Second Friday Lecture: From Camp Douglas to Vicksburg: The Civil War Letters of William J. Kennedy, 55th Illinois Infantry, 1861-1863

Friday, March 13  |  12pm – 1pm  |  Presented by: Rachel Mellon

During her program, Rachael Mellen will discuss the new book that she and Dave Powell edited which is titled From Camp Douglas to Vicksburg: The Civil War Letters of William J. Kennedy, 55th Illinois Infantry, 1861-1863. In August 1861 William Kennedy was a harness-maker living in LaSalle, Illinois. Married with four young children, he volunteered to recruit a company in response to Lincoln’s call for more troops. During the next two years, he saw action at Shiloh, Corinth, Chickasaw Bayou, and finally the Siege of Vicksburg. Observant, patriotic and sometimes cynical, Kennedy’s letters give us an intriguing picture of how people of the North really experienced the war.

Mellen and Powell used their expertise to sift through genealogical records, histories of the war, and other regimental accounts to flesh out the people, places, and events that can now be shared with everyone. These documents have brought William Kennedy and his family back to life for their 21st-century relatives and a wider audience.

Rachael is a teacher, writer, genealogist, and historian. Educated at the University of London (UK), she earned a Master’s in Humanities from California State University Dominguez Hills. She lives in Peru, Illinois, and is thrilled to share the story of William Kennedy with you.