OVERVIEW:
Coinciding with the 150th anniversary commemoration of the Civil War, a new book has been published chronicling the wartime diaries and saga of Ephraim Miner, a Western Pennsylvania farmer boy. With his eardrums shattered and feet frostbitten at the Battle of Fredericksburg, in action with the 142nd Pennsylvania Infantry, Ephraim then spent more than two-and-a-half years languishing in the Army's ill-prepared health care and convalescent system. The diary in which he wrote quite likely was a gift from the famed poet Walt Whitman.
Well At This Time features never-before published scans from Ephraim's diaries, as well as more than 100 rare Civil War engravings and family photographs. Researched, written and edited by the soldier's great-great grand nephew, Minerd.com founder Mark Miner, and designed by award-winning Semonik Creative, the book is available in three attractive formats. You will want a copy for your personal library and to give as legacy gifts to relatives and friends.
In a lengthy review, the Western Pennsylvania History magazine of the Senator John Heinz History Center, an associate of the Smithsonian, concludes: ... one will not find stirring accounts of battle, but entries that describe day-to-day life of a young man who continued to serve his country despite being hobbled by illness and a battle injury... This book will definitely appeal to readers interested in Pennsylvania Infantry troops." A review in America's Civil War says that the author "does a solid job bringing together diverse pieces of information to paint a picture..." and that the soldier's "voice does come through, in large part because Mark Miner has done his homework and walks readers through Ephraim's experience.... Ephraim is real to the reader."
Author's 2012 Appearances and Book Signings |
| Jan. 23, 2012 | Greater Pittsburgh Civil War Round Table, Hampton Township, PA |
| Feb. 21, 2012 | Civil War Round Table, Erie, PA |
| Feb. 25, 2012 | Rob Pratte Show, 1020 KDKA-AM Radio - listen to podcast |
| March 14, 2012 | Civil War Round Table, Butler, PA |
| April 2, 2012 | Annual meeting, Historical & Genealogical Society of Somerset Co., PA |
| April 11, 2012 | Civil War Round Table, Scottdale, PA |
| April 25, 2012 | Fayette County (PA) Library System Reading Circle, Smithfield, PA |
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Walt Whitman |
Born and raised in Somerset County, PA, Ephraim and his fellow soldiers in the 142nd Pennsylvania came under some of the deadliest enemy gunfire of the war. At Fredericksburg, with 12,600 Union casualties, the 142nd Pennsylvania was one of a handful of Union regiments under Gen. George Meade to break through enemy lines commanded by Stonewall Jackson and A.P. Hill, only to be savagely repulsed.
In the aftermath of battle, Ephraim may well have seen, spoken with or been treated by Clara Barton (future founder of the Red Cross), Louisa May Alcott (author of Little Women) and Walt Whitman (author of Leaves of Grass), who were nurses treating the Union wounded at Fredericksburg. Later, while in hospitals in Washington, D.C., Ephraim's path may again have crossed with Whitman, who spent much of the rest of the war as an aide in the Union hospitals in the city. They could have seen each other again as both are known to have spent time writing on the steps of the U.S. Capitol. It is entirely possible that Ephraim's diary was a gift from Whitman, who is known to have given wounded soldiers cheap writing materials in the same places and at the same times Ephraim was there.
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| Union bombardment of Fredericksburg, two weeks before Christmas 1862, where Ephraim's eardrums were deafened by cannonfire. |
No longer fit for active duty, Ephraim was sent to army hospitals in Belle Plain near Fredericksburg, and thence to Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, Fortress Monroe, City Point, VA and back to Alexandria, VA. In 1864, he was transferred to the 22nd Veterans Reserve Corps, and sent to a wide variety of military facilities to provide guard duty and hospital orderly services -- in the former Confederate capital city of Richmond; the Albany Arsenal at Watervliet, N.Y.; the Camp Morton POW facility near Indianapolis, Ind.; Camp Tod in Columbus, Ohio; and finally at Camp Dennison near Cincinnati.
Media Interviews and Reviews |
| May 9, 2012 | America's Civil War [ link ] |
| April 2012 | Western Pennsylvania History, Senator John Heinz History Center [ link ] |
| April 22, 2012 | Connellsville (PA) Daily Courier - "Book Records Civil War Stories" [ link ] |
| March 26, 2012 | Somerset (PA) Daily American - "Historical Center to Offer Civil War Program" [ link ] |
| Feb. 25, 2012 | Rob Pratte Show, 1020 KDKA-AM Radio [ listen to podcast ] |
| Feb. 5, 2012 | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette - "The Poet and a Farmer in Fredericksburg: Walt Whitman and My Uncle in a Civil War Hospital" [ link ] |
| Nov. 17, 2011 | Civil War News - "Well At This Time" - [ link ] |
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| Diary entry - Battle of Fort Stevens |
He writes about the Battle of Fort Stevens, near where Walter Reed Army Hospital is today; his joy at receiving letters from home and occasional visits from relatives; his reaction to the assassination of President Lincoln; and much, much more.
In the process, Ephraim's soul was seared with the suffering of many new friends he'd met, from New Hampshire, Maine, New York, Ohio, Michigan and Indiana. The back pages of his diary contain their signatures and hometowns, as well as lists of family and friends who sent him letters.
The book not only includes a transcript of all of Ephraim's 1864 and 1865 diary entries exactly as he wrote them, but also cross-references where the 142nd Pennsylvania was in action, what else was happening during the war, and deaths, wounds and captures faced by scores of his extended Minerd-Minard-Miner-Minor cousins.
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Bustling federal arsenal at Albany, N.Y., which Ephraim helped guard |
In short, it is a comprehensive look at a part of the Civil War experience not often told -- the lengthy medical recovery of a soldier who found other ways to serve his country, and in the process discovered the people, highways and byways of the country he was serving.
Where to Buy the Book |
| Senator John Heinz History Center gift shop, Pittsburgh [ link ] | Somerset Historical Center gift shop, Somerset, PA [ link ] |
Hostess Gift Shoppe, [ link ] |
Or order online using this website |
Previews: Introduction | Chapter One: Becoming a Man