Florida in the Civil War

Although the experiences of Florida’s troops in the Confederate armies of Northern Virginia and of Tennessee has been rather well treated by historians, the overall experience of the state in the Civil War has been rather neglected, a matter which this volume makes an effort to address.

A Forgotten Front opens with an introduction by Prof. Weitz (Dalton State) outlining the early history of the state. There then follow with ten essays by several scholars on various aspects of the state’s history in the era of the Civil War.

These essays cover the state’s role in the Compromise of 1850, race, class, politics and polemics of the Secession crisis, the Union capture of Amelia Island, guerrilla operations in “occupied Florida”, the role of Governor John Milton’s administration, the effects of the war on and influence of religion, law, women, a very interesting essay on the largely overlooked Hispanic community in the state, and finally the Battle of Olustee and memorialization of the war.

Although the essay on Amelia Island touches on the subject, a separate paper on the state’s African-American residents would have been of value, as would one on Florida’s role in Confederate logistics, given that the State was a major supplier of beef to the Southern armies. Despite these important omissions, A Forgotten Front is a good read for anyone with a serious interest in the Civil War.

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