Delaware during the Civil War: A political history

by Harold Bell Hancock

Reprint of the 1961 first edition B2-1266 by the Delaware Heritage Commission. viii , 197 pages. stiff paper wrappers.. 8vo..

Genres: Civil War

197 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

Reviews

[Lclawson]

One of the few book length studies of Delaware during the Civil War. As the title indicates, this is a political study. It gets into the bewildering array of political opinions and colorful people who populated Delaware's wartime political landscape. One must read this book in conjunction with other books and articles to get a comprehensive understanding of what was going on in Delaware during the war. One must also keep in mind that this book was written over 50 years ago, so it can seem a little dated to current readers. If readers can wade through the dated style, they will come away with a good understanding of the often bizarre situation in Delaware during the Civil War.

[Jim]

While the author tends to be a bit wordy, he does so by giving the reader references to a number of different newspaper accounts, diaries, etc. about the same period of time or about the same event. All of these references are from Delaware sources. As such, the reader has a good collection of recorded Delaware discussions and reports of political events and feelings in Delaware just before, during and immediately after the Civil War.

[Mark Singer]

While I was searching for information on the state of Delaware during the American Civil War for genealogical reasons, I came across this 1961 book. The political situation in Delaware just before and during the conflict was complex, but Hancock manages to explain it all. There are multiple layers of Democratic versus Republican (and in 1860, the Constitutional Union Party); those who wanted to remain versus those who wanted to secede, and pro and anti slavery factions.

[Paul S]

If your into Delaware or Civil War history, then this one is for you. Available free online, and easy to download. Full of detail and well written.