Him on the one side and me on the other
Subtitle: the Civil War letters of Alexander Campbell, 79th New York Infantry Regiment and James Campbell, 1st South Carolina Battalion
By: [edited by] Terry A. Johnston, Jr.
Contributors: Campbell, James, 1835-1905.; Johnston, Terry A., 1970-
Publisher: University of South Carolina Press
Published: 1999
Place of publication: Columbia
Language: eng
Number of pages: 190
Subjects: Campbell, James, 1835-1905 -- Correspondence.; Campbell, Alexander, 1837-1909 -- Correspondence.; United States. Army. New York Infantry Regiment, 79th (1859-1876); Confederate States of America. Army. South Carolina Infantry Battalion, 1st.; Soldiers -- New York (State) -- Correspondence.; Prisoners of war -- United States -- Correspondence.; United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Personal narratives.; New York (State) -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Personal narratives.; New York (State) -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Regimental histories.; South Carolina -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Personal narratives.; South Carolina -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Prisoners and prisons.
Genres: Correspondence.; Personal narratives.; Regimental histories.
Description: Alexander and James Campbell, born and raised in Scotland, immigrated to the United States as teenagers in the 1850s and settled in vastly different regions of the country - Alexander in New York City and James in Charleston, South Carolina. When the American Civil War broke out in 1861, Alexander and James opted to fight for their adopted states and causes: Alexander enlisted in the 79th New York "Highlanders" and James in the 1st South Carolina ("Charleston") Battalion.

"Him on the One Side and Me on the Other" tells the remarkable story of these two brothers divided by the Civil War. Through their wartime letters to family and to each other, the brothers expose the deep fractures in American society caused by the most destructive war in this country's history.

In the most dramatic moment in this story of the brothers' wartime experiences, the letters reveal a near-reunion on the battlefield of Secessionville, South Carolina, on June 16, 1862. There Alexander was part of the Union force that assaulted Tower Battery, a fort inhabited by James and his Confederate comrades.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. 176-183) and index.