author
John James Geer
1833–1867
A Methodist minister turned Union officer, he wrote a vivid Civil War prison memoir shaped by capture, escape attempts, and stubborn endurance. His best-known book brings readers close to the daily danger and moral strain of life behind Confederate lines.
1 Audiobook
Beyond the Lines; Or, A Yankee Prisoner Loose in Dixie
by John James Geer
About the author
Born in Rockbridge County, Virginia, on June 1, 1833, and raised largely in Ohio, he entered the Methodist ministry while still a young man. During the Civil War he served with the 48th Ohio Volunteer Infantry, where he became known as both a preacher and an officer.
He is best remembered for Beyond the Lines; Or, A Yankee Prisoner Loose in Dixie, first published during the war. The book draws on his experience after being captured at Shiloh and held in Confederate prisons, telling the story with urgency, plainspoken feeling, and a strong sense of conviction.
Geer's life was short: he died on August 23, 1867, at just 34 years old. Even so, his memoir has lasted as a firsthand account of captivity, survival, and the personal cost of the war.