focus on the role of camp slaves during the Gettysburg campaign. All too often we try to draw a distinction between the importance Read more

I can already anticipate the response to Searching for Black Confederates: The Civil War’s Most Persistent Myth in certain quarters. I am going to be asked to respond to newspaper accounts in northern newspapers referencing armed black men; pension documents that upon closer inspection are clearly marked for former body servants or camp slaves; muster Read more

You can now pre-order Searching for Black Confederates: The Civil War’s Most Persistent Myth direct from the University of North Carolina Press at a 40% discount. Use the discount code 01DAH40 on the purchase page. With the discount you pay $18 + shipping, which is a great deal, especially for those of you who are Read more