The second edition contains excerpts from the letters and diary of Private Jonathan Fuller Coghill, Colonel Charles Blacknall, and Union Private John Vaultier of the 88th PA. The words of these men tell the story better than the author's interpertation of the letters, which was the manner in which the first edition was written. The addition of reports of the battles from the Yankees' perspective adds a new perspective to the battles. It is interesting how many times the NC 23rd regiment faced...

After reading Upon These Steps, I think it is so awesome to have grown up in such an historical family home. Being a Reavis descendent myself, whose line migrated to Nelson, Ga (Reavis Mtn.), the Reavis homeplace there was a significant part of my childhood and have very fond memories of it. I visit Reavis Mtn. and the old homeplace whenever I get a chance.

Several readers have inquired about the signifance of the rabbit. There is one, but it would be interesting if readers would comment on this posting and give others their view of the rabbit's significance.

David, your book is beautifully written. What a joy it was to see our ancient kin, all who once lived in the same house that you , Billy and I lived in for 18 years plus. You made all the characters with all their struggles, doubt, pain and actions so real. I really felt connected with all of our ancient kin. Just think, they all ate, slept, and lived in the same house that we lived in. Ella, Della, Sam, and Thomas all slept upstairs where we once slept. And they came down those narrow stai...

Readers should not confuse the current-day "Glebe Road" in Vance County with the "Glebe Road" of 1860. The 1860 Glebe Road is the current-day Satterwhite Point Road. The name of the road is documented in Lewis P. Reavis' Will. A Plot of the property was prepared by Surveyor SPJ Harris in January 1884 (after Mary Reavis' death) for the purpose of distributiing the land to the heirs.

Of interest, prior to 1884, the road ran about 100 yards further east of the current road in front of the ...

Hi David - I am reading your book and have found it very interesting. I appreciate seeing the Reavis's in their historical perspective, this is making history very real to me. There are three characters who have Jones as their middle name, Samuel Jones Reavis, Hugh Jones Reavis and Samuel Jones Parham. Do you know where the Jones came from? I have Enoch Jones Reavis and the Jones is an important identifier as he is frequently confused with his uncle Enooch Ashby Reavis.I appreciate the pictur...

Readers can visit www.ReavisHistory.com to learn more about, not only the Reavis Family, but many related families.

I would like to thank everyone for their encouragement, prompting me to write this book. It has provided me an avenue to document some of the episodes of a number of ancestors, whose lives had a tremendous impact on those living around them at the time. The courage, wisdom, and resilence of these individuals living over 100 years ago are virtues we can admire and adopt as part of our lives today.

While I learned many facts about these individuals over the past 35 years, not until I star...