Assistant Professor of African American History in the Department of History at Furman University will talk about his book, ‘The Families’ Civil War: Black Soldiers and the Fight for Racial Justice,’ which received rave reviews in the LA Review of Books and the Civil War Book Review. It was the 2023 Nautilus Book Award, Silver Winner. It also received an honorable mention, in the Civil War Monitor, for the best Civil War book of 2022. He has also started preliminary work for a new monograph that will examine all Pennsylvania born soldiers who trained at Camp William Penn. He’s also been interviewed by CNN, History Channel, NPR, Defense One, Smithsonian Magazine, Curiosity Streams, the Washington Post, and New York Times. He also serves on the advisory board for Ford’s Theater.

Speaking about “The Families’ Civil War”

His talk focused on the intersectionality of race, gender, and class in the military from 1850 through the 1920s. Counter to the national narrative which championed the patriotic manhood of soldiering from the Civil War through the 1920s, his research reveals that African American veterans and their families’ military experience were much more fraught. Economic and social instability introduced by military service resonated for years and even generations after soldiers left the battlefield. Also appearing: Ms. Martha Woods, a resident in Historic La Mott & Camp William Penn Museum board member, will tell of her journey to our community based on family history and her great-grandfather who enlisted at Camp William Penn leaving behind a wife and nine children.