Reading Lee with Dr. Peter Carmichael: The Fate of a Confederate Deserter After Gettysburg

On August 20, 1863, thirteen veteran soldiers from the 3rd North Carolina decided that they'd had enough of war. That evening, in the blackness of night, they picked up their rifles, slung on their cartridge belts, and escaped into the woods. From that point on there was no turning back.

Please join us at Central Rappahannock Regional Library in Fredericksburg for our “Reading Lee Series” and learn why these soldiers deserted and what happened to them during their journey. Free to the public! Our guest speaker, Professor Peter Carmichael, will focus on the words of John Futch, one of the thirteen deserters. Though he was illiterate, Futch left a remarkable set of letters that he dictated to his comrades. Futch's powerful story puts us in the shoes of a deserter, enabling us to see his world after the devastating defeat in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.

Dr. Carmichael, one of the nation’s foremost authorities on the American Civil War, is the Robert C. Fluhrer Professor of Civil War Studies and the director of the Civil War Institute, Gettysburg College. Signed copies of Dr. Carmichael’s books will be available for purchase.

The “Reading Lee Series” is funded through the generosity of the Lee - Jackson Educational Foundation. It is presented annually free to the public by Stratford Hall, which presents the finest Civil War era authors.