{"id":2230,"date":"2015-04-20T09:00:52","date_gmt":"2015-04-20T14:00:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/apps.lib.ua.edu\/blogs\/coolathoole\/?p=2230"},"modified":"2015-04-20T09:00:52","modified_gmt":"2015-04-20T14:00:52","slug":"making-confederates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/apps.lib.ua.edu\/blogs\/coolathoole\/2015\/04\/20\/making-confederates\/","title":{"rendered":"Making Confederates"},"content":{"rendered":"

By: Lindsay Rae Smith and Melissa Farah Young, History PhD students<\/p>\n

\"PrintingPress\"<\/a>The formation of the Confederate States in early\u00a01861 threw many southern printers and publishers\u00a0into turmoil. While many southern intellectuals were\u00a0pushing for an independent print culture prior to\u00a0secession, independence and the threat of war made\u00a0the creation of a new and unique body of Confederate\u00a0literature a necessity. For many Confederates, the new\u00a0nation was not only delineated by a separate territory,\u00a0military, and government, but also by the unique\u00a0character of its people. They believed that the South\u2019s\u00a0complete intellectual and cultural separation from the\u00a0North was as important to the Confederacy\u2019s survival\u00a0as any military or political victory.<\/p>\n

The documents published by southern printers\u00a0between December 1860 and April 1865\u2014known\u00a0today as Confederate imprints\u2014sought to legitimize\u00a0southern nationhood in the eyes of foreign\u00a0governments and create a culture that would\u00a0strengthen a sense of unity among the general\u00a0population. Confederate imprints are divided into two categories. Official publications include military and government documents such as the newly drafted Constitution, and official military decrees. These texts circulated information essential to the nation\u2019s survival.<\/p>\n

Unofficial documents, however, were published for the private sector. Many books and journals contained strong pro-Confederate sentiment. Popular novels were reprinted with prefaces centering\u00a0them within the southern struggle. Textbooks played\u00a0an important role in educating a new generation of\u00a0Confederates for service to their country, and history\u00a0books worked to cast them as the true inheritors of American democracy.<\/p>\n

Since the Confederacy lacked a publishing\u00a0infrastructure that could compete with the North,\u00a0southern printers were keenly aware of their\u00a0disadvantages. The Union blockade of southern\u00a0ports made it difficult for publishers to obtain\u00a0adequate supplies. To overcome paper shortages,\u00a0printers advertised for donations of old rags,\u00a0which could be pulped and boiled to make new\u00a0paper. Pages from old journals, ledger books, and\u00a0reams of unused wallpaper were also used in the\u00a0printing and binding processes. Fig and\u00a0pomegranate juice were substituted for ink, and\u00a0seldom-used typesetting blocks were flipped to\u00a0replace those that became worn. Perhaps the most\u00a0challenging obstacle was the absence of trained\u00a0printers and engravers. Presses and supplies could\u00a0be smuggled or improvised, but skilled tradesmen\u00a0often demonstrated their own passionate devotion\u00a0to the Confederacy. They often enlisted in the\u00a0Confederate Army even though they were exempt\u00a0from military service.<\/p>\n

Nevertheless, despite the\u00a0challenges of wartime scarcity, southern\u00a0publishers were dedicated to creating a distinct\u00a0national literature. As a result of the nationalism\u00a0inherent in many of the surviving texts,\u00a0Confederate imprints continue to relay the beliefs\u00a0and hopes of a people struggling to create a\u00a0country in the midst of war.<\/p>\n

Want to learn more about the exhibition? Read our “Curating the Confederacy<\/a>” five-part series or come to our Curator’s talk<\/a> tomorrow, April 21, 2015, at 3:30 PM in the A.S. Williams III reading room, level three, Amelia Gayle Gorgas Library.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By: Lindsay Rae Smith and Melissa Farah Young, History PhD students The formation of the Confederate States in early\u00a01861 threw many southern printers and publishers\u00a0into turmoil. 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