Letters to the Editor
Factual Error
In Keith Ashley’s letter to the editor responding to Thomas Eddlem’s article “America’s Civil War and the Advent of Total War” (October 20, 2014 issue), wherein Eddlem claimed that the North was responsible for “total war” measures against the South, not vice versa, Ashley made a great error in his facts.
There was not a pit at Fort Pillow, caused by a Union explosion, where black troops were trapped and murdered by the South. He is somewhat describing what happened at the siege of Petersburg, where the Union troops built a tunnel under the Confederate breastwork and filled it with explosives. After the explosion took place, a regiment of colored troops, who were to receive glory for breaking through the Confederate defenses, ran into the crater and were shot by Confederate soldiers. They could have surrendered, but they kept pouring into the crater to be shot. Many Union officers were reprimanded for this mishap.
James Brown
Morgantown, Indiana
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