War through the eyes of a boy: Pamplin Historical Park

Pamplin Historical Park & The National Museum of the Civil War Soldier is hosting a discussion and book-signing on June 30th at 1-2 p.m. with Janet Elizabeth Croon titled, The War Outside My Window: The Civil War Diary of LeRoy Wiley Gresham, 1860-1865.

Croon will tell the story of LeRoy Gresham who was born in 1847 to an affluent and prominent slaveholding family in Macon, Georgia. As a young child he suffered a horrific leg and back injury that left him an invalid. Educated, inquisitive, perceptive, and exceptionally witty, the 12-year-old began keeping a journal in 1860. This was just before secession and Civil War tore the country and his world apart. He continued to write even as his health deteriorated until both the war and his life ended in 1865.

His unique view of a waning age has been published now for the first time in A Son of Georgia: The Civil War Journals of LeRoy Wiley Gresham, 1860-1865. Edited and annotated with meticulous care by Janet Croon, A Son of Georgia: The Civil War Journals of LeRoy Wiley Gresham, 1860-1865 captures the spirit and the character of a young privileged white teenager witnessing the demise of his world even as his own body is slowly failing him.

“Just as Anne Frank has come down to us as the adolescent voice of World War II, LeRoy Gresham will now be remembered as a young voice of the Civil War South.” – Savas Beatie

This event is included with regular admission and copies of Janet Elizabeth Croon’s book will be available for purchase.

About Pamplin Historical Park

One of “Virginia’s Best Places to Visit” according to the Travel Channel, and designated as a National Historic Landmark, Pamplin Historical Park & The National Museum of the Civil War Soldier is a 424-acre Civil War campus located in Dinwiddie County, Virginia offering a combination of high-tech museums and hands-on experiences. The Park has four world-class museums and four antebellum homes. The Park is also the site of The Breakthrough Battlefield of April 2, 1865 and America’s premiere participatory experience, Civil War Adventure Camp. For more information, please call 804-861-2408 or visit www.pamplinpark.org.