| Book Review | The Journal of American History, 92.3

You have not been recognized as a subscriber to JAH online. About 197 words from this article are provided below; about 377 words remain.

If you are a individual member of the Organization of American Historians, you may:: • login here if you have already registered for online access.; • Or if you're already logged in register your subscription.
• Set up your online account for the first time.
If you are not a member of the Organization of American Historians, you can:: • Join the OAH and receive many member benefits including print and electronic issues of the Journal of American History.
• Purchase a research pass to gain two-hour access to the entire History Cooperative web site. You will have full access to current issues of the Journal of American History (86.1-present). Note: the Research Pass does not provide access to JSTOR's holdings of the Journal of American History.
Instititutions can:: • Subscribe to this journal and receive print and electronic issues.
• Activate your existing subscription so that we recognize your IP number ranges.

| Book Review | The Journal of American History, 92.3 | The History Cooperative

Book Review

Cities of the Dead: Contesting the Memory of the Civil War in the South, 1865–1914. By William A. Blair. (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2004. xiv, 250 pp. $34.95, ISBN 0-8078-2896-3.)
William A. Blair's book is a well-written work that has a narrow focus: the meaning and significance of post–Civil War Confederate Memorial Day and Black Emancipation Day ceremonies. Those ceremonies, which were observed on different dates from state to state, were held in public streets and in Cities of the Dead—the nineteenth-century term for graveyards of fallen heroes. He makes it clear that he does not focus on memory, religious symbolism, statuary, battlefield preservation, or reunions. In the end, the author makes a significant contribution to scholarship with a book that is well worth reading.	1
Blair is certainly not the first to examine that topic, but his conclusions are unique. Earlier scholars saw the events as a way for veterans on both sides to find common ground, or as examples of civil religion, or as a way to help participants overcome the loss of the war. Blair's interpretation is different, leading him to make a significant threefold contribution.	. . .

There are about 377 more words in this article. Please log in (or, if you are not yet an authorized user, please go to the User Setup page) to gain full access rights. Or if you're already logged in register your subscription.