Johnson's Island : a prison for Confederate officers / Roger Pickenpaugh.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Pickenpaugh, Roger, author.

Series:

Civil War in the North

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Johnson Island Prison.

Prisoners of war.

History.

United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865--Prisoners and prisons.

United States.

Ohio--History--Civil War, 1861-1865--Prisoners and prisons.

Ohio.

Prisoners of war--Ohio--Johnson Island--History--19th century.

Ohio--Johnson Island.

Genre:

History.

Physical Description:

ix, 123 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm.

Place of Publication:

Kent, Ohio : The Kent State University Press, [2016]

Summary:

In 1861, Lt. Col. William Hoffman was appointed to the post of commissary general of prisoners and urged to find a suitable site for the construction of what was expected to be the Union's sole military prison. After inspecting four islands in Lake Erie, Hoffman came upon one in Sandusky Bay known as Johnson's Island. With a large amount of fallen timber, forty acres of cleared land, and its proximity to Sandusky, Ohio, Johnson's Island seemed the ideal location for the Union's purpose. By the following spring, Johnson's Island prison was born. Johnson's Island tells the story of the camp from its planning stages until the end of the war. Because the facility housed only officers, several literate diary keepers were on hand; author Roger Pickenpaugh draws on their accounts, along with prison records, to provide a fascinating depiction of day-to-day life. Hunger, boredom, harsh conditions, and few luxuries were all the prisoners knew until the end of the war, when at last parts of Johnson's Island were auctioned off, the post was ordered abandoned, and the island was taken out of military service. There has not been a history of Johnson's Island published since 1975. Roger Pickenpaugh presents an eloquent and knowledgeable overview of a prison that played a tremendous role in the lives of countless soldiers. It is a book sure to interest Civil War buffs and scholars alike. Book jacket.

Contents:

"Decidedly the best location": establishing the prison

"A prison for officers alone": early days of operation

"Everything in prison is elated": the road to exchange

"It requires only proper energy and judgment": the second wave of prisoners

"This horrid life of inactivity": the battle with boredom

"A matter of necessity": prison economics

"A guard for unarmed men": guards and commanders

"Almost a fixed impossibility": escapes and attempts

"The wrath of hunger": rations and Union retaliation

"A pitiful scene": climate and health

"Sad and glad at the same time": the road to release.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 117-119) and index.

ISBN:

9781606352847

1606352849

OCLC:

921821853