"My Life in the Irish Brigade: the Civil War memoirs of Pvt. William McCarter, 116th PA Infantry" edited by Kevin E. O'Brien, 1996, Savas Pub Co, ISBN 1-882810-07-4. William McCarter was born in Derry abt 1840. He was married, had several children, and was living in Philadelphia when he enlisted on 23 Aug 1862 in the 116th PA. He was very literate and observant. He also had an exceptional talent for penmanship, which soon brought him to the attention of the commander of the Irish Brigade, Brig. Gen. Thomas F. Meagher. Meagher was so impressed by his work he soon assigned him to be brigade adjutant. McCarter's military career was cut short when he was wounded several times that December at the battle of Fredericksburg - his only full-scale battle. Ironically, he wasn't supposed to be in this fight; Meagher had ordered him to stay behind and entrusted McC to take care of his belongings in the event Meagher was killed. But McC managed to sneak back into the ranks and take part in the doomed attack on Marye's Heights. His wounds necessitated his discharge in May 1863; while they never quite healed completely, he lived until 1911. Despite the short time frame covered by the book, there's a lot here, almost a day-by-day account. McC talks about his contacts with Virginia Unionists, dyed-in-the-wool Confederate ladies, slaves, and Sisters of Mercy; he even met up with Lincoln a couple of times. His belief that the majority of the Irish Brigade was Protestant is incorrect (he himself was one), but the fact he believed this indicates a sizable number were. He also covers his experiences on the picket line, army grub (which seems to have agreed with him - he gained almost 20 lbs), and his impressions of Federal generals - the most thorough being that of General Meagher. Meagher's only fault that's mentioned was a fondness for the bottle - appears he was a binge drinker if not an alcoholic. Otherwise, he was generous to a fault, easily approachable, solicitous of his men's welfare, and once he took a shine to someone he was a friend for life (when McC was hospitalized, Meagher used his influence to get him VIP treatment). Finally, there's the battle and its aftermath. After sustaining several wounds, McC was forced to remain on the field several hours before managing to crawl away and find some assistance. His tale of his encounter with CW field hospitals is even more horrific than his battle account. He eventually managed to get himself to a Washington hospital and his tale ends upon his discharge. The appendices include 2 letters written by Irish Brigade soldiers following Fredericksburg, a poem by Kate M. Boylan ("The Irish Dead on Fredericksburg Heights") written 17 Mar 1863, and a poem by the author which he wrote in tribute to one of his comrades killed there. Endnotes by the editor provide commentary. This book is outstanding - easily rates 4 shamrocks. McCarter was an excellent storyteller and it's a wonder that his book wasn't discovered and published much earlier. Whether or not your interests include Meagher's Irish Brigade, his description of soldier life from the enlisted man's viewpoint makes it well worth reading. Dennis mailto:fran@ees.eesc.com