Augusta Jane Evans: A Famous Civil War Author

While in Mobile, I came across the grave in Magnolia Cemetery of the South’s most famous woman novelist, and certainly Mobile’s most famou, during the Civil War. I took a photo of that sacred spot. It is posted below. There’s a well-written article written by Mobile’s John Sledge you should go to for more information on his author: http://www.americanartists.org/art/article_augusta_jane_evans.htm I have a copy of her biography and a copy of Macaria, or Altars of Sacrifice, written in 1863. According to Sledge, the novel was published “in true Confederate fashion in Richmond, the novel was printed on wrapping paper with wallpaper covers. Macaria was popular among both rebels and Yankees. Union officers banned the book and burned confiscated copies.” Though admittedly the novel was a propaganda piece, I admire her spunk. The novel was a wartime best seller, and was dedicated to the Army of the Southern Confederacy. After the war, she was active in the movement to erect Confederate monuments. Drew Faust, in his introduction to Macaria, says that she continued to publish “almost until her death in 1909.” I think more should be written about her.

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