Martyr of the Race Course

This is the true story of William Snyder Bressler who was raised on a farm in Warriors Mark, Pennsylvania. During the course of the Civil War, William and three of his brothers joined the Union Army. Private Bressler soon found himself involved in some of the bloodiest battles of the war during the Bristoe Campaign, the Mine Run Campaign, and the Overland Campaign. While his unit was assaulting a Confederate fortification called the Mule Shoe during the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, Private Bressler was wounded and captured. He and his fellow prisoners made their way south to Camp Sumter in Georgia, where they suffered immensely under the horrendous conditions at Andersonville -- the largest and deadliest prisoner of war (POW) camp. When Major General Sherman's forces occupied Atlanta, many of Andersonville's prisoners (including Private Bressler) were moved to POW camps in South Carolina. Private Bressler spent the last four months of his life at the Washington Race Course POW Camp in Charleston. After perishing from disease, Private Bressler was buried in a mass grave along with 256 of his fellow POWs. The moving ceremony that was conducted by newly-freed slaves to honor each 'Martyr of the Race Course' has been officially recognized as America's first Memorial Day celebration. This book was written by the 3rd great grandson of Private William Snyder Bressler.

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