Date sent:      Sat, 2 Mar 1996 20:06:53 -0500
From:           Dglave@aol.com
Subject:        Re: Query- Environment & Civil

try ira berlin's collection of primary sources of the freedmen's bureau. the documents are originally from the national archives in washington, d. c. if your student wants to dig that deeply. she/he may find references to post-civil war/slavery attitudes toward land ownership and the land.

in addition, eric foner's _reconstruction: an unfinished revolution_ is not an environmental history. yet he discusses same basic issues of land ownership among african americans that has environmental nuances.

the davis bend experiment might shed some light on some "scientific" efforts in farming amoung former owners and former slaves. can't think of any titles of secondary sources off hand.

george rawick's wpa slave narratives are not just limited to slavery but sometime contains information from Reconstruction to the the 1930s. archives like the university of north carolina contain narrative of both african americans and white from the wpa writers project. narratives of farmers contains some information.

all this is not specific to the environmental devastation of the war itself in vicksburg but of farm policy and ideology as a result of the war.

good luck.

dianne d. glave
department of history
loyola marymount university
department of history

Date sent: Mon, 04 Mar 1996 14:12:24 -0700 (PDT)
From: MCCLUREJ@cgs.edu
Subject: Re: Query- Environment & Civil

The student researching Vicksburg will find considerable information on military activities around Vicksburg--probably more than she really wants-- in the printed compilation of military records of the war, generally known as the _Official Record_. Its formal citation is: _The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies_, 128 vols. (Washington, 1880-1901). The records include not just battle reports, but letters and reports concerning bridges, railroads, supply lines, defensive works, and other activities. If your student wants primary source material, the _OR_ will have a lot of documents of interest.

James McClure
Senior Associate Editor, The Salmon P. Chase Papers,
The Claremont Graduate School, Claremont, Calif.

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