This Republic of Suffering: Death and the American Civil War

This chapter begins with two postwar public speeches commemorating the efforts of those who died in the war effort. One of these speeches was full of flowery language; the other reminded the living what they owed the dead. With the war over, the living could finally complete tasks like notifying families and ensuring proper burials. In effect, it gave the living time to catch up with the dead.

Faust introduces famed figure Clara Barton, the Red Cross founder and nurse whose efforts saved many lives. Barton became the public face for the “find the lost soldier” effort on behalf of many despairing families. With her characteristic skill, she set up the Office of Correspondence with the Friends of the Missing Men of the United States Army. Aware that governmental efforts often move slowly, she avoided official channels, conducted her own searches for soldiers, and disseminated the information in herself. The results were a hearty endorsement of her methods. Faust writes, “By the time she finally closed the office in 1868, she reported that it had received and answered 68,182 letters and had secured information about 22,000 missing soldiers” (3375-76).

Working in the same vein was