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Isolated
Incident of Civil War History Deftly Brought to
Life
LINCOLN, Neb. (August 17, 2006)
– The American Civil War continues to spark
people’s imaginations, but most documentaries, books
and movies focus on its most famous generals and battles.
Author and Indiana historian Ray Mulesky relates a
little-known, but fascinating nugget of Civil War history
with Thunder from a Clear
Sky: Stovepipe Johnson’s Confederate Raid on
Newburgh, Indiana.
Thunder from a Clear Sky
takes an in-depth look at the swaggering rebel icon, Adam
“Stovepipe” Johnson, and the first Confederate
attack north of the Mason-Dixon Line during the American
Civil War. With period photos, maps, illustrations of
prominent characters, a timeline and an extensive
bibliography, Thunder from
a Clear Sky is the first full-length work that
explains how Johnson, with a band of only twenty-seven
Kentucky rebels, crossed the Ohio River at Newburgh,
Indiana, and confiscated supplies and ammunition without a
shot being fired. But it also re-introduces the nation to a
quintessential American—Adam Johnson, a man just as
famous for his unlikely civic and economic accomplishments
after the war as he is for his intrepid exploits before and
during the war.
Mulesky’s
book sheds light on a relatively unknown aspect of
America’s bloodiest affair. “Are any unique,
unexplored corners of the great American conflict remaining
after 140 years of treading the same ground over and
over,” Mulesky asks. “This book offers a
resounding ‘yes!’”
Thunder from a Clear Sky
combines two of Mulesky’s interests. “For a
long time I was trying to find a way to spotlight one of my
biggest passions in life - historic preservation,”
Mulesky said. “I was also very interested in writing
and history. When this story fell into my lap, I decided to
combine all my interests into one grand project.”
The Civil War is
often viewed through the lens of great men and great
events: the battlefield victories and defeats of Federal
and Confederate generals, the declarations of
socio-economic independence, and the struggle to free an
enslaved population. However, historians often overlook the
common man’s voice. Thunder from a Clear Sky
showcases an ordinary man who “performed perhaps the
most reckless, and yet most successful, military master
stroke achieved by any commander of high or low authority,
in either army during the war.” Thunder from a Clear Sky
is an invaluable contribution to Civil War scholarship.
Mulesky brilliantly restores a forgotten but epic episode
to its rightful place in the history of the
war.
