While Father Is Away

"Not just another collection of Civil War letters . . . it develops several areas rarely explored in such collections and not always well understood."—Civil War News

"The bracing frankness of his concern with his own safety and his family's economic well-being—he writes virtually nothing about the Union cause, slavery, or even military campaigns—makes this a unique set of letters."—Journal of Southern History

"Thankfully, the Bradbury correspondence did not suffer the fate of most letters. . . . The value of the collection is not simply a matter of survival. It is extensive in both its length and depth."—Andrew Cayton

"Jennifer Cain Bohrnstedt opens a window on the social history of Civil War America by assembling the numerous wartime letters of William H. Bradbury. This thirty-three-year-old clerk enlisted in the Union army and served as a private and clerk throughout the war without ever firing a gun. His mastery of contemporary shorthand made him too valuable to risk in battle. He sank into posthumous obscurity until Bohrnstedt revived him through comprehensive, imaginative, and insightful editing. He has much to share about headquarters gossip, land speculation, and domestic affection."—John Y. Simon