Name/Title
Old Abe the War Eagle A True Story of the Civil War and ReconstructionDescription
"Old Abe the War Eagle." A True Story of the Civil War and Reconstruction.
This is the story of Old Abe, the bald eagle that became the mascot of the Eighth Regiment of Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry, participated in thirty-seven battles and skirmishes during the Civil War, and in 1865 embarked upon a second career as a living symbol of the victorious Union. In wartime, he captured the imagination of the public with his daring exploits and entertaining antics-some true, some imaginary. During the Reconstruction years, as a fixture of political campaigns and rallies, Old Abe reminded all who saw him of what the North had fought for and who the enemies of the Union had been.
But this is more than simply the story of the legendary "feathered hero." Quite properly, it is also the story of the men among whom Old Abe lived: the farmers, loggers, clerks, and immigrants who flocked to the colors in 1861. The citizens-turned-soldier of the Eighth Wisconsin-most of them young, not all of them brave-experienced much the same things that members of other Union regiments did: boredom, fatigue, endless marching and countermarching, the agonies of disease and sickness, the sudden terror and exhilaration of combat. What differentiated the Eighth Wisconsin from all the other regiments was their eagle. Old Abe helps make their story worth telling.
RICHARD H. ZEITLIN holds a doctorate in American history from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is Curator of the Grand Army of the Republic Memorial Hall in the Capitol in Madison.
Physical Description: 8 1/4 x 11
113 pgs.
