History of Andersonville Prison

Rating:
Summary: Hell on Earth: Andersonville Prison
Review: In his first major scholarly work, Ovid L. Futch gives a brief history of the notorious southern prisoner of war camp, Camp Sumter, or Andersonville. In the preface to his book, Futch proclaims that many historians have written on Andersonville, "but few of them have attempted to approach the subject objectively" (iii). Hence, Futch attempts to write from a relatively unbiased perspective; letting historical evidence be his jury. By writing on both the Northern and Southern conditions at the camp Futch successfully achieves his goal in writing from an objective standpoint. Additionally, Futch analyzes and interprets documents that most historians have overlooked, thereby adding novel insights in History of Andersonville Prison. History of Andersonville Prison argues that the atrocities that occurred there were based on the "Confederate scarcity of men, provisions, tools, and supplies" (122). Futch also feels that the prisoners of Andersonville suffered as a result from "quarrels and contentions [from Confederate leaders] and the 'gross mismanagement and want of system'" (122). Futch contrasts his argument with many historians who blame the prison's commandant, Henry Wirz, for the egregious conditions, as a result of his indifference and negligence toward his prisoners. In his work, Futch examines the history of why Andersonville was built, focusing on Confederate General John H. Winder, prison life, prison conditions, the infamous "Raiders" of Andersonville, and the trial of Captain Wirz. Winder, according to Futch, had the responsibility of building a camp in Southern Georgia to assuage the swelling of Belle Isle, an already overcrowded Confederate POW camp. Futch believes that Winder did his best in trying to make the prison comfortable for Union soldiers, but due to his previous feud and dislike of General Cobb, commander of the Georgia Reserves, Winder's chances of acquiring tools and more supplies for Andersonville were nearly impossible, as Cobb sent Winder the bare essentials. As a result, the prison conditions at Andersonville were horrible. Futch proclaims that of the three necessities for survival-shelter, food, and clothing, Andersonville only provided the prisoners with one: small rations of food. Prisoners had to construct their own shelters-with the dearth of wood, most "shebangs" were constructed of cloth or were simply holes in the ground. Many prisoners who entered the prison compound with little clothing were not given any, as the Confederate government needed all available clothing for its troops. Many prisoners died in the pouring Georgia rain as they lay, exposed to the elements, with no clothing to cover their freezing bodies. By recording the feud between Cobb and Winder, Futch is offering new evidence which previous historians failed to find. By elucidating the contentions between Confederate leaders Futch clearly explains that it was not hard hearts of these men that led to the deaths of 13,000 Union prisoners; rather, it was a result of internal conflicts among the Confederates. Futch is extremely persuasive in regards to this aspect as he spends two chapters offering his analysis and citing journal entries to powerfully explain his argument. Furthermore, Futch goes into great detail describing the small rations issued to the prisoners. Since the Confederate government was short on food, they could not feed their soldiers, let alone their prisoners adequately. Hence, a day's ration consisted of "cornbread, corn ground cob, and bacon fat and are enough to vomit a hog" (34). Futch states that the Confederate guards rations at the camp were no better; the same content, simply a larger portion. While Futch depicts these atrocious conditions, he clearly states that the Confederates guarding overlooking the compound suffered just as much as the Union prisoners by citing the diaries of several prison guards. By doing so, Futch successfully remains objective, as he relates both ends of the spectrum. Futch feels, contrary to other historians, that Captain Henry Wirz was a scapegoat for the Andersonville horror. At the end of the war, as the calamities that occurred at Andersonville were revealed, many northerners felt that those who died at Andersonville needed to be avenged. This would come with the hanging of Wirz. Futch argues that Wirz was killed by the Northern "waving the bloody shirt" (118), simply a blood lust by Northern leaders to redeem those who died in the camp. Futch portrays Wirz as man who was in a situation where he had little impact on the status quo. Wirz, despite his efforts to acquire more food and supplies, was heard in vain by Southern leaders. The person, Futch believes, who should have been held accountable for the atrocities of Andersonville was General Cobb, as he refused to assuage the situation at Andersonville. Futch paints Wirz in a postive light, as a caring leader, who tried to help his prisoners. This is a major contribution to the historical debate on Wirz. It is one of the few accounts that sympathizes with him, and feels that he was killed in the northern craving for blood. Futch, however, fails to discuss Wirz's attempts to better prison life in greater detail; he simply gives a superficial account on Wirz's attempts. Had he spent more time on this issue, he would have strongly backed the historical truth that Wirz did try his best but was fighting an unwinnable war against his own government to help Union prisoners. The book has several black and white photographs which bring Andersonville to life. As we see thousands of men huddled together, living in deplorable conditions, anger is aroused in the knowledge that the conditions could have been better to some degree, had there not been internal conflicts among the Confederacy. As prisoner David Kennedy stated " What a degraded nation to hold prisoners and not care for their wants" (122). By remaining objective-telling the story from both sides-and offering new perspectives and new evidence Futch successfully captures the Andersonville tragedy in a powerful book. History of Andersonville Prison will give its readers new outlooks to ponder and will be a useful instrument for those who seek to analyze the past.