Author: Edwin C. Kingsbury
This book is a carefully researched first person biography of Jacob Kingsbury, our nation’s first 30 year soldier. The story of his service from 1785 through 1815 is intriguing, but more important for the genealogist and family historian is the history of Jacob’s dealings with the officers and men of the First and Second Regiments. That history is distilled from two types of sources: previously published journal/diary entries from the men with whom Jacob served, and some 1,000 pieces of mostly unpublished personal and military correspondence. Since the book is a unique source for gathering this material, the author has taken painstaking care to reference by footnotes the incidents cited from each source.
An extended index contains the names of, and often biographical notes on, more than 325 individuals. Appendices contain lists of soldiers, officers killed and wounded in St. Clair’s disastrous campaign of 1791 (previously published), and of Connecticut troops to be discharged for cause, and discharged by death from 1813 (unpublished).
The book has a twofold appeal: It is a history of winning the Old Northwest and of the War of 1812 in Rhode Island and Connecticut, and a source for hitherto unpublished names and incidents in the careers of our nation’s first soldiers. Outside the setting, there is one section that is fiction. Approximately one-half chapter is given to explaining the romance between Jacob and his niece (by marriage) which culminated in their marriage. Fictional aspects of the books are noted in the footnotes. There are no names that are not historical. Index.
1999, 8.5" X 11", Softbound, 207 pages
ISBN 1558563016
Price: $20.00
SKU: CP-231
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