Time Life Books, Alexandria, Va., 1998. 10 1/4 x 10 1/4, hardcover with dust jacket, 168 pages, illustrated, index. Brand new condition.

This book is by and of the soldiers and civilians who fought the Battle of Chattanooga. Through their words and images you can relieve the emotions, the terrifying rush of events, the horrors- and even the human comedy- of the Civil War. Thus you hold in your hands an album of personal recollections from letters, diaries, photographs, sketches, and artifacts.

To compile this special volume, we combed hundreds of sources, both published and unpublished. We had invaluable help from an extensive network of consultants. Using our own diverse resources and historical materials in libraries and archives around the United States, we were able to assemble a dramatic narrative told from many perspectives: manuscript letters and journals- some previously unpublished- regimental histories and privately printed memoirs, articles in little known historical society publications, and more. Then we set about the painstaking task of locating photographs of these soldiers and townsfolk to accompany their personal accounts.

That so many firsthand accounts survived is due to a few accidents of history. Soldiers could mail a letter home for only three cents. And the mail systems set up by the opposing armies were amazingly reliable. A surprising number of recruits could write, and write vividly.

Field sketches abound, too. Before photo engraving was developed to reproduce photographs in newspapers and magazines, periodicals such as Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper and Harper's Weekly employed artists who traveled with the army to depict events for readers. These correspondents drew virtually everything of possible interest: battles, lounging soldiers, the odd piece of equipment. Sketches dashed off in a few minutes during a battle- often at great personal peril- were taken by courier to the publication, where they were transformed into woodblock engravings suitable for printing.

Another element that adds to the unique texture of this album is the photographs. Technical innovations during the 1850's brought the fledgling craft into its own, and the Civil War was the first in history to be extensively recorded by the camera. In the blockaded South, photographers lacked supplies and equipment and rarely covered the action. The North's activities, by contrast, are well chronicled, thanks to the efforts of men who endured great hardship. Photographers like Mathew Brady and his assistants spent months following the army, etching with light the brave faces of the soldiers, as well as the bodies stiffened on the field. When Brady's stark photographs of the dead were first exhibited in New York City in 1862, the public thought, albeit briefly, that such horrific images could actually bring the war to an end.

So here you find living testimony from the battlefield of Chattanooga. As you look into the eyes of these soldiers and civilians, as you read the words of those dazed by the violence around them or by the grief that follows the fighting, perhaps it will be possible to perceive more clearly the shattering experience that was Chattanooga.

Front over Photograph: Atop a rocky crag on Lookout Mountain, Captain John Wilson and the five soldiers of the 8th Kentucky Infantry strike poses.These men were credited with being the first to raise the Union colors on the mountain before dawn on November 25, 1863. The sudden, dramatic appearance of the Stars and Stripes on the crest confirmed to the expectant Yankees below that the "Battle above the Clouds" had produced a glorious Union victory.

Front cover quotation: "As the crimson of the old flag was recognized, Grant's army broke out into cheer after cheer." Lieutenant Albion W. Tourgee, 105th Ohio Infantry.