The Second United States Sharpshooters in the Civil War

The Second United States Sharpshooters was a hodgepodge regiment, composed of companies raised in several New England states. The regiment was trained for a specific mission and armed with specially ordered breech-loading target rifles. This book covers the origin, recruitment, training, and battle record of the regiment and features 32 photographs, four battlefield maps, and a regimental roster.

Gerald L. Earley is a lifelong student of the Civil War and has visited all the major battlefields of the Second United States Sharpshooters as well as written articles for Civil War magazines. He is a graduate of Wichita State University and a veteran of the Vietnam War.

Gerald L. Earley
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 253
Bibliographic Info: 32 photos, 4 maps, appendix, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2014 [2009]
pISBN: 978-0-7864-9546-7
eISBN: 978-0-7864-5302-3
Imprint: McFarland

Preface      1

1. Elite and Unique: The Genesis of Berdan’s Sharpshooters      5
2. Berdan’s Camp of Instruction: Training and Turmoil      16
3. At the Bloody Point of Lincoln’s Sword      33
4. A Continual Wasting Effect      45
5. “There Was Bloody Work Done”      70
6. The Most Dismal and Despondent Days      93
7. At Their Best: Chancellorsville      106
8. “Turning the Tide”: Gettysburg      116
9. The Feckless Campaigns      135
10. With Ulysses in the Wilderness      151
11. A Plethora of War: Spotsylvania to Cold Harbor      165
12. Winning the Hard Way: Petersburg      184

Epilogue      198
Appendix: Roster      207
Chapter Notes      227
Bibliography      237
Index      241

“a model regimental history…strongly recommended”—Civil War News; “provides a good story of the regiment…Earley has filled a modern void in relating the history of this regiment…excellent maps”—Blue & Gray Magazine; “unique”—America’s Civil War; “contains…pertinent photographs and battle maps”—North & South.