Milliken's Bend

Linda Barnickel is an archivist and freelance writer with master's degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and The Ohio State University. Passionate about discovering the hidden and fascinating stories of history, she is interested in local history, military history, oral history, and the cultural power of archives.

"Barnickel provides perhaps the most comprehensive examination of the Battle of Milliken's Bend to date. In addition to providing a detailed analysis of the military engagement at Milliken's Bend, Louisiana, the author examines the events leading up to the battle, including the Union army's recruitment of black troops from nearby plantations, southern whites reaction to the Union army's decision to use black troops, and the slaves willingness to leave the plantation behind for an opportunity to fight for their freedom. Additionally, the study explores the aftermath of the battle, investigating Union sympathizers' accusations that Confederates executed black prisoners of war as well as the white officers in command of the African American troops stationed at Milliken's Bend. . . . Barnickel should be commended. Her work is well-researched and well-written. Scholars and students of the Civil War era alike will find merit in this work. Undoubtedly, Barnickel has achieved one of her major purposes for writing this work-she has reached into the dustbin of history and rescued the Battle of Milliken's Bend from obscurity." - Civil War Book Review "Barnickel's work is interesting both methodologically and in its story. It offers a convincing history of the battle and the ideas that helped mold the actions of its participants. The author adds to our understanding of the complex black experience during the war. . . . It is a welcome addition to the literature." - Journal of the Civil War Era "This is a thoughtful, carefully researched, and interestingly argued study, which does much to place this small but bitter clash in an appropriate and useful context, both as part of the struggle for freedom and equality that the Civil War ultimately became, and of the ongoing, contested struggle over how to remember the nation's most costly war." - Louisiana History