Disease, Starvation & Death: Personal Accounts of Camp Lawton

Book excerpt: Camp Lawton was the largest prisoner of war camp constructed during the American Civil War. Built to replace Andersonville, at 42 acres it was almost twice the size of that more notorious prison. Confederate plans called for Camp Lawton to house up to 40,000 Union prisoners. Only just over 10,000 prisoners were captive there when Sherman's March to the Sea forced its evacuation. This book is the only work ever published which focuses entirely on Camp Lawton. It contains over a dozen eyewitness accounts, most of them long out of print, by Union soldiers held prisoner there. It also includes a short overview of the history of Camp Lawton and the "Roll of Honor," "names of the soldiers removed from Lawton National Cemetery to Beaufort National Cemetery." Camp Lawton is now on the site of Magnolia Springs State Park, where the editor is employed. For more information on Camp Lawton or Magnolia Springs State Park please visit http: //www.gastateparks.org/info/magspr/ or call 478-982-1660.