State By State: A Panoramic Portrait of America

“The Union dead are buried on a hill with a view of the Tennessee River. It is a lovely spot, cooler for the breeze that comes off the water, and each grave has a small white maker. Outside the gates of the graveyard there is a copy of the Gettysburg Address written on a metal plaque. The Confederates are buried in a mass grave in a trench that lies at the bottom of the hill, but they at least were all together, and they were home. I did not pass another soul in the park save the ranger at the gate who told me to leave when it was dark.

“If anybody tells you Tennessee has changed much, tell them to come out to Shiloh. Tell them to listen hard to the stories of the men you pick up on the road on your way there.”