Author releases new book
Narvon resident and author Joel Moore is a stickler for details. When presented with the design for the cover of his latest book, "Real Boys of the Civil War," Moore noticed issues with the equipment the boys were carrying and with their uniforms. He worked with the designer, Gien Carlo Tan, to correct drums and uniforms until he was happy with the look. "It's gorgeous," noted Moore of the cover, which depicts more than a dozen boys in Civil War garb.
Moore pointed out that more than 200,000 underaged young men took part in the Civil War. "Real Boys of the Civil War" is Moore's first work of nonfiction. The book begins with the historiography research paper Moore originally wrote as a student at West Chester University. The book also tells stories of the individual boys who served, and it finishes with photo selections of many of the young soldiers.
One of the boys included in the book, Nathaniel McClean Gwynne, was still a civilian when he served, but his valor earned him a Medal of Honor. Moore explained that because Gwynne was too young to enlist, he went off to war as a camp helper. "At the battle of Petersburg, (Va.), the captain reminded the boy that he couldn't go into battle," said Moore. "(Gwynne responded), 'That's not why I'm here,' and he went in." Gwynne rescued the flag when the color guard went down, but he lost an arm to cannon fire and suffered a leg wound as well. When Gwynne's story made the newspapers, he was nominated for the Medal of Honor. That is when administrators in Washington, D.C., discovered the war hero was not enlisted. "They backdated his enlistment to when he first joined, and he got full pay," noted Moore.
Moore, who has been researching and writing about the boys of the war between the states for 20 years, was in communication with professor Jay Hoar, a University of Maine at Farmington retiree, until Hoar's death in 2023. Moore has permission to use Hoar's research, and Moore included Hoar's story of Benjamin Franklin Williams of Georgia in the book. Williams was a member of the home guard - boys as young as 6 years old who served as lookouts, couriers, and supply movers, among other duties. "Williams became a wagoneer at age 7, and he served the entire four years of the war," relayed Moore, adding, "At age 11, he was a veteran."
Moore is known for his many works of historical fiction, including "Journey Into Darkness" and "West to Freedom." "Real Boys of the Civil War was launched at Moores Memorial Library, Christiana, on April 27. Moore will be featured at several upcoming events, including the Civil War Living History Encampment in Quarryville, from Friday, May 17, through Sunday, May 19, and the Memorial Day event in Maytown on Monday, May 27, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. In June, Moore will be at the Strawberry Festival in Bainbridge on Sunday, June 2, from noon to 4 p.m., and the Burning Bridge in Columbia on Saturday, June 29, from 9 a.m. to noon. He will appear at the White Chimneys Estate in Gap on Saturday, July 20, from 10 a.m. to 9:15 p.m., and in August, he will be featured at a 2 p.m. presentation at Hopewell Furnace in Elverson on Sunday, Aug. 11.
Moore has more than four decades of experience as an educator and he recalled teaching the Civil War through the eyes of the boys who took part. More information about Moore and his books may be found at http://www.jarthurmoore.com.
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