A Southern Spy in Northern Virginia

"I observed two ladies walking rapidly toward me. One was Miss Laura Ratcliffe...But for meeting them, my life as a Partisan would have ended that day." -John Singleton Mosby

As the Civil War raged, Confederate brigadier general J.E.B Stuart entrusted a secret album to Laura Ratcliffe, a young woman in Fairfax County, "as a token of his high appreciation of her patriotism, admiration of her virtues, and pledge of his lasting esteem." A devoted Southerner, Laura provided a safe haven for Rebel forces, along with intelligence gathered from passing Union soldiers. Ratcliffe's book contains four poems and fourty undated signatures: twenty-six of Confederate officers and soldiers and fourteen of loyal Confederate civilians. 

In A Southern Spy in Northern Virginia, Charles V. Mauro uncovers the mystery behind this album, identifying who the soldiers were and when they could have signed its pages. The result is a fascinating look at the covert lives and relationships of civilians and soldiers during the war, kept hidden until now.