Adelbert Ames, the Civil War, and the Creation of Modern America by Michael Megelsh published by Kent State University Press (2024) is an interesting biography of a young Civil War general who went on to become the governor of Mississippi and the senator from that state. While not as famous as James Longstreet, he played a major role in Reconstruction in the South, and, before “White Redemption” in 1875, he was one of the political leaders who worked with the Black majority in many parts of the South to secure their rights. In his final year in office as governor, the “Mississippi Plan” was unleashed against him and his Black supporters which led to unprecedented numbers of killings of people of color by the Red Shirts, the deprivation of Blacks’ right to vote, and the start of the impeachment of Gov. Ames.
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