Civil War Journal of a Union Soldier

Purchase links:  Kindle, paperback, Audible 

With a Kindle Unlimited subscription, this book may be downloaded for free.

My great grandfather, Harmon Camburn, wrote a memoir for his children of his time in the Civil War. This book is his personal account of the Civil War when young men were forced to kill their own countrymen.

“The narrative of this book reads as if it were written by a real author, not a soldier. I can’t recommend this book anymore highly than I do. It is history. It is America. Whether Union or Confederate, the soldier’s stories were the same. If you want to experience a first-hand look into the daily life of a Civil War soldier in vivid and sometimes painful detail, do not pass up this important book.” Lori Crane, Amazon review

Harmon Camburn signed up for duty as a Union soldier two weeks after the first shots were fired in the Civil War. He served for the next three years, fighting in both Battles of Bull Run and other skirmishes of the War Between the States. His tour of duty ended with a shot through his lung and capture by Confederate soldiers. Fortunately, he survived his wounds and wrote about his time in the Union army. His great-granddaughter, Patricia Camburn (P.C.) Zick, presents this journal along with additional annotations about the war in general. The journal weaves a tragic and compelling tapestry of war from the view at its center. Mr. Camburn’s sardonic and realistic view of war is worth remembering.

From the day of his enlistment in the Army in April 1861 in Adrian, Michigan, to his final days in the service of the army near Knoxville, Tennessee, the journal provides insight into the minutiae of a soldier’s life, from what they ate to the somewhat unorthodox method of obtaining food. It shows the horror of the battlefield to the joys of simply having the sun shine after days of rain.

The descriptions of the landscape are beautifully crafted, just as the scattered bodies on the battlefield are ghastly reminders of the cost of war.

Civil War Journal from the 2nd Michigan Infantry:

Harmon Camburn 1842-1906 

Purchase links: Kindle, paperback

Available in Kindle Unlimited

This includes the same journal as appears in Civil War Journal of a Union Soldier, but this version contains much more information on local history and my great-grandfather’s life after his service ended.

Civil War Journal from the 2nd Michigan recounts the journal of Harmon Camburn who joined the Adrian (Michigan) Guards on April 20, 1861 at the age of nineteen. This updated version of Civil War Journal of a Union Soldier contains new information on the 2nd Michigan’s role in the War Between the States as well as details on the life of Harmon Camburn after his service to his country. Camburn’s great-granddaughter, Patricia Camburn Zick, presents the journal and annotations along with several appendices, which provide local connections between the Camburns of Adrian and the family of Laura S. Haviland, the great abolitionist and active participant in the Underground Railroad.