A Year in the South: 1865 is about four ordinary people living in extraordinary times. During a year that saw the end of the Civil War and the beginning of reconstruction, each individual was also engaged in his or her own private battle: Louis Hughes was a slave determined to gain freedom for himself and his family; widow Cornelia McDonald battled poverty and despair as she struggled to raise seven children by herself; Samuel Agnew, a minister and son of a planter, grappled with spiritual and worldly troubles; and John Robertson, a former Confederate soldier, searched for a new life far away from war. Stephen V. Ash has written a true social history of the Civil War, reconstructing his characters' daily lives, their fears and hopes, and their frustrations and triumphs in vivid detail. He tells a dramatic story of real people in a time of great upheaval, and offers a fresh perspective on a pivotal moment in history. Stephen V. Ash is Professor of History at the University of Tennessee. He is the author of several books on the Civil War, including When the Yankees Came: Conflict and Chaos in the Occupied South.

He lives with his wife in Knoxville, Tennessee. "This well-written and researched exploration will give a fresh insight to Civil War enthusiasts and interest new readers of the period. Highly recommended." -- Library Journal.