Isaac C. Doan

Born in 1837 and died in 1901, Isaac C. Doan is known for Reminiscences of the Chattanooga Campaign, a paper he later published after reading it at a reunion of Company B, Fortieth Ohio Volunteer Infantry. The work stands out for its direct, ground-level view of the Chickamauga and Chattanooga fighting.

Doan wrote from personal experience as a Union soldier, and his account focuses on the strain, confusion, and endurance of men in the ranks. That gives his writing a plainspoken immediacy that still makes it engaging for modern readers of Civil War history.

Records connected with his memorial indicate that he later lived in Richmond, Indiana, where he served as county clerk. Although not a widely documented literary figure, he left behind a valuable eyewitness narrative that preserves one soldier’s memory of a decisive campaign.