author
George W. Petty
A former corporal in New Jersey’s Second Regiment left behind a lively firsthand account of camp life during the Spanish-American War. His writing brings out the routines, humor, and uncertainty of soldiering with an immediacy that still feels human today.
1 Audiobook
In Camp with L Company, Second Regiment New Jersey Volunteer Infantry
by George W. Petty
About the author
George W. Petty is known for In Camp with L Company, Second Regiment New Jersey Volunteer Infantry, a memoir-like account of service with Company L of the Second Regiment, whose headquarters were in Paterson, New Jersey. The book was published around 1900 and presents Petty as a corporal writing from direct experience.
Rather than focusing only on battles, Petty’s narrative pays close attention to the everyday world of military life: organizing the company, traveling south, settling into camp, and the moods and friendships that shaped a volunteer regiment during the Spanish-American War era. That ground-level perspective is what gives the book its lasting appeal.
Little biographical information about Petty himself is easy to confirm from reliable online sources beyond what appears in connection with the book, so the surviving work remains the clearest introduction to him. For readers of military history, his value lies in turning a large historical event into a personal, readable record of ordinary service.