For many years, not much was said about the infamous Union prison camp in Chicago with most attention always given to Andersonville in Georgia.
Now, a new book has been published about the infamous Douglas, located about three miles from Chicago's Loop.
"Camp Douglas: Chicago's Civil War Prison" by Kelly Pucci seeks to address the lack of information. Starving prisoners caught stealing from the camp garbage dump were tortured and shot.
Fearing a prisoner revolt, the camp's commander declared martial law in the city of Chicago. Camp Douglas closed down at the end of the war and its buildings demolished. Records were either lost or destroyed and the exact number of dead is unknown, but estimated at least 6000 who are buried in a southside cemetery by an impressive Confederate monument.
The History Channel had a special on it and there is a Sons of Confederate Veterans Camp named after it.
Dimitri Rotov editor of the Civil War Book News Blog at http://acwbn.blogspot.com
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