I was reading a book that many of you are doubtless framiliar with called "Four Years with the Iron Brigade". It was edited by our very own Lance Herdegen and if you talk to Andy Ackert, he, scott and Mary Gutzke helped lance write it when they were in college.

Anyway, I came across this passage when I was waiting in a doctors office and it brought me back to our Football games at Kenosha and Old World


page 83

April 28th, 1862 Northern Virginia


...The boys play Football and other games for pastime. Co. D has got to work....


In May, He also talks about the boys playing Football as well. It is an excellent read and William Ray covers all aspects of soldier's life in his diary. Hope you all have found a good book to read this cold winter.

Jason Reinholz

Jason,

You're far too generous. "Helped" means that I made photocopies and gave input when I was asked whether I thought a typical reader might need a footnote to explain something. It is a good journal, though. I highly recommend it because Ray really does get into the details of day to day life in the army.

Ray's account is a very good read. Having read it now three times, I am always picking up something I missed in previous reads.

Speaking of Ray, I stumbled across an book last year on the 8th Wisconsin which was another lenghty diary similar to Ray. It was published by a local Wisconsin source so if I come across it again, I will let everyone know. I ran across it in a bookstore in West Bend this past March.

Wishing everyone gets a good book to read from Ol' Saint Nick.

Tom

Tom Klas wrote:
Speaking of Ray, I stumbled across an book last year on the 8th Wisconsin which was another lenghty diary similar to Ray. It was published by a local Wisconsin source so if I come across it again, I will let everyone know. I ran across it in a bookstore in West Bend this past March.

Wishing everyone gets a good book to read from Ol' Saint Nick.

Tom

Hi gents,

Thanks to my chum Bret Jaeger, librarian at the Waupun Public Library and member of the College Square Society and the Citizens Guard, here is a description of the book on the 8th Wisconsin that may be an excellent read as well.

Brother to the Eagle: the Civil War Journal of Sgt. Ambrose Armitage 8th Wisconsin Infantry by Alden R. Carter. Published in 2006 by Booklocker.com, Inc., it is 689 p. with some photos and maps.

Below is a link to Amazon.com of the book that I will try to pick up after the Jolly man comes.

www.amazon.com/Brother-Eagle-Armitage-Wi...229761134&sr=8-1

Merry Christmas gents,

Tom

Thanks for the link Tom, I added it to my Amazon wish list.

Hi Andy,

I received this book for Christmas from my parents and for those whom attended our Fox Lake Preservation March and LH this past May, you will take solace in the very fact that Ambrose Armitage was a frequent visitor to the Fox Lake Congregational Church of Christ in his diary starting in 1860 while a student at Wisconsin Female College which in 1860 taught class work for both men and women.

Armitage enlisted in Captain William Dawes' Fox Lake Rifles, which become Company "D," 8th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry and was primarily recruited from Fox Lake Wisconsin and surrounding communities.

I hope more gents get a copy of this diary as it looks like a very good read from just skimming over the book so far.

Tom