The Battle Of White Sulphur Springs

Though West Virginia was founded for the purpose of remaining loyal to the Union, severing ties with Virginia, home of the capital of the Confederacy, would prove difficult. West Virginia's fate would be tested on its battlegrounds. In August 1863, Union general William Woods Averell led a six-hundred-mile raid culminating in the Battle of White Sulphur Springs in Green Brier County. Colonel George S. Patton, grandfather of the legendary World War II general, met Averell with a dedicated Confederate force. After a fierce two-day battle, Patton defeated Averell, forcing him to retreat and leave West Virginia, and ultimately the Union, in the balance. Civil War historian Eric J. Wittenberg presents a fascinating in-depth analysis of the proceedings in the first book-length study of this important battle.

"In August 1863, Union general William Woods Averell led a six-hundred mile raid culminating in the Battle of White Sulphur Springs in Greenbrier County. Colonel George S. Patton ... defeated Averell, forcing him to retreat. Civil War historian Eric J. Wittenberg presents an ... in-depth analysis of the proceedings"--Page 4 of cover.

As the winds of war began to blow in the spring of 1861, John W. Amick joined the Greenbrier Sharpshooters. According to family legend he was a captain at Carnifex Ferry, Lewisburg and Dogwood Gap reported first to Jackson then later to Lee. In 1862, Captain John Amick led the scouts for General Loring as he recaptured the Kanawha Valley from the invading Yankees. During the war, the Amick scouts battled invaders on Sewell Mountain throughout 1862 and 1863. The Amick Company of Scouts were used as spies across western Virginia. As the Confederacy became overwhelmed in spring of 1864, Captain John resigned his commission to form a guerilla band to protect his family and home. The Amick Partisan Rangers quickly grew to a battalion of four companies commanded by captains Tyree, Halstead, McClung and Baumgardner. The Yankees soon put a price on his head - wanted dead or alive. But his mother said, "You've got to catch him before you can hang him." This is the story of the Amick Partisan Rangers.

A comprehensive account of the state’s creation, its citizens, and their contributions to the war effort—whether supporters of the Union or Confederacy. The only state born as a result of the Civil War, West Virginia was the most divided state in the nation. About forty thousand of its residents served in the combatant forces about twenty thousand on each side. The Mountain State also saw its fair share of battles, skirmishes, raids and guerrilla warfare, with places like Harpers Ferry, Philippi and Rich Mountain becoming household names in 1861. When the Commonwealth of Virginia seceded from the Union on April 17, 1861, leaders primarily from the northwestern region of the state began the political process that eventually led to the creation of West Virginia on June 20, 1863. Renowned Civil War historian Mark A. Snell has written the first thorough history of these West Virginians and their civil war in more than fifty years.

During the 1930s in the United States, the Works Progress Administration developed the Federal Writers’ Project to support writers and artists while making a national effort to document the country’s shared history and culture. The American Guide series consists of individual guides to each of the states. Little-known authors—many of whom would later become celebrated literary figures—were commissioned to write these important books. John Steinbeck, Saul Bellow, Zora Neale Hurston, and Ralph Ellison are among the more than 6,000 writers, editors, historians, and researchers who documented this celebration of local histories. Photographs, drawings, driving tours, detailed descriptions of towns, and rich cultural details exhibit each state’s unique flavor. The beautiful landscape as well as the significant role of the coal mining industry are both detailed in the WPA Guide to West Virginia. The essay “Country Folk and Country Ways” gives the reader an idea of how rural life was in the Mountain State in the early 20th century and the descriptions of Charleston, Clarksburg, and other cities are complete with stunning photographs of classic Southern architecture.