ISSUED: 2 October 2018
MEDIA CONTACT: Valerie Owens
SHEPHERDSTOWN, WV — Shepherd University’s George Tyler Moore Center for the Study of the Civil War will host a book discussion and signing with James Scythes on Friday, October 26, at 7 p.m. at the center. Scythes will discuss his first book, “‘This will make a Man of Me’: The Life and Letters of a Teenage Officer in the Civil War.” The event is free and open to the public, but seating is limited and registration is required.
The book offers a firsthand account of 17-year-old 2nd Lt. Thomas James Howell’s experiences in the Civil War through 65 letters he wrote to his family. Howell served in the 3rd New Jersey Volunteer Infantry Regiment. The book describes a soldier’s life in the Army of the Potomac during the spring and summer of 1862, focusing on Howell’s experiences during Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan’s Peninsula Campaign.
Scythes, a history professor at West Chester University of Pennsylvania, has conducted research on antebellum America, the American Civil War, and 19th-century military history. Scythes has published a number of encyclopedia articles and is a member of the Board of Trustees at the Gloucester County Historical Society.
To reserve a seat, contact Jennifer Alarcon, program assistant, at 304-876-5429 or jalarcon@shepherd.edu.
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