Charles E. Rankin is the retired editor in chief and associate director of the University of Oklahoma Press. Prior to that he was the director of publications for the Montana Historical Society. He is the editor or coeditor of Wallace Stegner: Man and Writer; Legacy: New Perspectives on the Battle of the Little Bighorn; and Trails: Toward a New Western History.

"Rankin's editorial contributions are prodigious. In addition to penning a lengthy prologue, Rankin's chapter introductions set the stage for what follows, and he provides further context to the letters through copious bridging narrative."-Civil War Books and Authors "Toward A More Perfect Union is a treasure of letters revealing the struggles of war separation, affection, parenting, opinions, and values of a soldier and his young wife. Details within the letters will be of value to military and social historians and history-buffs alike."-Sarah Kay Bierle, emergingcivilwar.com “Sensitively curated and expertly framed, this collection of letters between an unusually articulate set of newlyweds not only samples virtually every element of home front and battle front but also narrates a love story reflecting the writers’ growing affection for and trust in each other.”-James Marten, author of The Children’s Civil War “The letters reveal not only how Frederic and Elizabeth Lockley surmounted the obstacles of wartime but how they managed, amid the most trying times of their lives, to keep their love for one another and their children vibrant and enduring. No other group of wartime letters between husband and wife is as large or forms such a well-connected chronicle. . . . Their letters maintain a satisfying narrative balance and provide insight into a timeless union of heart and mind.”-Edward G. Longacre, author of Unsung Hero of Gettysburg: The Story of Union General David McMurtrie Gregg “Charles E. Rankin has done a masterful job situating the correspondence of the Lockleys within the cultural and social context of the times without losing sight of the military story. The inclusion of Elizabeth’s letters is particularly valuable given that earlier historians have largely ignored her.”-Peter S. Carmichael, author of The War for the Common Soldier: How Men Thought, Fought, and Survived in Civil War Armies “Frederic Lockley-though committed to the Union cause-was a free thinker with a talent for storytelling. He makes an ideal representative for the heavy artillery regiments of the Union Army. This is a compelling portrait of a marriage and a family enduring the strains of war. Rankin has crafted a wonderful book from the Lockley letters. Students of the Civil War era-and not just militarists-will find much edification and food for thought in these pages.”-Gregory J. W. Urwin, author of Victory in Defeat: The Wake Island Defenders in Captivity, 1941–1945

• List of IllustrationsPreface    AcknowledgmentsPrologue    1. The Setting    2. Days of Roman Heroism, August–September 18623. It’s All for Our Country, September–November 18624. Not Exactly a Bed of Roses, December 18625. We Must Ride the Tempest, January–May 18636. Your Letters Are My Meat and Drink, May–June 18637. Would You Fancy the Surprise? Mid-June–Mid-July 18638. I Am at My Old Lunes, July–September 18639. Hope Is the Anchor of the Soul, October 186310. A Rather Scandalous Affair, November 1863–January 1, 186411. This Morning That Boy Was Buried, January–March 186412. I Left Josey Standing on the Stoop, March–April 186413. Sergeant Major! We Have Got Our Orders! May–June 186414. Soldiering in Its Roughest, Sternest Form, June–July 186415. An Epoch of Endurance, Mid-July–Mid-August 186416. No Sundays in the Army, August–September 186417. Fighting Is Almost Incessant, September–October 186418. Which Ticket Are You Going to Vote? October–November 186419. Johnnies Deserting by Wholesale, December 1864–January 186520. The Fighting Is Nearly Over, February–March 186521. The Little Mischief, March–April 186522. A Soul Struggling to Be Free, April–May 186523. I Share with You in This Impatience, Early to Mid-May 186524. My Last Letter!! Late May–June 1865Epilogue    Appendix 1. Frederic’s Letter to Elizabeth, January 11, 1863Appendix 2. Frederic’s Letter to Elizabeth, August 7, 1864Appendix 3. Timeline of Key EventsNotes    Bibliography    Index

Charles E. Rankin is the retired editor in chief and associate director of the University of Oklahoma Press. Prior to that he was the director of publications for the Montana Historical Society. He is the editor or coeditor of Wallace Stegner: Man and Writer; Legacy: New Perspectives on the Battle of the Little Bighorn; and Trails: Toward a New Western History.

"Rankin's editorial contributions are prodigious. In addition to penning a lengthy prologue, Rankin's chapter introductions set the stage for what follows, and he provides further context to the letters through copious bridging narrative."-Civil War Books and Authors "Toward A More Perfect Union is a treasure of letters revealing the struggles of war separation, affection, parenting, opinions, and values of a soldier and his young wife. Details within the letters will be of value to military and social historians and history-buffs alike."-Sarah Kay Bierle, emergingcivilwar.com “Sensitively curated and expertly framed, this collection of letters between an unusually articulate set of newlyweds not only samples virtually every element of home front and battle front but also narrates a love story reflecting the writers’ growing affection for and trust in each other.”-James Marten, author of The Children’s Civil War “The letters reveal not only how Frederic and Elizabeth Lockley surmounted the obstacles of wartime but how they managed, amid the most trying times of their lives, to keep their love for one another and their children vibrant and enduring. No other group of wartime letters between husband and wife is as large or forms such a well-connected chronicle. . . . Their letters maintain a satisfying narrative balance and provide insight into a timeless union of heart and mind.”-Edward G. Longacre, author of Unsung Hero of Gettysburg: The Story of Union General David McMurtrie Gregg “Charles E. Rankin has done a masterful job situating the correspondence of the Lockleys within the cultural and social context of the times without losing sight of the military story. The inclusion of Elizabeth’s letters is particularly valuable given that earlier historians have largely ignored her.”-Peter S. Carmichael, author of The War for the Common Soldier: How Men Thought, Fought, and Survived in Civil War Armies “Frederic Lockley-though committed to the Union cause-was a free thinker with a talent for storytelling. He makes an ideal representative for the heavy artillery regiments of the Union Army. This is a compelling portrait of a marriage and a family enduring the strains of war. Rankin has crafted a wonderful book from the Lockley letters. Students of the Civil War era-and not just militarists-will find much edification and food for thought in these pages.”-Gregory J. W. Urwin, author of Victory in Defeat: The Wake Island Defenders in Captivity, 1941–1945

• List of IllustrationsPreface    AcknowledgmentsPrologue    1. The Setting    2. Days of Roman Heroism, August–September 18623. It’s All for Our Country, September–November 18624. Not Exactly a Bed of Roses, December 18625. We Must Ride the Tempest, January–May 18636. Your Letters Are My Meat and Drink, May–June 18637. Would You Fancy the Surprise? Mid-June–Mid-July 18638. I Am at My Old Lunes, July–September 18639. Hope Is the Anchor of the Soul, October 186310. A Rather Scandalous Affair, November 1863–January 1, 186411. This Morning That Boy Was Buried, January–March 186412. I Left Josey Standing on the Stoop, March–April 186413. Sergeant Major! We Have Got Our Orders! May–June 186414. Soldiering in Its Roughest, Sternest Form, June–July 186415. An Epoch of Endurance, Mid-July–Mid-August 186416. No Sundays in the Army, August–September 186417. Fighting Is Almost Incessant, September–October 186418. Which Ticket Are You Going to Vote? October–November 186419. Johnnies Deserting by Wholesale, December 1864–January 186520. The Fighting Is Nearly Over, February–March 186521. The Little Mischief, March–April 186522. A Soul Struggling to Be Free, April–May 186523. I Share with You in This Impatience, Early to Mid-May 186524. My Last Letter!! Late May–June 1865Epilogue    Appendix 1. Frederic’s Letter to Elizabeth, January 11, 1863Appendix 2. Frederic’s Letter to Elizabeth, August 7, 1864Appendix 3. Timeline of Key EventsNotes    Bibliography    Index

Charles E. Rankin is the retired editor in chief and associate director of the University of Oklahoma Press. Prior to that he was the director of publications for the Montana Historical Society. He is the editor or coeditor of Wallace Stegner: Man and Writer; Legacy: New Perspectives on the Battle of the Little Bighorn; and Trails: Toward a New Western History.

"Rankin's editorial contributions are prodigious. In addition to penning a lengthy prologue, Rankin's chapter introductions set the stage for what follows, and he provides further context to the letters through copious bridging narrative."-Civil War Books and Authors "Toward A More Perfect Union is a treasure of letters revealing the struggles of war separation, affection, parenting, opinions, and values of a soldier and his young wife. Details within the letters will be of value to military and social historians and history-buffs alike."-Sarah Kay Bierle, emergingcivilwar.com “Sensitively curated and expertly framed, this collection of letters between an unusually articulate set of newlyweds not only samples virtually every element of home front and battle front but also narrates a love story reflecting the writers’ growing affection for and trust in each other.”-James Marten, author of The Children’s Civil War “The letters reveal not only how Frederic and Elizabeth Lockley surmounted the obstacles of wartime but how they managed, amid the most trying times of their lives, to keep their love for one another and their children vibrant and enduring. No other group of wartime letters between husband and wife is as large or forms such a well-connected chronicle. . . . Their letters maintain a satisfying narrative balance and provide insight into a timeless union of heart and mind.”-Edward G. Longacre, author of Unsung Hero of Gettysburg: The Story of Union General David McMurtrie Gregg “Charles E. Rankin has done a masterful job situating the correspondence of the Lockleys within the cultural and social context of the times without losing sight of the military story. The inclusion of Elizabeth’s letters is particularly valuable given that earlier historians have largely ignored her.”-Peter S. Carmichael, author of The War for the Common Soldier: How Men Thought, Fought, and Survived in Civil War Armies “Frederic Lockley-though committed to the Union cause-was a free thinker with a talent for storytelling. He makes an ideal representative for the heavy artillery regiments of the Union Army. This is a compelling portrait of a marriage and a family enduring the strains of war. Rankin has crafted a wonderful book from the Lockley letters. Students of the Civil War era-and not just militarists-will find much edification and food for thought in these pages.”-Gregory J. W. Urwin, author of Victory in Defeat: The Wake Island Defenders in Captivity, 1941–1945

• List of IllustrationsPreface    AcknowledgmentsPrologue    1. The Setting    2. Days of Roman Heroism, August–September 18623. It’s All for Our Country, September–November 18624. Not Exactly a Bed of Roses, December 18625. We Must Ride the Tempest, January–May 18636. Your Letters Are My Meat and Drink, May–June 18637. Would You Fancy the Surprise? Mid-June–Mid-July 18638. I Am at My Old Lunes, July–September 18639. Hope Is the Anchor of the Soul, October 186310. A Rather Scandalous Affair, November 1863–January 1, 186411. This Morning That Boy Was Buried, January–March 186412. I Left Josey Standing on the Stoop, March–April 186413. Sergeant Major! We Have Got Our Orders! May–June 186414. Soldiering in Its Roughest, Sternest Form, June–July 186415. An Epoch of Endurance, Mid-July–Mid-August 186416. No Sundays in the Army, August–September 186417. Fighting Is Almost Incessant, September–October 186418. Which Ticket Are You Going to Vote? October–November 186419. Johnnies Deserting by Wholesale, December 1864–January 186520. The Fighting Is Nearly Over, February–March 186521. The Little Mischief, March–April 186522. A Soul Struggling to Be Free, April–May 186523. I Share with You in This Impatience, Early to Mid-May 186524. My Last Letter!! Late May–June 1865Epilogue    Appendix 1. Frederic’s Letter to Elizabeth, January 11, 1863Appendix 2. Frederic’s Letter to Elizabeth, August 7, 1864Appendix 3. Timeline of Key EventsNotes    Bibliography    Index