The past is brought to present when James Speicher examines the lives of the soldiers who bravely fought for the Sumter Flying Artillery Battery during the Civil War. The original unit, which mostly consisted of men from Georgia, began as a single battery, but grew into a five-battery battalion that served under General Robert E. Lee. Speicher's book details the battles that took place from 1861 through 1865, and notes the conditions that the soldiers faced while serving in the Confederate army. Vintage letters, Civil War-era newspaper articles, and personal photographs offer insight into their lives both, on and off, the battlefield.