University of Oklahoma Press, 2006. Hardcover. Three quarter cloth spine with gilt lettering to the spine. Very good dust jacket with a 1cm closed tear near the lower left hand corner. Jacket has been placed in a clear protective cover after photos were taken. A personal embossed name plate on the title page. Clean text free of marks or underlining. Includes list of abbreviations, b&w illustrations, bibliography and an index. 368 pp.

Fast shipping in a secure book box mailer with tracking. Very good / Very good. Item #203173
ISBN: 9780806137476

Bull Run, Gettysburg, Appomattox. For Americans, these battlegrounds, all located in the eastern United States, will forever be associated with the Civil War. But few realize that the Civil War was also fought far to the west of these sites. The westernmost battle of the war took place in the remote deserts of the future state of Arizona.

In this first book-length account of the Civil War in Arizona, Andrew E. Masich chronicles the all-but-forgotten story of the California Column, volunteer soldiers who served in the U.S. Army from 1861 to 1866 and played a key role in creating and shaping Arizona Territory.

In 1861, Californians rallied to Lincoln's call for volunteers to drive back the advancing Confederates. Under the command of a hard-bitten frontier dragoon officer, James H. Carleton, former gold seekers were transformed into tough and efficient soldiers. They were also agents of change: Not only did they prevent a Confederate takeover of Arizona, but they also established mail and other essential services, prospected for minerals, created maps, enacted laws, and founded institu-tions. At the same time, they guarded the border with Mexico from encroachment by Napoleon IIl's French forces and, tragi-cally, devastated the Apache, Navajo, and other tribes that stood in their way.

The Civil War in Arizona is divided into two parts: a lively narrative history of the California Column in wartime Arizona, followed by a rare compilation of letters-originally published in the popular newspaper Alta California-written by the volunteer soldiers themselves. Enriched by Masich's meticulous annotation, these letters provide firsthand testimony of the grueling desert conditions the soldiers endured as they fought on many fronts, not least of which was an uncaring army command structure preoccupied with war
in the East.

Price: $48.95