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Midnight on the Potomac

The Last Year of the Civil War, the Lincoln Assassination, and the Rebirth of America

Author Scott Ellsworth On Tour
Hardcover
$32.00 US
| $42.00 CAN
Penguin Adult HC/TR | Dutton
On sale Jul 15, 2025 | 336 Pages | 9780593475614
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From the author of The Ground Breaking, longlisted for the National Book Award, comes a riveting saga of the last year of the Civil War—and a revealing new account of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln

Told with a page-turning pace, New York Times bestselling author and historian Scott Ellsworth has written the most compelling new book about the Civil War in years. Focusing on the last, desperate months of the war, when the outcome was far from certain, Midnight on the Potomac is a story of titanic battles, political upheaval, and the long-forgotten Confederate terror war against the loyal citizens of the North. Taking us behind the scenes in the White House, along the battlefronts in Virginia, and into the conspiracies of spies and secret agents, Lincoln walks these pages, as do Grant and Sherman. But so do common soldiers, runaway slaves, and an unknown but intrepid female war correspondent named Lois Adams. Rarely, if ever, has a book about the Civil War featured such a rich and diverse cast of characters.

Midnight on the Potomac will also shatter some long-held myths. For more than a century and a half, the Lincoln assassination has been portrayed as the sole brainchild of a disgruntled, pro-South actor. But based on both obscure contemporary accounts and decades of long-ignored scholarship, Ellsworth reveals that for nearly one year before the tragic events at Ford’s Theatre, John Wilkes Booth had been working closely with agents of the Confederate Secret Service. And the real Booth is far from the one we’ve long been presented with.

Deeply researched yet captivatingly written, Midnight on the Potomac is a new kind of book about the Civil War. In it you will read about the Confederate attempt to burn down New York City, how Lincoln almost lost the presidency, about the Rebel general who nearly captured Washington, and how thousands of enslaved African Americans freed themselves—and helped secure their nation’s survival. In an age of deep political division such as our own, Scott Ellsworth’s book is an eloquent and gripping testament to the courage, grit, and greatness of the American people.
Praise for Midnight on the Potomac:

“With the sense of drama of a novelist but fidelity to facts of a skilled historian, Scott Ellsworth has interwoven stories of the battlefront and homefronts in the Civil War, from the slaughter of the Wilderness and Spotsylvania to the murder at Ford's Theater a year later. Even readers familiar with this narrative of triumph and tragedy will encounter new and important material here.” —James M. McPherson, author of Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era

“Midnight on the Potomac transports readers into the Civil War's fraught last year that decided the fate of the nation and emancipation. A compelling cast of characters enliven dramatic events on the battlefield and behind the lines, illuminating swings of civilian morale, the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, and the uncertain foundation of freedom for millions of formerly enslaved people." —Gary W. Gallagher, John L. Nau III Professor of History Emeritus at the University of Virginia and author of The Enduring Civil War: Reflections on the Great American Crisis

“Midnight on the Potomac is a powerful achievement by Scott Ellsworth, blending meticulous research with vivid storytelling. Capturing both the urgency and humanity of the Civil War’s final year, Ellsworth offers a riveting account of courage, sacrifice, and rebirth—the story of how America nearly lost itself—and how it fought to become whole again.” —Gilbert King, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Devil in the Grove

"This is a book that unspools before you like a movie. Its accuracy and sheer readability make it eminently teachable. In Midnight on the Potomac, Ellsworth supplies that rarest of gifts: a history with the power to break through and win the heart of all readers." —Amity Shlaes, New York Times bestselling author of Coolidge

“In Midnight on the Potomac, Scott Ellsworth accomplishes a remarkable feat: turning a Civil War history into a page-turner. Even if you have read many books about this era, you will learn things you never knew before. Its stunning details remind us of the power of contingency: a shrewder decision here, a better-aimed handgun there, and the whole story could have taken a radical turn for the worse. With sharp prose and meticulous research, the book exemplifies what Faulkner wrote: ‘The past is never dead. It's not even past.’” —John J. Pitney, Jr., Professor of American Politics at Claremont McKenna College

“An extensively researched and engaging analysis of a pivotal year in U.S. history. Interesting perspectives will add to the continuing discussion of the Civil War for American history buffs.” —Library Journal (starred review)

“A passionate account of justice triumphing, amid tragedy, in 1865.” —Kirkus

“It’s a passionate and elegant chronicle of one of the most dramatic years in American history, torn agonizingly between triumph and tragedy.” —Publishers Weekly
© Jared Lazarus/Duke University
Scott Ellsworth is the New York Times bestselling author of The Secret Game, winner of the 2016 PEN/ESPN Award for Literary Sports Writing. He has written about American history for The New York Times, The Washington Post, and the Los Angeles Times. Formerly a historian at the Smithsonian Institution, he is also the author of The World Beneath Their Feet and Death in a Promised Land, his groundbreaking account of the 1921 Tulsa race massacre. Scott lives in Ann Arbor, where he teaches in the Department of Afroamerican and African Studies at the University of Michigan. View titles by Scott Ellsworth

About

From the author of The Ground Breaking, longlisted for the National Book Award, comes a riveting saga of the last year of the Civil War—and a revealing new account of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln

Told with a page-turning pace, New York Times bestselling author and historian Scott Ellsworth has written the most compelling new book about the Civil War in years. Focusing on the last, desperate months of the war, when the outcome was far from certain, Midnight on the Potomac is a story of titanic battles, political upheaval, and the long-forgotten Confederate terror war against the loyal citizens of the North. Taking us behind the scenes in the White House, along the battlefronts in Virginia, and into the conspiracies of spies and secret agents, Lincoln walks these pages, as do Grant and Sherman. But so do common soldiers, runaway slaves, and an unknown but intrepid female war correspondent named Lois Adams. Rarely, if ever, has a book about the Civil War featured such a rich and diverse cast of characters.

Midnight on the Potomac will also shatter some long-held myths. For more than a century and a half, the Lincoln assassination has been portrayed as the sole brainchild of a disgruntled, pro-South actor. But based on both obscure contemporary accounts and decades of long-ignored scholarship, Ellsworth reveals that for nearly one year before the tragic events at Ford’s Theatre, John Wilkes Booth had been working closely with agents of the Confederate Secret Service. And the real Booth is far from the one we’ve long been presented with.

Deeply researched yet captivatingly written, Midnight on the Potomac is a new kind of book about the Civil War. In it you will read about the Confederate attempt to burn down New York City, how Lincoln almost lost the presidency, about the Rebel general who nearly captured Washington, and how thousands of enslaved African Americans freed themselves—and helped secure their nation’s survival. In an age of deep political division such as our own, Scott Ellsworth’s book is an eloquent and gripping testament to the courage, grit, and greatness of the American people.

Reviews

Praise for Midnight on the Potomac:

“With the sense of drama of a novelist but fidelity to facts of a skilled historian, Scott Ellsworth has interwoven stories of the battlefront and homefronts in the Civil War, from the slaughter of the Wilderness and Spotsylvania to the murder at Ford's Theater a year later. Even readers familiar with this narrative of triumph and tragedy will encounter new and important material here.” —James M. McPherson, author of Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era

“Midnight on the Potomac transports readers into the Civil War's fraught last year that decided the fate of the nation and emancipation. A compelling cast of characters enliven dramatic events on the battlefield and behind the lines, illuminating swings of civilian morale, the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, and the uncertain foundation of freedom for millions of formerly enslaved people." —Gary W. Gallagher, John L. Nau III Professor of History Emeritus at the University of Virginia and author of The Enduring Civil War: Reflections on the Great American Crisis

“Midnight on the Potomac is a powerful achievement by Scott Ellsworth, blending meticulous research with vivid storytelling. Capturing both the urgency and humanity of the Civil War’s final year, Ellsworth offers a riveting account of courage, sacrifice, and rebirth—the story of how America nearly lost itself—and how it fought to become whole again.” —Gilbert King, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Devil in the Grove

"This is a book that unspools before you like a movie. Its accuracy and sheer readability make it eminently teachable. In Midnight on the Potomac, Ellsworth supplies that rarest of gifts: a history with the power to break through and win the heart of all readers." —Amity Shlaes, New York Times bestselling author of Coolidge

“In Midnight on the Potomac, Scott Ellsworth accomplishes a remarkable feat: turning a Civil War history into a page-turner. Even if you have read many books about this era, you will learn things you never knew before. Its stunning details remind us of the power of contingency: a shrewder decision here, a better-aimed handgun there, and the whole story could have taken a radical turn for the worse. With sharp prose and meticulous research, the book exemplifies what Faulkner wrote: ‘The past is never dead. It's not even past.’” —John J. Pitney, Jr., Professor of American Politics at Claremont McKenna College

“An extensively researched and engaging analysis of a pivotal year in U.S. history. Interesting perspectives will add to the continuing discussion of the Civil War for American history buffs.” —Library Journal (starred review)

“A passionate account of justice triumphing, amid tragedy, in 1865.” —Kirkus

“It’s a passionate and elegant chronicle of one of the most dramatic years in American history, torn agonizingly between triumph and tragedy.” —Publishers Weekly

Author

© Jared Lazarus/Duke University
Scott Ellsworth is the New York Times bestselling author of The Secret Game, winner of the 2016 PEN/ESPN Award for Literary Sports Writing. He has written about American history for The New York Times, The Washington Post, and the Los Angeles Times. Formerly a historian at the Smithsonian Institution, he is also the author of The World Beneath Their Feet and Death in a Promised Land, his groundbreaking account of the 1921 Tulsa race massacre. Scott lives in Ann Arbor, where he teaches in the Department of Afroamerican and African Studies at the University of Michigan. View titles by Scott Ellsworth

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