Virginia Books

The book is full of all sorts of ideas, though it was small on "found" objects for furniture making. As I am new to miniatures, this book had all sorts of ideas for the novice to the master craftsman. Of course the book hawks back to the 70's and the color of pictures reflect this...the ideas were still innovative and creative. Great detail to every aspect of the dollhouse, including lighting, room arrangements and period pieces. I look forward to making the beautiful furniture featured in this "old school" book.

This is the very best book as a resource book on the Comstock Lode. It has the advantage of 100 years of history, the ability to amass all of the figures on such things as dividends, tons of material, freight.

It also hs the advantage of knowing what happened to the leading characters of the Comstock.

No student of the Comstock should be without this book.

This was a great book to read. It was very well written and easy to follow. I learnd a great deal about the civil war and the part Kemper played in it.

Chapter One: 'Negro Mobilization'

"It would appear that Virginia was not faced with a serious breakdown of its holding power over the Negro noncombatants until the closing says of the war. Flight into Union lines, however, or seizure by Union troops, though seemingly less extensive than in other parts of the Confederacy, was a cause of concern. In countless ways, the war came closer to the Virginia Negro than to other Negroes with the South. Both of the war governors, John Letcher ad William Smith, encouraged and supported Negro mobilization and war measures whereby the labor of Negroes contributed to the ability of the Confederacy to keep an army in the field. The Virginia Negro resided in what was not only the industrial heart of the South but also the major battle ground of the Civil war. Armed conflict greatly increased the technological and military demand for his brawn and his skills. Virginia's coal mines, ironworks, lead-smelting works, nitriaries, harness shops, arsenals, naval yards, and machine shops offer unique examples of the state's efforts to match Negro manpower to the need for increased production. The many diversified needs of the war involved the Virginia Negro in correspondingly wide variety of tasks-procurement operations, processing of minerals, fabrication of the weapons of war, transportation of war materials by land and by river, and construction of fortifications and defensive works. Probably no other southern sate offers a better example of the premium placed upon Negro manpower." (p.-15-16)

Chapter Two: 'Quartermaster and Commissary Noncombatants':

"Both the Quartermaster and Commissary departments were conscious of the logistical importance of Negro manpower, and they competed effectively with other departments for their services. As they competed effectively with other departments for their services. As they needs to increase the war output multiplied rapidly, both the Virginia and the Confederate Government made provisions for placing the black noncombatants at their disposal of the services of supply though military hire, impressment, and conscription. From February 1864 to March 1865 the Bureau of Conscription detailed 341 Negroes to the quartermasters scattered throughout Virginia. As in any undertaking which involves large numbers of persons, the Negros who met the needs of supply will forever remain anonymous to posterity, Yet thousands and thousands of Negroes played a vital pert in feeding, supplying, and sustaining Confederate combat forces in Virginia." (p.30)

Chapter Three: 'Naval Ordinance Works':

"In retrospect, the mountain blast furnaces, as they belched smoke and fire into the sky, dominated the industrial scene of the Valley. Industrial Negro labor was an indispensable factor as the Tredegar Iron Works wrestled to fulfill vital war contracts with the various bureaus of the War Department. The realistic war practices of this industrial plant were based, from the very outset of the war, on the full and extensive use of black manpower-and skilled and unskilled-in the procurement, transportation, and fabrication of raw materials and the delivery of finished products to Confederate fighting forces, southern railroads, smaller industrial plants, and various branches of the War Department such as ordnance, quartermaster, engineer, and the navy." (p.73)

Chapter Four: 'Transportation Laborers':

"It would perhaps be claiming too much to say that Negro manpower, the sinew of the war effort behind the scenes, provided Virginia with the means of continuing the uneven contest. Yet it is impossible not to conclude that had the Virginia's transportation arteries been deprived of Negro brawn and dexterity, the Virginia war effort would have been severely and seriously hampered."

Chapter Five: 'Negroes in Confederate Hospitals':

"Most of the thousands of Negroes-nurses, ambulance drivers, stretcher-bears, cooks, bakers, and other hospital attendants-are now nameless. Yet they bathed patients, fed the sick and wounded, administered medicines, aired and made beds, cleaned wards, maintained fires, and performed numerous other tasks, Other colored hospital attendants prepared food, washed clothing, whitewashed and repaired buildings, worked in the purveyor's office and the commissary, labored in the gardens dairies, and icehouses maintained by the hospitals, drove wagons, and so forth. Seldom were they mentioned n the journals of their day, and only a few were named or described in the memories of Confederate surgeons. On the other hand they never engaged in wholesale desertions. The decision to place them as attendants in the military hospitals not only freed many thousands of soldiers for military duty but considerably lightened the burden of caring for the sick and wounded in Confederate armies. Now wholly forgotten, these Negroes' names have no meaning today. Confederate medical histories seldom discuss the Negro. For the same reason, too, the story of Confederate logistics is incomplete." (p.129-130)

Chapter Six: 'Confederate Labor Troops':

"Virginia's fortifications and the labor force responsible for their construction have received less attention than other phases of the Civil War. Yet, from every part of Virginia, thousands of Negroes were called upon the encircle cities and vulnerable areas with cordons of earthworks, and their labor undoubtedly prolonged the war by preventing Federal invasions from seriously affecting the resources of the state. Their story not only provides new insights into the history of the warring South, but contributes to an understanding of the many ways in which the Virginia Negro was inextricable related with the Southern war effort. When weighted against the tragic theme of the stunted existence which resulted from his enslavement, the war discloses that he had a compelling effect on the course of the war and that his service was a key piece in the mechanism of Southern defenses." (p.163-4)

Conclusion: "Today, in a lonely unmarked grave, forgotten and unknown, lies the Confederate Negro-a casualty of History." (p.167)

Having met Mrs. Owens, I was suprised that she wrote a book about such dark things, but I enjoyed this book. She really captured the spirit of the people and the situation. Knowing some of the people the characters are based on, I could picture them in that situation. Although it's sad, dealing with the death of two children, it's a great book. I plan to read more of her books soon. Don't miss this one. It's great!

The cause and effective treatment for Cancer has been known for many decades. Dr. Virginia is a brave and brilliant researcher and this book clearly documents her journey of discovery, like so many before her. The underlying truth is pleomorphic microbes in every living cel, and how to control them. Educate yourslves....

Listen, America, to Paul Ylvisaker's voice, to his heart, and to his thoughts. It is the voice that mentored your generation's mentors. It is the heart that held our most passionate and important dreams. And these are the thoughts that influenced four decades of American social ideas, policies and philanthropy.

This is an excellent work. James provides an insightful look at the history of civil rights in America. As a Pasadena resident, it's particulary good to see our city recieve some critical, scholastic lovin'.

I do not review books, however here I find myself typing away for Virginia D. Edwards' under the radar book Conspiracy of Thirty. I don't really want to offer a review as I don't want to influence how people read this book. Just noticed that there weren't any reviews and wanted to recommend it. Its one of the more interesting and amazing books I've read in years. Can't say that I would drop $60 bucks for it, but if you run across it in a used book store do not pass this book up. Virginia is you are reading this, for the love of humanity, please keep cranking works like this.

Virginia Brackett has successfully shown why personal criticism is a form of criticism that the academic world should embrace. Commercial writers (those who want substantial dollars for their work) have long known that a novel must have a take-away that a reader can apply to his/her own life if the novel is to be of any value. In a conversational tone, Brackett shows how literary works have impacted her life, weaving personal stories of divorce, custody battle, the death of her mother, her quest for education, and her professional writings with critical studies. She has also shown how her life experiences have changed the way she views literary works and broadened her understanding. As Brackett's life journey changed directions, feminist issues gained importance, and in this volume she views gender roles in literature and in reality.