What do you think?
Rate this book
Jack Hinson's One-Man War: A Civil War Sniper
The true story of one man's reluctant but relentless war against the invaders of his country.A quiet, wealthy plantation owner, Jack Hinson watched the start of the Civil War with disinterest. Opposed to secession and a friend to Union and Confederate commanders alike, he did not want a war. After Union soldiers seized and murdered his sons, placing their decapitated heads on the gateposts of his estate, Hinson could remain indifferent no longer. He commissioned a special rifle for long-range accuracy, he took to the woods, and he set out for revenge. This remarkable biography presents the story of Jack Hinson, a lone Confederate sniper who, at the age of 57, waged a personal war on Grant's army and navy. The result of 15 years of scholarship, this meticulously researched and beautifully written work is the only account of Hinson's life ever recorded and involves an unbelievable cast of characters, including the Earp brothers, Jesse James, and Nathan Bedford Forrest.
400 pages, Hardcover
First published March 15, 2009
144 people are currently reading
608 people want to read
About the author
Tom C. McKenney
13 books6 followersLt. Col. Tom Chase McKenney, USMC (Ret.) is a graduate of the University of Kentucky and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He was an infantry officer and parachutist in the United States Marine Corps, serving in Korea and Vietnam. A student of military history, he has contributed articles to such magazines as Guideposts, the American Legion Magazine, Military, and Leatherneck. His books and activism for veterans' issues have had him appearing on hundreds of radio and television programs including Fox News, the Today Show, and CBS Morning News."
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 73 reviews
December 18, 2025
There is a great book in here. Hinson went from neutral (he was in contact with Grant and Pillow at Fort Donelson) to leading a guerrilla band by 1863. By 1864 he fought a one-man war against Union forces and then aided Nathan Bedford Forrest in his last great raid. All of this sounds compelling, but McKenney, whatever his research chops, is not up to the task. There are too many asides and repeated words, and dramatic license is often taken. I agree with the view of the Civil War as complicated, but this book might lean too much towards the Lost Cause, although I would hardly call it a true representation of that viewpoint.
Most of all, Hinson is an enigma. We have only family stories, Federal reports, and the occasional newspaper tale. One of the few things Hinson penned was his account of the surrender of Fort Donelson. Otherwise, there is not much. Here McKenney falls for a trap that also plagues books on Marie Laveau. In the absence of evidence, the author reads what they want into Hinson's tale. The book would have benefited from a co-author who could have curbed McKenney's weaknesses. This is a topic in need of another look.
Most of all, Hinson is an enigma. We have only family stories, Federal reports, and the occasional newspaper tale. One of the few things Hinson penned was his account of the surrender of Fort Donelson. Otherwise, there is not much. Here McKenney falls for a trap that also plagues books on Marie Laveau. In the absence of evidence, the author reads what they want into Hinson's tale. The book would have benefited from a co-author who could have curbed McKenney's weaknesses. This is a topic in need of another look.
February 26, 2013
I am not a Civil War buff, but I will commend this book. It is a close-to-home, true story that in some ways closely resembles the story we know from the movie "The Patriot."
Jack Hinson was a wealthy, slave-owning landowner in northern Middle Tennessee (Stewart County/Clarksville) in the mid-1800s who did not partake in the partisanship of the brewing war. When war did break out, he befriended both sides, though he primarily sided with the Union and was found to be a repeated help to General Grant. He freed his slaves (at a cost of approximately $50,000) who all decided to stay on his plantation to continue to live and work as freed-men.
Though the war was mostly moving on and away from this part of the world, trouble still brewed, and Union soldiers coming through the woods looking for guerrilla fighters came upon two of Jack's sons who were out hunting for squirrels. The soliders shot and beheaded the sons, dragged their bodies to the town square and then planted their heads on the front gate posts of the family farm.
This action sent Jack's family into hiding and Jack into Rambo-mode. Jack became a one-man wrecking crew, commissioning a high-caliber rifle and becoming a deadly sniper who shot from hiding and was credited with many dozens of kills of Union officers (primarily) and soldiers.
The book details other woes of his life on the run and the difficulty his family faced, including the deaths of at least 3 other of his children.
The writing style of this book has snatches of being very good and it was obviously well-researched. It's not an academic style of writing which may be a help to many readers. (Kindle)
Jack Hinson was a wealthy, slave-owning landowner in northern Middle Tennessee (Stewart County/Clarksville) in the mid-1800s who did not partake in the partisanship of the brewing war. When war did break out, he befriended both sides, though he primarily sided with the Union and was found to be a repeated help to General Grant. He freed his slaves (at a cost of approximately $50,000) who all decided to stay on his plantation to continue to live and work as freed-men.
Though the war was mostly moving on and away from this part of the world, trouble still brewed, and Union soldiers coming through the woods looking for guerrilla fighters came upon two of Jack's sons who were out hunting for squirrels. The soliders shot and beheaded the sons, dragged their bodies to the town square and then planted their heads on the front gate posts of the family farm.
This action sent Jack's family into hiding and Jack into Rambo-mode. Jack became a one-man wrecking crew, commissioning a high-caliber rifle and becoming a deadly sniper who shot from hiding and was credited with many dozens of kills of Union officers (primarily) and soldiers.
The book details other woes of his life on the run and the difficulty his family faced, including the deaths of at least 3 other of his children.
The writing style of this book has snatches of being very good and it was obviously well-researched. It's not an academic style of writing which may be a help to many readers. (Kindle)
May 19, 2019
I really wanted to like this book, and might have been able to if the author, Tom C. McKenney, had presented it as fiction, instead of as a well researched history book revolving around one, Jack Hinson. Instead, the book is more along the lines of the movie, "Fargo" which, in the beginning, claims to be "Based on a True Story," when in fact, it is not. But it's still a good tale.
The subject matter -- Jack Hinson -- and his determination to avenge the slaughter of his children by Yankee murderers, makes for a fascinating story. McKenney begins by sharing his intrigue at discovering Hinson and his private war on a historical marker. This compelled him to do further research into the matter, and there is much to be commended about his research, such as his interactions with the Hinson clan and his finding the rifle used to kill the Blue clad Brute Beasts most responsible for the actual killing and mutilation of his boys.
McKenney also does a great job leading up to the murders of the boys by presenting an in-depth telling of the paranoid atmosphere of the time due to responses of local citizenry to the unscrupulous, murdering ways of the occupying Yankee horde. Mckenney does this by presenting a history of the War of Northern Aggression as it took place in the Western theater of operations.
I also appreciated McKenney's presentation of the naval escapades of Nathan Bedford Forrest, and the surrendering of a Navy gunship to Hinson.
However, I also found it frustrating that McKenney spent so much time on the history of the War in that area as he led up to the murders of the boys. But I understand why he presented his story in this way.
What is not commendable is the author's constant opinions put forth as the thoughts of Hinson, as well as other pro-Confederate stances, especially on the slave / master relationship. While there may be instances of positive slave / master relationships, this is not the only type of slave / master relationship that existed in the Antebellum South; plus, the author seems to forget that in any slave/master relationship, the fact remains that the slaves were SLAVES. The author asserts a romanticized version of the old South from the perspective of a wealthy slave holder.
Furthermore, McKenney's insistence on presenting Hinson's thoughts as real, when in fact they are McKenney's opinions is unprofessional for one claiming to write a history, and even more so when the author constantly defends the actions of Hinson.
Many times in the book, McKenney would have Hinson thinking to himself that killing the two Yankee bullies who killed and mutilated his sons was enough justice, and that he didn't need to go on killing more Yankees. McKenney would have Hinson claim that he didn't want to keep on killing, and that he didn't like all the senseless killing due to Lincoln's War. And yet, Hinson does keep on killing.
McKenney tries to present Hinson as an honorable man, who only wants to avenge the deaths of his boys, and in doing so, mete out justice. Yet, at the same time, the author is obviously in awe of the further killing that Hinson does, and decides to include other outlaw ruffians in the area who needed killing to protect the innocents in the land.
It seems that the author wants to make Hinson a good guy, and yet, Hinson's continued killing contradicts that good guy image.
It seems to me that, lacking any historical evidence as to Hinson's actions and thoughts, McKenney scrounges the little bit of evidence he has (most of it a smoke screen as presented in his history of the actual War) on Hinson and then projects himself (or how he sees himself) into the character of the man, Hinson. It is more a story of Hero Worship on the part of McKenney.
From the outset, it is obvious that McKenney is pro-Confederate. I have no problems with that in itself, but find it unprofessional to present such a biased view as unbiased history. I also find it fascinating that a man who is so pro-Confederate would spend his career in the Yankee military. But he could have entered the Yankee military when he was young, before he came to understand history, and this book is his attempt to make up for that. Even so, one cannot present a book as historically accurate when one insists on inserting one's opinions into the narrative.
The subject matter -- Jack Hinson -- and his determination to avenge the slaughter of his children by Yankee murderers, makes for a fascinating story. McKenney begins by sharing his intrigue at discovering Hinson and his private war on a historical marker. This compelled him to do further research into the matter, and there is much to be commended about his research, such as his interactions with the Hinson clan and his finding the rifle used to kill the Blue clad Brute Beasts most responsible for the actual killing and mutilation of his boys.
McKenney also does a great job leading up to the murders of the boys by presenting an in-depth telling of the paranoid atmosphere of the time due to responses of local citizenry to the unscrupulous, murdering ways of the occupying Yankee horde. Mckenney does this by presenting a history of the War of Northern Aggression as it took place in the Western theater of operations.
I also appreciated McKenney's presentation of the naval escapades of Nathan Bedford Forrest, and the surrendering of a Navy gunship to Hinson.
However, I also found it frustrating that McKenney spent so much time on the history of the War in that area as he led up to the murders of the boys. But I understand why he presented his story in this way.
What is not commendable is the author's constant opinions put forth as the thoughts of Hinson, as well as other pro-Confederate stances, especially on the slave / master relationship. While there may be instances of positive slave / master relationships, this is not the only type of slave / master relationship that existed in the Antebellum South; plus, the author seems to forget that in any slave/master relationship, the fact remains that the slaves were SLAVES. The author asserts a romanticized version of the old South from the perspective of a wealthy slave holder.
Furthermore, McKenney's insistence on presenting Hinson's thoughts as real, when in fact they are McKenney's opinions is unprofessional for one claiming to write a history, and even more so when the author constantly defends the actions of Hinson.
Many times in the book, McKenney would have Hinson thinking to himself that killing the two Yankee bullies who killed and mutilated his sons was enough justice, and that he didn't need to go on killing more Yankees. McKenney would have Hinson claim that he didn't want to keep on killing, and that he didn't like all the senseless killing due to Lincoln's War. And yet, Hinson does keep on killing.
McKenney tries to present Hinson as an honorable man, who only wants to avenge the deaths of his boys, and in doing so, mete out justice. Yet, at the same time, the author is obviously in awe of the further killing that Hinson does, and decides to include other outlaw ruffians in the area who needed killing to protect the innocents in the land.
It seems that the author wants to make Hinson a good guy, and yet, Hinson's continued killing contradicts that good guy image.
It seems to me that, lacking any historical evidence as to Hinson's actions and thoughts, McKenney scrounges the little bit of evidence he has (most of it a smoke screen as presented in his history of the actual War) on Hinson and then projects himself (or how he sees himself) into the character of the man, Hinson. It is more a story of Hero Worship on the part of McKenney.
From the outset, it is obvious that McKenney is pro-Confederate. I have no problems with that in itself, but find it unprofessional to present such a biased view as unbiased history. I also find it fascinating that a man who is so pro-Confederate would spend his career in the Yankee military. But he could have entered the Yankee military when he was young, before he came to understand history, and this book is his attempt to make up for that. Even so, one cannot present a book as historically accurate when one insists on inserting one's opinions into the narrative.
August 22, 2016
This should be a movie.
Jack Hinson was a pro-Union land owner in a border state. He owned slaved but freed them. Not only did he free them but he advised they were free to go if they wanted but if they wanted to stay and work for him he would pay and house them. In gratefulness the families that stayed ended up naming the part of town where they lived after him, a naming convention that stayed in place for over a hundred years.
Jack assisted the Union army when they took over the area, General Grant visited in his home and he carried messages back and forth between some of the Union commanders. However, things took a different turn when two of his teenage sons were spotted by a Union patrol on a hunting trip. The Union lieutenant thought they were partisan Confederate fighters and had them shot on the spot. Then he cut their tied their bodes behind his men's horses and road into the nearest town to send a message to the townspeople about what happens if locals help the Confederacy. One of the townspeople rushed to the Hinson house and let them know what happened and to expect the Union patrol to come to their house next to search for guns or any sign they might be helping the Confederates. After hiding their weapons the Union patrol rode up to the house and searched it. They then mounted the two boys head on the fence in front of the house and rode away.
Jack was furious. And he swallowed it because he couldn't fight the Union patrol in the middle of occupied Union territory and he had other young children would be caught in the crossfire. Jack ordered a special made rife, .50 cal with a long barrel for sniping. His family was now under suspicion. His oldest son was away in Virginia fighting with Robert E. Lee. Another son in the area did join the partisans. Finally after a warning he was going to be arrested he sent his family into hiding and fled into the woods himself. Because this happened in winter during inclement weather two of his young children got sick and died. Jack began shooting down Union soldiers in revenge for their murder of his sons. The first person he killed was the lieutenant that had his sons killed and the second was the Sergeant that smiled when his sons heads were posted on the fence in front of his home.
Jack set up in the woods on a bluff overlooking a place where the nearby river narrowed and boats going upstream slowed considerably because the current was stronger in the narrows. It was a perfect place for a sniper to pick off officer in the Naval vessels on the river. Jack killed several officers this way. During one of these encounters after he killed a couple officers on a boat and it was slowly moving up river helpless to fight back against a sniper in firing from cover the officer in charge had his men raise the white flag to surrender thinking that there was a large group of Confederates attacking them. Jack stopped firing since he felt he couldn't fire on people trying to surrender but neither was he prepared to take over the ship. Eventually the ship passed and escaped. This marked what appears to be the only time in history that a fully crewed navy ship surrendered to a single sniper.
Jack survived the war and it's estimated he killed over 100 men to avenge his children. His story was nearly lost and was mostly just a small footnote. The author here did some deep digging into old Union records, newspaper reports from the time, as well as interviewing some elderly people who knew some of the involved descendants.
This story would make a great movie, an American Ridley Scott Gladiator type film, but I doubt it will happen. People's view of the war has hardened in many places into a very black and white view that could not appreciate the complexity of a pro-Union man becoming an avenging angel of death for his family against the Union army. It's a pity.
Jack Hinson was a pro-Union land owner in a border state. He owned slaved but freed them. Not only did he free them but he advised they were free to go if they wanted but if they wanted to stay and work for him he would pay and house them. In gratefulness the families that stayed ended up naming the part of town where they lived after him, a naming convention that stayed in place for over a hundred years.
Jack assisted the Union army when they took over the area, General Grant visited in his home and he carried messages back and forth between some of the Union commanders. However, things took a different turn when two of his teenage sons were spotted by a Union patrol on a hunting trip. The Union lieutenant thought they were partisan Confederate fighters and had them shot on the spot. Then he cut their tied their bodes behind his men's horses and road into the nearest town to send a message to the townspeople about what happens if locals help the Confederacy. One of the townspeople rushed to the Hinson house and let them know what happened and to expect the Union patrol to come to their house next to search for guns or any sign they might be helping the Confederates. After hiding their weapons the Union patrol rode up to the house and searched it. They then mounted the two boys head on the fence in front of the house and rode away.
Jack was furious. And he swallowed it because he couldn't fight the Union patrol in the middle of occupied Union territory and he had other young children would be caught in the crossfire. Jack ordered a special made rife, .50 cal with a long barrel for sniping. His family was now under suspicion. His oldest son was away in Virginia fighting with Robert E. Lee. Another son in the area did join the partisans. Finally after a warning he was going to be arrested he sent his family into hiding and fled into the woods himself. Because this happened in winter during inclement weather two of his young children got sick and died. Jack began shooting down Union soldiers in revenge for their murder of his sons. The first person he killed was the lieutenant that had his sons killed and the second was the Sergeant that smiled when his sons heads were posted on the fence in front of his home.
Jack set up in the woods on a bluff overlooking a place where the nearby river narrowed and boats going upstream slowed considerably because the current was stronger in the narrows. It was a perfect place for a sniper to pick off officer in the Naval vessels on the river. Jack killed several officers this way. During one of these encounters after he killed a couple officers on a boat and it was slowly moving up river helpless to fight back against a sniper in firing from cover the officer in charge had his men raise the white flag to surrender thinking that there was a large group of Confederates attacking them. Jack stopped firing since he felt he couldn't fire on people trying to surrender but neither was he prepared to take over the ship. Eventually the ship passed and escaped. This marked what appears to be the only time in history that a fully crewed navy ship surrendered to a single sniper.
Jack survived the war and it's estimated he killed over 100 men to avenge his children. His story was nearly lost and was mostly just a small footnote. The author here did some deep digging into old Union records, newspaper reports from the time, as well as interviewing some elderly people who knew some of the involved descendants.
This story would make a great movie, an American Ridley Scott Gladiator type film, but I doubt it will happen. People's view of the war has hardened in many places into a very black and white view that could not appreciate the complexity of a pro-Union man becoming an avenging angel of death for his family against the Union army. It's a pity.
April 7, 2023
Ok, i liked this book.
I think a lot of criticism in this book revolving around the fictional conversations and thoughts/feelings by the characters in a supposed non-fiction, but i think this is a really good Historical Fiction.
The author is definitely looking from a southern perspective, but i'm not sure the protagonist would work if you weren't looking at the story from a southern perspective. The central figure of the story, Jack Hinson, is a neutral non-combatant to start the war, but when two of his sons are accused of being renegade bushwhackers, the are captured and executed without trial. This ignites a war of revenge by “Captain Jack” to inflict payback on anyone and everyone in blue. Becoming the premier Confederate Sniper and scout in the Western theatre.
The relationship or the central figure and his slaves being one big happy family seemed stretched, but I'm sure it did exist on occasion and he did free his slaves prior to the Emancipation Proclamation, so....
I thought the story overall was great. and there was a lot of (seemingly) facts mixed in ( i didn't research to check), but knowing the author freely admitted, "might have felt something similar" had me guessing at every statement whether it was a fact or an enhancement to the story.
I liked it.
I think a lot of criticism in this book revolving around the fictional conversations and thoughts/feelings by the characters in a supposed non-fiction, but i think this is a really good Historical Fiction.
The author is definitely looking from a southern perspective, but i'm not sure the protagonist would work if you weren't looking at the story from a southern perspective. The central figure of the story, Jack Hinson, is a neutral non-combatant to start the war, but when two of his sons are accused of being renegade bushwhackers, the are captured and executed without trial. This ignites a war of revenge by “Captain Jack” to inflict payback on anyone and everyone in blue. Becoming the premier Confederate Sniper and scout in the Western theatre.
The relationship or the central figure and his slaves being one big happy family seemed stretched, but I'm sure it did exist on occasion and he did free his slaves prior to the Emancipation Proclamation, so....
I thought the story overall was great. and there was a lot of (seemingly) facts mixed in ( i didn't research to check), but knowing the author freely admitted, "might have felt something similar" had me guessing at every statement whether it was a fact or an enhancement to the story.
I liked it.
May 15, 2020
I think the Patriot movie got its story from this man.
A Kentucky mountain man had Grant at his home for dinner and then Union soldiers killed his two sons for carrying hunting rifles. And that’s when Jack Hinson became Rambo. A snippet of the Civil War.
A Kentucky mountain man had Grant at his home for dinner and then Union soldiers killed his two sons for carrying hunting rifles. And that’s when Jack Hinson became Rambo. A snippet of the Civil War.
June 23, 2021
The riveting tale of the only man in military history to have a fully armed navel vessel surrender to one guy...and his gun! Trying to stay neutral in the Civil War, he was dragged into the conflict when his two sons are unfairly executed by Yankee officers for being rebel bushwackers while rabbit hunting. Things escalated from there!
February 16, 2022
A very engaging story about a little known episode that happened during the War Between the States. I thought the book was well written and informative. I have lived in Tennessee my entire life and I had never heard of Jack Hinson and his involvement in the war until I found this book. 5 stars all the way!
August 9, 2021
McKenney doesn't do full service to the legendary tale of Jack Hinson. Phrases and certain words are so often repeated if becomes tiresome and the author takes too many diversions from the main story of Hinson. Solid book, could have used a better editor.
December 17, 2016
Jack Hinson was a free-lance sniper during the American Civil War. Details about his activities and life are largely drawn from family stories anecdotes. Because of this, the book reads more like a novel or narrative than history. The author filled in so much space between facts with made up stuff it's hard to tell what might be true. There is one thing that doesn't ring true. The 'fact' that Jack Hinson was able to hit targets at over a half mile away (1000 yards) with a muzzleloader that were on a boat using open sights is something phenomenal. Most shooters would be using a scope at less than 500 yards. Sniping is a science that people in the military study to become proficient. Just because someone grows up hunting doesn't mean that they're going to shoot a rabbit at a thousand yards. The book mentions that Hinson marked his barrel to tally his victims. There were less than 40 marks on his barrel but there had to be at least a hundred victims according to the author because some of them Hinson didn't bother recording. How convenient. It makes a much better story to say over 100 than to say 36. When stories get passed word of mouth it is easy to see how details can get inadvertently altered over time. Besides the factuality of the story, the pace of the writing could be agonizingly slow at times.
June 2, 2019
I loved reading of Jack Hinson and his one man barrage of union officers during the civil war. I knocked off a star because I wanted the books to me more specifically about jack hinson. At times, the author went into grave detail about general facts about the civil war or specific people. Also, listening audibly it was hard to follow along with who was who, especially at the beginning.
January 24, 2022
A true story about a wealthy plantation owner living in the beautiful land between the rivers. He was indifferent to the war and even a friend to Ulysses S. Grant who was forced to pick sides. He picked sides after union solders seized and murdered his sons, mistaking them for guerilla fighters. The brutality was put to extremes when the solders placed their decapitated heads on the gate post of his estate. Jack Hinson sought revenge by having a state of the art long range rifle made, and eventually used it to kill the officers in charge of his sons’ deaths. Eventually he was run off his estate, his home and possessions destroyed, and he live as a fugitive on the run for the remainder of the war, using his sniper’s rifle expertly. It is said that he killed 100 people. There are other historical moments made when an entire ship surrendered to him. Jesse James and Virgil Earp even make an appearance. The book took 15 years of study and research to write. The author did a good job. There are some embellishments, but they are obvious and inconsequential to the overall story. He gives a detailed background, but doesn’t weight you down with unnecessary details. I would recommend it and would read it again.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 1, 2024
Interesting, a bit repetitive sometimes, but a very cool story overall.
March 25, 2018
Being a student of the Civil War, I enjoyed this read. Although it is not an all-encompassing history of the war, it did focus on the Western campaign, one man's quest for revenge, and the Union occupation of the Kentucky and Tennessee during the war. It was a look at the war from the eyes of Jack Hinson, whose goal was to ride out the war as a 'neutral', but whose life was changed dramatically when 2 of his sons were executed and their bodies mutilated by the Federals who mistook them for bushwhackers, or ambushers. Jack Hinson's 36 confirmed kills of Union soldiers, mostly officers of rank, is a testament to how much hatred there was between the North and the South sides. If you enjoy a good biography, set in the time frame of the Civil War, you should read this book. It is well-documented, and follows the Hinson family to the modern era.
May 9, 2018
This is an excellent book on Jack Hinson, a man who tried his best to continue life outside of the Civil War; but, through personal tragedy, found himself an active participant.
This story is not a sanitized "victors story" about the causes of the war and how they affected average people; but rather delves into the true reasons of why the Southern states seceded, and why the pro-Union states fought so hard to subjugate those states and "bring them back into the fold".
This story is an expose on how when one man, was pushed too far, he made it his mission to fight his own war of vengeance. A great read about a great man.
This story is not a sanitized "victors story" about the causes of the war and how they affected average people; but rather delves into the true reasons of why the Southern states seceded, and why the pro-Union states fought so hard to subjugate those states and "bring them back into the fold".
This story is an expose on how when one man, was pushed too far, he made it his mission to fight his own war of vengeance. A great read about a great man.
October 4, 2021
I was recommended this book because I was about to make a trip to northern Tennessee to do ancestry research for four generations of my family between 1810 and 1920. The book was a great way enhance my work. The details of the war and how the people and landscape were changed by it, helped me to understand what my family may have endured. I enjoyed the audio version while I drove through the area the author was describing. While I expected the story to focus on Jack Hinson’s sniping battle more exclusively, I was pleased with the more thorough history of the effect the War had on the area, both before and after the fighting. Thanks to the author and to my friend for the recommendation.
November 22, 2019
A great story and a thoughtful telling that blends natural and military history with an admiration and fascination typically reserved for our Wild West heroes ... it is a very thorough telling that at times can be repetitive and tedious but ultimately the extra detail enhances the book ... Jack Hinson is simply an unparalleled example of American courage, commitment and principle, a true American frontiersman who in many ways should be admired ... the book is essential to any person looking for a more perfect understanding of the Civil War
July 7, 2022
Wow - what a story. Jack Hinson, living in the South during the Civil War, maintains neutrality until two of his sons are shot and beheaded by Union soldiers. He then goes John Wick, orders himself a special-made rifle, and kills over 100 people, mostly Union officers. He is never caught. This story of the stuff of movies. It was interesting to look at one man, one family, and one area within the larger Civil War.
February 16, 2015
I really wanted to like this book. However, it should have been listed as historical fiction. I appreciated the author's attempt to "flesh out" the times and characters, but that watered down the impact of the solid history and research presented. If you read this book PLEASE do not let it be your only source of knowledge on the South, the Civil War, or Slavery in the US......
January 1, 2019
After experiencing the abuses of the Northern armies, even having his two son's shot and beheaded while hunting squirrels, Jack get sucks into the war against the Union. Previously he was against southern succession and was against the war. I think the movie the Patriot was based off of this true story.
September 4, 2020
This story is about an area of the Civil War not very familiar to me, as well as a geographic area I have never visited. The aspects of plantation life, details about the planting and harvesting, details about the rifle, and description of Jack’s hideouts all were very interesting to me. Many reminders about the fragility of life in those times.
February 27, 2022
From the horses mouth
The reality of how the Southern States were treated will never be reflected in history books. Lack of communication was paramount to mistakes made and opportunities lost. This is a realistic account of the atrocities that were sugar coated in order to present a different view.
The reality of how the Southern States were treated will never be reflected in history books. Lack of communication was paramount to mistakes made and opportunities lost. This is a realistic account of the atrocities that were sugar coated in order to present a different view.
Read
June 29, 2022Extremely well researched and interesting
Having studied over forty books on the Civil War this was a very personal thought provoking insight and emotional account of the Hinson family and others whose lives were irrevocably changed by events beyond their control and Jack Hinson's reaction to his families destruction. I couldn't put this book down.
Having studied over forty books on the Civil War this was a very personal thought provoking insight and emotional account of the Hinson family and others whose lives were irrevocably changed by events beyond their control and Jack Hinson's reaction to his families destruction. I couldn't put this book down.
October 23, 2019
Small bodies of occupying Union troops were posted in the midst of an unfriendly and sometimes hostile populace. The mission of those troops--to maintain order in the occupied region and protect lines of communication and supply for the Union army operating deeper south in Tennessee. Patrols were dispatched by the forces left behind to suppress "bushwhacking" and raids by loosely organized guerrillas, many of whom were the sons of established estate owners such as Jack Hinson.
The bushwhacking by guerrillas was brutal. The ordered retaliatory suppression was likewise. Two of Hinson's sons (active as guerrillas) were executed by Union troops, decapitated, and their severed heads mounted on the entry gateposts of the Hinson estate, which was ransacked and burned.
Jack Hinson, nearly 60 and intent upon hanging onto what he had accumulated on his estate in the relatively isolated, narrow region that then existed between the Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers, reacted with vengeance and determination. He commissioned a gunsmith to make a heavy-barreled 50-caliber long rifle, designed for long-range accuracy, which Hinson then used to single-handedly assassinate more than one hundred of the enemy, predominantly Union officers on river transports or mounted Union officers and non-commissioned officers on patrols. Hinson carefully selected his naturally concealed firing positions high above his targets where detection and capture by the enemy improbable.
The book is well-researched book and thoroughly referenced. The author tells a true and compelling historic and human story which he has rescued from obscurity. The book is enhanced with facsimiles of archival documents, ink drawings suggesting Jack's personal appearance and his vantage points above his targets, images of family members, modern photographs of locales still existing in the landscape near the Kentucky-Tennessee border, as well as photographs of Jack's long rifle.
The bushwhacking by guerrillas was brutal. The ordered retaliatory suppression was likewise. Two of Hinson's sons (active as guerrillas) were executed by Union troops, decapitated, and their severed heads mounted on the entry gateposts of the Hinson estate, which was ransacked and burned.
Jack Hinson, nearly 60 and intent upon hanging onto what he had accumulated on his estate in the relatively isolated, narrow region that then existed between the Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers, reacted with vengeance and determination. He commissioned a gunsmith to make a heavy-barreled 50-caliber long rifle, designed for long-range accuracy, which Hinson then used to single-handedly assassinate more than one hundred of the enemy, predominantly Union officers on river transports or mounted Union officers and non-commissioned officers on patrols. Hinson carefully selected his naturally concealed firing positions high above his targets where detection and capture by the enemy improbable.
The book is well-researched book and thoroughly referenced. The author tells a true and compelling historic and human story which he has rescued from obscurity. The book is enhanced with facsimiles of archival documents, ink drawings suggesting Jack's personal appearance and his vantage points above his targets, images of family members, modern photographs of locales still existing in the landscape near the Kentucky-Tennessee border, as well as photographs of Jack's long rifle.
February 14, 2021
As the star rating suggests, it was OK. This is a book I was excited to read after seeing it on the Kindle store. So excited that I was willing to pay what I thought was a high price for a Kindle book. Ultimately I found it disappointing. I do think the author likely did a good job, considering the probable difficulty of finding all the information needed for the book.
I think it took over a year for me to finish the book. I'd keep putting it down in favour of reading something else that I had found.
One thing that stuck out to me about the book, was the author repeatedly pointed out how well Jack and his family treated their slaves, and how they were practically family themselves. At first I thought, that was a good thing, to try and illustrate that not everyone who owned slaves treated them horribly. But after the 3rd or 4th time it was brought up, I was just, like, Ok man, I get it... We're told more about how Jack treated his slaves, than how he treated his own family members.
So to the part that everyone is interested in... Well you do get some action scenes a few times when Jack goes about getting his revenge. Of the 36+ Union soldiers he shot, probably fewer than half are described. Again, it probably comes down to difficulty in finding information, but to a reader it can be disappointing. I mean, that's the whole reason most people will want to read this book.
Recommended only for Civil War buffs.
I think it took over a year for me to finish the book. I'd keep putting it down in favour of reading something else that I had found.
One thing that stuck out to me about the book, was the author repeatedly pointed out how well Jack and his family treated their slaves, and how they were practically family themselves. At first I thought, that was a good thing, to try and illustrate that not everyone who owned slaves treated them horribly. But after the 3rd or 4th time it was brought up, I was just, like, Ok man, I get it... We're told more about how Jack treated his slaves, than how he treated his own family members.
So to the part that everyone is interested in... Well you do get some action scenes a few times when Jack goes about getting his revenge. Of the 36+ Union soldiers he shot, probably fewer than half are described. Again, it probably comes down to difficulty in finding information, but to a reader it can be disappointing. I mean, that's the whole reason most people will want to read this book.
Recommended only for Civil War buffs.
March 4, 2021
Clickbait title and cover but....
If you do like I did and purchase this book from the jacket description thinking it is about Jack Hinson, well you are sort of right. You will read about 40% of the book before finally getting to the part you paid money to read. That's not saying the book to that point is bad it simply is a book about the Civil War in the area of Land Between the Lakes with some background of the protagonists thrown in. Not what I really wanted but interesting since I am a Tennessean and spent a lot of time in that area.
When you finally get to the story it has some interesting facts along with a lot of speculation and repetitive scenes. The major moments are very interesting in spite of other issues. After approximately 25% more of the book you are well past Jack's death and back to an historical perspective of the time. Again not what I paid for.
If you enjoy history with a side story about a local family added then this is a good read and worth the time. If however you expect a book which is mainly about what the title and cover implies you are going to be disappointed. So, worth the time? Yes. True to the title and cover? Not even close.
If you do like I did and purchase this book from the jacket description thinking it is about Jack Hinson, well you are sort of right. You will read about 40% of the book before finally getting to the part you paid money to read. That's not saying the book to that point is bad it simply is a book about the Civil War in the area of Land Between the Lakes with some background of the protagonists thrown in. Not what I really wanted but interesting since I am a Tennessean and spent a lot of time in that area.
When you finally get to the story it has some interesting facts along with a lot of speculation and repetitive scenes. The major moments are very interesting in spite of other issues. After approximately 25% more of the book you are well past Jack's death and back to an historical perspective of the time. Again not what I paid for.
If you enjoy history with a side story about a local family added then this is a good read and worth the time. If however you expect a book which is mainly about what the title and cover implies you are going to be disappointed. So, worth the time? Yes. True to the title and cover? Not even close.
March 28, 2018
I shift from 4 stars to 5 stars and then slide back to 3 stars...then back to 5.
My bar for 5 stars is I keep the book. I am keeping this book. It is a wonderful historical reference of the area of my maternal ancestry. I enjoyed reading about the life of farmsteads during the Civil War. How did anyone survive? (Too many didn’t.)
My bar for 4 stars: I recommend the book to others to read. I do recommend this book.
My bar for 3 stars: I enjoyed the book and would tell anyone who asks that I enjoyed it; the writing is fine but just not the rare, over-the-top excellent. The author of Jack Hinson’s One-Man War did a fine job in holding my interests and inspired conversations.
Now to revisit the area with new eyes!
My bar for 5 stars is I keep the book. I am keeping this book. It is a wonderful historical reference of the area of my maternal ancestry. I enjoyed reading about the life of farmsteads during the Civil War. How did anyone survive? (Too many didn’t.)
My bar for 4 stars: I recommend the book to others to read. I do recommend this book.
My bar for 3 stars: I enjoyed the book and would tell anyone who asks that I enjoyed it; the writing is fine but just not the rare, over-the-top excellent. The author of Jack Hinson’s One-Man War did a fine job in holding my interests and inspired conversations.
Now to revisit the area with new eyes!
April 30, 2018
First, keep in mind that this is basically historical fiction because the author tells us right up front that there are few real day to day facts about Jack Hinson. That being said, the core of the book is truthful and the story is fantastic! It's a gripping tale about how revenge is best served cold. I loved the details of day to day life during the Civil War in Tennessee and Kentucky. There were depredations committed by both sides and innocent civilians caught in the middle just trying to live their lives. The only bone I have to pick is with the depiction of slavery being benign and paternalistic, at least as it relates to the Hinsons. Other than that, I highly recommend this fantastic book. Jack Hinson would be a great role for Clint Eastwood!
December 11, 2022
The story of Jack Hinson is a little-known and almost unbelievable one. This was an audiobook, one I thoroughly enjoyed. The author lathered this book in detail. From historic places to key characters in this part of the Civil War, it is a rich read. The agony, suffering, death and destruction of our war is epitomized in the story, putting an exclamation point on one man's life and his personal level of suffering. If you are a Civil War buff and crave that hour-by-hour minutia, this is well worth the read.
October 15, 2023
This book does a good job of going into Jack Hinson's life and his path of revenge during the United States Civil War. The vivid detial given to many of Hinsen's kills paints a picture of the skills that Hinson possessed as a rifleman. While also showing the horror and confusion of union soldiers caught in his attacks. A decent summary of the attacks on Fort Henry Donelson is given, which leads to the chain of events that caused Hinson to take to the war and wage war against the Union. Overall, this was a very enjoyable book and a must-read for any Civil War enthusiast.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 73 reviews