Free March 8 talk at NY State Military Museum focuses on career of William Tecumsah Sherman

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the free March 8 talk at the NY State Military Museum is based on the book :"Man on Fire:William Tecumsah Sherman in the Civil War "

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NEW YORK (03/04/2025) (readMedia)-- The life and career of Union Civil War general William Tecumseh Sherman will be the subject of a free talk at the New York State Military Museum in Saratoga Springs on Saturday, March 8.

The talk, sponsored by the Friends of the New York State Military Museum, kicks off at 2 p.m.

The presenter, Derek Maxfield has been a history professor at Genesee Community College since 2009.

During his tenure, he has been twice honored by SUNY – in 2013, Maxfield was awarded the SUNY Chancellor's Award for Scholarship and Creative Activities and in 2019, the SUNY Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Teaching.

The talk is based on his latest book "Man of Fire: William Tecumseh Sherman in the Civil War" which was published in 2023.

Sherman is one of the most famous and controversial leaders in American military history, famously misquoted as saying " war is Hell," and for marching through George to destroy the southern economy during the war.

Maxfield is also the author of a book about the Union prisoner of war camp in Elmira, " Hellmira: The Union's Most Infamous Civil War Prison Camp – Elmira, NY"

Maxfield's talk will cover Sherman's career as a soldier who missed action in both the Seminole War and the Mexican War, to his success as Ulysses S. Grant's right hand man.

This was in spite of accusations that he was "gone in the head", early in the war.

Sherman became famous as a skilled and ruthless leader who understood modern industrial war better than his Confederate opponents.

Maxfield is also the author of a play about the military partnership of Grant and Sherman called "Now We Stand By Each Other Always" in which he plays the role of Grant.

The March 8 presentation is the latest in a series of historical talks held by the New York State Military Museum and Veterans Research Center which are being held in March and April.

The New York State Military Museum is run by the Division of Military and Naval Affairs and is located at 61 Lake Avenue in Saratoga Springs.