The Story of a Cannoneer Under Stonewall Jackson In Which is Told the Part Taken by the Rockbridge Artillery in the Army of Northern Virginia

by Edward Alexander Moore

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.

Genres: Civil War, History

188 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1907

Reviews

[Dana Hopkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the book as much as one can when the topic is war. I can’t imagine how awful it was to live through the war and see the damage and destruction firsthand. The heat in the summer and the bitter cold in the winters coupled with lack of equipment, food and rest would have been terrible. The matter of fact way injuries and deaths were described provide a small glimpse of how the soldiers would have needed to view the horrific scenes in order to cope and continue to fight.
I was amused by the attention paid to food. It is amazing how much you think about food when you don’t have it. That thought of the little things of home and the comfort of a good meal can really make a difference in morale.

[Daniel Evans · Rating 5 out of 5]

very good!
(it was written by my ancestor, of course)

[Robert Hobbs · Rating 5 out of 5]

Honestly, a great book.
This was my second Civil War soldier biography, and having already read from the infantry perspective, it was especially interesting to compare that experience with life in the artillery. The contrast alone made this one stand out—different pacing, different responsibilities, and a completely different feel of the battlefield.
What elevates this book for me is the immersion. I’ve been to many of the battlefields Moore writes about—visited Virginia Military Institute, walked through Lexington, and spent time in the same regions this story unfolds. That familiarity made it easy to visualize everything as it happened, almost like retracing steps rather than just reading them.

This isn’t a historian’s breakdown of the war—and it doesn’t try to be. The strength of this book is its ground-level perspective. It’s personal, direct, and focused entirely on Moore’s experience as a cannoneer. You’re not getting heavy strategic analysis—you’re getting what it felt like to be there, which in many ways is more valuable.

One of the biggest highlights is Moore’s proximity to Stonewall Jackson and Robert E. Lee. The glimpses he provides—brief interactions, observations, and moments—add a layer of authenticity that really stands out. Lee, in particular, comes across very much as historians often describe him: composed, deliberate, and quietly commanding.

Overall, this is a book I’d recommend to anyone with an interest in the Civil War—especially those who want to experience it through the eyes of a soldier rather than through maps and command decisions. It brings you into the war in a way that feels real, and human.

[Ward G · Rating 4 out of 5]

From star to finish.
This is simply a decent account. Of a regular everyday type of guy.
Mixed into the war.

A nice read, with common speech. Not someone trying to impress with language.
The forming of the artillery unit.
It's travels, including some meetings with famous military leaders of the south.

Also a nice historical outlook. On how they were treated by the civilian populance.
Going from battle to battle.
The author himself wounded several times. Being returned for duty.

The opening chapters, the feelings of winning victories.
To the slow realization, they would loose.
As the north just kept gaining strength and victories.

Also a nice historical piece, and possible geneology aid.
As he lists many of the members of the brigade.
As well as which ones killed, and for some.
What they did after the war.

I think this a welcome read. For anyone interested in this time period.

[william gauger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having read dozens of books on the Civil War, this little-known account rates with the best. The author served from near the beginning of the war thru Appomattox, and you experience with him the good times and the bad. He paints a particularly vivid picture of the war’s last few months, when the final outcome was painfully clear, but the sense of duty of most soldiers sustained them to the final curtain.

[Shelly♥ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Edward Moore offers a history of the Rockbridge Artillery through his own service and recollections, from time to time calling on the memories of others where he is not present.

Rockbridge Artillery was a Confederate Artillery unit mustered into service out of the Lexington, VA area during the start of the American Civil War. It served in what would later become the Army of Northern Virginia under Robert E. Lee. It fought from the beginning of the war, and was part of Artillery originally under Stonewall Jackson, and served at every major conflict in the east, surrendering at Appomattox.

Moore was a student at Washington College in Lexington at the start of the war. He had never been away from the Mountains of Virginia. He gives his account without much fanfare of the cause, but honors the bravery and valor of his fellow soldiers. He jumps around a bit - often relaying the final war fate of a person in a particular story or throwing in random details that may or may not directly link in with the action.

It is a very intimate account. Readers will enjoy the names - these were real people after all - and that it is an eye witness account. Moore has lived this. His writing style is strait forward and somewhat folksy in presentation. But he does pull the reader in to many places where they intersect with familiar pieces of the war - battles/personalities.

Recommend: Civil War Readers.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a pretty entertaining account by an enlisted member of one of the more famous artillery units of the Civil War. Moore's recounting of the campaigns in which he served under "Stonewall" Jackson are particularly good. While this book, like most of it's kind, has the occasional factual errors, the author's narrative rings true. It's also refreshing that this book lacks the bitter partisanship that sometimes infests Civil War memoirs.

This was a free Kindle edition, and as is usual with those, all of the illustrations have been removed. The captions for the illustrations have, annoyingly, been left in the book. Other than the pictureless captions that occasionally interrupt the narrative, this edition is carried out at least as good or better than many of the other cheap/free Kindle e-books I've read.

[Monte Lamb · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good matter-of-fact book on the Rockbridge Artillery from the Valley Campaign in 1862 until Appomattox. It gives a good representation of life in the Army of Northern Virginia during these years. It gives the view of how the soldiers saw the war, their leaders, and how they lived during the war.

[Patrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a good civil war personal narrative that should be more well known.

[Sam Blacker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fighting for free trade of WHAT