cover image The Civil War Letters of Joseph Hopkins Twichell: A Chaplain's Story

The Civil War Letters of Joseph Hopkins Twichell: A Chaplain's Story

Joseph Hopkins Twichell, . . Univ. of Georgia, $34.95 (333pp) ISBN 978-0-8203-2693-1

Joseph Hopkins Twichell's religious education began in 1861, when he interrupted his theological education to volunteer as a Union army chaplain. A New England Congregationalist with a strong Puritan heritage, an abolitionist and an evangelist, a firm supporter of Abraham Lincoln, Twichell joined a regiment raised in New York City. He found his ministry there, among the group's Irish Catholic immigrants, unchurched native Americans and youths who enjoyed cards, liquor and women. Well edited and annotated, his letters home convey loneliness, fear and alienation. They also reflect a growing generosity of spirit and a developing courage in addressing the war's suffering. Twichell banked men's pay for them and provided newspapers as an alternative to strong drink. But he was more than an ecclesiastical morale officer. Twichell's initial horror of blood gave way to a "skill and handiness" that enabled him to serve as "both nurse and minister," regularly assisting in amputations at the front. When God's word alone did not suffice, "a small bottle of morphine," he found, proved "a good angel" for men in pain. Twichell's developing brand of practical Christianity served his congregation until the regiment was mustered out in 1864. His correspondence suggests that the 19th-century, too, had its greatest generation. (Apr.)