Military Interference With the Election in Delaware, November 4, 1862

Originally published by order of the Delaware General Assembly in 1863, this book contains testimonies from nearly one hundred and thirty citizens about Republicans' use of federal troops to disarm volunteer militia companies and harass, assault, arrest, imprison, and disenfranchise Democratic voters. There are also dissenting voices who maintain that Southern-sympathizing Democrats planned to suppress the Republican or Union vote, and had to be restrained by force. The joint committee appointed by the General Assembly to investigate the controversy concluded that Republican politicians orchestrated a military invasion of Delaware "to defeat the fair expression of the popular will at the polls by the potent influence of Federal bayonets." The first edition of the committee's report and journal was never reprinted, and is one of the rarest books about Delaware history. This new edition, transcribed and edited by Christopher Slavens, will enable readers to read the hundreds of pages of testimonies about the events of 1862 for themselves, and make up their own minds about what happened, and why.