Civil War Hospital Newspapers

Nine of the 192 Union military hospitals during the Civil War circulated newspapers edited and printed by convalescents. The horrors of wound infection and amputation were reported in the words of surgeons, nurses and patients. Sermons cautioned against drink, tobacco and profanity while stressing patriotic sacrifice. Those who experienced the war wrote about it in simple narratives, and these are extensively quoted. Convalescent life was painful and terrifying. Bedridden for months with fever and festering wounds, disabled veterans wondered who would respond to their needs. Who would hire them? Who would marry them? This book covers the founding and development of nine hospital newspapers, each fully explored for such topics as patriotism, politics, religion, satire, romance and marriage, battlefield experience and treatment of prisoners of war.

Ira Spar, M.D., is president of the Hartford Medical Society, a board member of the Society of Civil War Surgeons, a fellow of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. He served as a U.S. Army battalion surgeon in the Vietnam War and lives in Farmington, Connecticut.

Ira Spar, M.D.

Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 252
Bibliographic Info: 27 photos, appendices, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2017
pISBN: 978-1-4766-6560-3
eISBN: 978-1-4766-2529-4
Imprint: McFarland

Preface 1
Introduction 3
One. Hospital Register 9
Two. Armory Square Hospital Gazette 47
Three. The Soldiers’ Journal 77
Four. The Cripple 111
Five. The Crutch 135
Six. Hammond Gazette 157
Seven. The Cartridge Box 171
Eight. Knight Hospital Record 192
Nine. Voice of the Soldier 217
Conclusions 221
Appendices
I. Union General Hospitals, December 1864 235
II. Department of Washington, December 1864 235
III. Department of Pennsylvania 236
IV. Middle Department Hospitals 236
V. Department of the East 236
VI. Hospital Newspapers 237
Chapter Notes 238
Bibliography 244
Index 245

• “a fascinating compilation and discussion of nine Civil War newspapers”—ARBA
• “this historical study looks at nine newspapers that were written and edited by injured Union soldiers in military hospitals. Each chapter describes the founding and evolution of a hospital and its role in providing health care to soldiers”—ProtoView