On Friday, December 2, history teacher Bill Quigley celebrated the publication of his new book, Pure Heart: The Faith of a Father and Son in the War for a More Perfect Union with a book signing and reading on campus.
The greater Governor’s community gathered in the Bergmann Theater to listen to Mr. Quigley discuss how his book came about, his writing process, and the history behind the men in the book and their importance in history. Afterward, Mr. Quigley signed books for a sizeable crowd!
Pure Heart, published by Kent State University Press, had its beginnings right here on the campus. More than 20 years ago, history teachers Babe Ceglarski and Bill Quigley discovered a trove of old documents while rescuing boxes from a flooding basement in the Frost Building. Inside were pressed wildflowers from Civil War battlefields, pencil and ink sketches of soldiers and their camps, and twenty letters written by a Civil War soldier to his father, the rector of Philadelphia’s historic Christ Church. Who were these men? What is their importance in our country’s history? And how did the letters end up here in South Byfield?
Quigley’s research and writing over the past dozen years unearthed a series of fascinating discoveries and an archetypal case of the Union in the Civil War.
Congratulations, Mr. Quigley!
To learn more about Pure Heart, Bill Quigley, and upcoming book signings, visit Mr. Quigley’s website, here.
