“Whoa …” That baritone voice, again, bellowing above the frantic hoof beats. By degrees, the horses eased their pace. “Whoa. Gut.”
Caitlin’s mind whirred as as she stared at her knees, unseeing. In that one word, Noah came rushing back to her. In his carriage after Gettysburg. You need a place to live. I just so happen to have a house. Leaving for the war. I’m giving you my Heart, you know. Kneeling by her sickbed. Come back to me. Please. I’m here now. And I’ll help you find Jack. After the dreadful siege. Ana was all I needed. Until now. And the last time she saw him. We’ll be together again.
“Don’t be frightened, Miss McKae.” Mr. Wilcox offered his handkerchief, and only then did she realize she was crying. “The Lord has placed us in good hands.”
At last, the stagecoach ground to a halt. Dazed, the passengers stumbled out until only Caitlin and Ana were left.
Caitlin swallowed the ragged heartbeat pulsing in her throat. “It might not—be him, you know.” For in thee, O Lord, do I hope.
“It’s him!” Ana cried, pushing past her and leaping out the door. “Papa! Papa! It’s Ana!”
Hornets swarming through her middle, Caitlin pressed her hand to her chest and prayed her knees would hold her up. They shall walk and not faint. Walk and not faint. Then Ana’s weeping lanced Caitlin’s heart. So they’d been mistaken, after all.
Biting her lips to keep from crying, she wiped the dust from her face and neck with her handkerchief. When she leaned forward on the bench and peered outside, an electric shock coursed through her. For there was Ana, sobbing in the arms of the Union soldier. He was on his knees in the dirt, his uniform straining against his biceps as he gently swayed with the little girl. “Papa,” she hiccupped, and a hoarse voice replied, “My Heart.”
Impossible! Caitlin braced herself in the coach’s doorway, frozen in its frame. Then he looked up, lassoing her heart with his steel-blue eyes.
“Caitlin.”
The breath whisked from her chest.
He stood, and Ana stepped away from between them. Dropping his gloves to the ground, Noah stepped up to the coach, eyes bright and cheeks ruddy from his ride. “My love,” he whispered, and reached for her. With trembling hands, Caitlin held his shoulders as he lifted her down by her waist. When her feet touched the ground, he did not let her go, and she did not pull away.
“It’s you.” She laid her hand on his faintly bristled jaw, then lightly grazed the bump on his nose with her finger. Fleetingly, she rued her disheveled state, but the look in Noah’s eyes told her it didn’t matter. New life swept through her as fiercely as the prairie wind whipping her skirts around them both.
With his thumb under her chin, Noah gently tipped her face to his. Last time they were together, she had begged him not to kiss her. Now, she slipped her arms around his neck, and he circled her waist. The earth fell away from beneath her feet, and Noah took her lips in the kiss she’d been dreaming of for months. He was worth the wait.
“Heavens. If I had known that was to be the reward I would have stopped the coach myself.”
Caitlin giggled under Noah’s soft lips, and he gently put her down.
“This is Alan Wilcox, our escort on the trail to Astoria,” she said, turning toward the veteran. “For a teaching job.”
Noah’s eyebrows arched as he extended his hand to Mr. Wilcox, who shook it amiably. “Much obliged. I’m Noah Becker. I see you’ve met my daughter Ana—” He cupped her shoulder in his hand. “And this woman here is going to be my wife, if I can persuade her.”
Caitlin’s knees weakened again, and Noah pressed her to his side. The warmth radiating from his touch burned her cheeks. Ana squealed, and Mr. Wilcox pumped his hand once more before he tipped his hat and left them alone.
“Got rid of the competition, anyway.” Noah grinned.
Caitlin shook her head. There is no competition.
Eyes growing serious, Noah grasped both her hands. “I am yours, Caitlin McKae, if you can accept a man as complicated and flawed as me.”
Her heart grew wings. “And can you find a way to love a Yankee who fits neither North or South?”
“I have loved you since I first left you. But war will not separate us again.” Noah penetrated her with his gaze, now suddenly bright. “Caitlin,” he whispered. “It’s over.”
She gasped. “Are you sure?”
“News galloped into the fort just before you arrived. That’s why they fired the cannons that caused the stampede! There is no more Union versus Confederacy. There is only the United States of America.”
Tears burned Caitlin’s eyes as she searched Noah’s face. She had expected news of victory to resound like a gong, detonating a riot of joy within her. But that was before she’d made the South her home, before Rebels had names and faces. Prudence and Judson Periwinkle. Naomi Ford. Minnie Taylor. Noah.
“Everything you fought for …” Her voice trailed off.
“I fought for my home. I fought for us, and you are both safe, despite my failure. If the Confederacy had won, Bess and Saul and all the rest would still be slaves. Now they are ‘forever free,’ as Lincoln says, though their struggles are far from over. The South must reinvent itself.”
Caitlin nodded. “Are you all right?”
A sad smile played on his lips. “I’m ready to move on.”
“Will you go back? To Atlanta?”
“After wearing a Union uniform?” He shook his head. “No. I will make a new life. I have done it before. Surely I can do it again. Will you start over with me—with us—in the West?”
“Please, Mama?” Ana tugged on her hand, and Caitlin bent to pull her into an embrace.
Sunshine edged Noah and Ana in gold and Caitlin saw them for the treasures they were. Hope unfurled within her, as boundless as the prairie sky. “Of course I will.” She kissed Ana’s cheek, then stood and pressed another to Noah’s willing lips. The end of the war was not the end at all. “This is only the beginning.”
Cedar Falls, Iowa
Thursday, January 17, 1867
Her breath a glittering cloud before her, Ruby Goodrich stamped her feet on the train platform to keep warm. They’d been standing in the cold for an hour, but she’d been anticipating this moment much longer than that.
Four-year-old Aiden jumped up and down beside her. “When’s it coming?” he asked again, though only a minute had passed since his last query.
Edward laughed. “We’re just as excited as you are, son, but have patience. Good things come to those who wait. Isn’t that right, Grace?” Mischief sparkled in his eyes as he bounced their daughter on his hip. Just over one year old, the cherub-faced toddler with her daddy’s chocolaty brown eyes and caramel-colored hair was adorable proof indeed.
“Look, Gracie!” Aiden grabbed his little sister’s shoe and pointed at the locomotive chugging into the station.
Mr. Stone, one of Edward’s congregants, turned and smiled. “Evening, Reverend, Mrs. Goodrich. Ready to add to your family?”
“Absolutely,” Edward replied, but Ruby’s attention was fixed firmly on the train. As it screeched to a halt, she reached for Edward’s hand and squeezed.
Moments later, an agent of the New York Children’s Aid Society paraded five boys and one small girl across the platform.
“That one,” Ruby whispered, her eyes locked with the girl’s. Black hair, freckles, and eyes too old for her face, she looked to be only a few months older than Grace. There was something special about her.
“What can you tell us about the girl?” Edward asked the agent, who flipped through a stack of cards. “Mother died of venereal disease. Father unknown.”
“Is the girl healthy?” Edward prodded, and Ruby heard the agent say she was.
Then her eyes grew round. “Do you know the mother’s name?”
The agent looked again at her card. “Emma Connors.”
Ruby’s breath skidded.
“Ah yes,” the agent continued. “I remember her. She’d had an abortion or t
wo before Shannon was born. It’s really a miracle she was able to give birth. Clearly something in her life changed from the time Miss Connors conceived and the time Shannon was born. She was full of faith when she died. Are you quite well? You look—”
But Ruby had walked away and was kneeling in front of Shannon. “Hello darlin’. Did you know Shannon is my name too? My middle name.”
“This girl was named for you.” Edward, behind her. “Surely it’s no coincidence.”
Tears bit Ruby’s eyes. “I bet you miss your mama very much.”
Shannon’s grey eyes were luminous in the gaslight.
“She loved you, and I love you. We’d love to take care of you from now on. Would you like to be part of our family?”
Shannon blinked, then turned her gaze on Edward, Grace, and a very bouncy Aiden.
“I could be your big brother!” Aiden piped. “I’m very good at it. And Gracie can be your sister. We have a nice house with a big yard to play in. Mama has lots and lots of flowers and when we visit Uncle Jack on his farm, he lets us ride a pony and milk cows. There are always kittens around. Do you like kittens?”
“And you’ll have cousins!” Ruby added. “They are practically our neighbors.”
Edward lit up. “Cousins! I almost forgot. Don’t be cross with me, dear, but Ana came bursting into the church office right before I left today. She said you and the kids weren’t at home. Seemed rather agitated about something—only I can’t seem to recall what the fuss was all about.”
Ruby gasped. “Edward Goodrich, if you don’t tell me right this instant, I’ll—I’ll—”
Eyes twinkling, he knelt in front of Shannon, Grace sitting on his knee. “Have you ever seen a brand-new baby?”
Propped up with pillows on her canopy bed, Caitlin Becker ached with love as she gazed at her newborn son. Ever vigilant of her comfort, Noah fed a log to the fire, and shadow and light waltzed together on the wall. Analiese placed a cup of tea carefully on the nightstand.
Returning to Caitlin’s side, Noah planted a kiss on her forehead before turning his adoring gaze on his son. “Well, my love, have you decided on a name? I don’t suppose he’ll be very pleased with us if we call him Peanut forever.”
“Wilhelm James.” For Noah’s brother, and Caitlin’s father.
Soft lines framed Noah’s eyes as he nodded. “William James Becker,” he said, choosing the English variation. “It suits him.” He wrapped his arm around her shoulders, his fingers brushing the scar they had both grown to love, for the bullet that created it had sent Caitlin to Atlanta—to Noah and Ana—years ago.
“Will.” Ana’s tone was firm. “After all, he is just a tiny boy.”
“Fair enough.” Noah laughed, and then a knock at the door drew him away.
When he returned, pride shone on his face as he led the Goodrich family—plus one more little girl—into the room.
“Say hello to Will!” Ana beamed at her red-nosed cousins.
Caitlin’s eyes went wide. “I completely forgot! Tonight you met the train, didn’t you? You must be frozen.”
“I’ll make some hot chocolate!” Ana bounded out of the room, clearly satisfied with her position as the eldest cousin.
“Oh, he’s so perfect! Just look at that little mouth!” Ruby rubbed her hands together to warm them. “May I?” She gently lifted the baby from Caitlin’s arms.
“And who is this?” Caitlin smiled at her cousin Edward, who looked so at home with a child in his arms.
“This is Shannon.” He beamed.
“You’re home at last.” Caitlin’s voice was gentle. She knew what it was like to be suddenly transplanted. “I hope you like it here as much as we do. You can call me Aunt Caitlin, and this is Uncle Noah.”
“And who am I, chopped liver?” Jack blustered through the doorway, Ana riding his back. “Well, sister, you’ve lost weight since I saw you last.” He bent to kiss her cheek and Ana slid to the floor. “Special diet? Do tell me where you put the pounds.”
“She gave them to me, you rascal!” Ruby laughed, her gaze still pinned to William’s face.
Jack wiggled his finger into the baby’s tiny fist. “Look how strong he is! Watch out, Noah, he might not be satisfied to work in a courtroom like you. He might want to plow a field like his Uncle Jack!”
“But look at those wise eyes,” Edward teased. “He might want to be a preacher.”
“His fingers are so long!” Ruby said. “He’d make an excellent tailor.”
“Or a teacher!” Caitlin smiled, thinking of her own students who had knit so many blankets for the baby he’d surely stay warm for years.
Noah laughed. “William will be anything he wants to be. This is America.”
Caitlin reached out, and beckoned Shannon to her side. Holding the girl’s hand, she whispered, “Do you know the best thing about living here? Family.” Overwhelmed with gratitude, Caitlin’s eyes welled with tears as she gazed upon the faces of all those she held dear. Noah, Ana, Jack, Edward, Ruby, Aiden, Grace—and now Will and Shannon too! Yes, she could have been teaching in Oregon right now. But when she and Ana had found Noah at Fort Kearny, Caitlin let the wagon train go on without them. Ruby and Edward had settled down in Cedar Falls by the time Noah was discharged from the army, and choosing to join them was the easiest decision Caitlin and Noah had ever made. Living in a town with railroads meant Vivian and George could reach them in days, not weeks. Cedar Falls needed teachers and lawyers, too. And Caitlin needed family.
“God setteth the solitary in families,” Edward quoted from Psalm 68:6. War divided them no longer. The pieces of Caitlin’s heart had come together at last.
Though Yankee in Atlanta’s main characters of Caitlin McKae and Noah Becker are fictional, their struggles represent those experienced by real people living in Atlanta during the Civil War. Caitlin’s character was inspired by the hundreds of women who disguised themselves as men and enlisted in the army on both sides. Caitlin also represents the Northern natives and Union loyalists who lived in Atlanta during the war. Thomas Dyer’s book Secret Yankees sheds light on the small band of Unionists living in Confederate Atlanta. Cyrena Stone’s journal, quoted in Dyer’s book, lends valuable insights. The Yankee in Atlanta scene in which Caitlin is arrested and questioned in a hotel room was inspired by Cyrena’s account of the same surreal experience as it happened to her. While the secret Yankees in Atlanta are long forgotten, several place-names of the modern city are named for them: Markham, Dunning, Hayden, and Webster Streets; Angier Avenue and Lynches Alley; and the suburban towns of Austell and Norcross.
Noah Becker represents another minority—the German immigrant living in the Confederacy. A wave of German immigrants did come to America after the Revolution of 1848, but most settled in the North, including Union general Carl Schurz, whose early years in the Rhineland inspired Noah’s specific backstory. Between 176,817 and 216,000 German immigrants fought for the North. In the South, only between 3,500 and 7,000 Germans fought for the Confederacy, but of that number, many were conscripted, and a large number deserted.
The “Galvanized Yankees,” officially known as United States Volunteers, were made up of six regiments of Confederate prisoners recruited from Point Lookout, Rock Island, Alton, and Camps Douglas, Chase, and Morton. Many were immigrants, Irish and German predominating. During the spring and summer of 1865, they restored mail service between the Missouri River and California, continually fighting off raiding Indians. They escorted supply trains on the Oregon and Santa Fe trails, and rebuilt hundreds of miles of telegraph line destroyed by Indians between Fort Kearney and Salt Lake City. The U.S. Volunteers guarded surveying parties for the Union Pacific Railroad, helped protect Minnesota settlements, and searched for white women captured by hostile Native Americans. Though little remembered, their service was vital to the homesteaders settling the frontier.
The major events in this novel, both in Atlanta and New York City, were depicted as historically as possible, including the National
Board of Popular Education’s efforts to send female teachers to frontier towns, the Panic of 1857 and subsequent mass prayer meetings, the razing of Seneca Village to make way for Central Park, the hanging of the Andrews Raiders in Atlanta, the draft riots in New York City, the Southern army revival during the winter of 1863–1864, the refugees flooding Atlanta, the battles of the Atlanta campaign, and the Confederate plot to burn New York City after Lincoln’s re-election. Due to the high population of sick soldiers in its hospitals, Atlanta civilians were also victims of epidemics such as smallpox and scarlet fever. The concert above the trenches in Smyra, Georgia, and the prairie stampede triggered by exploding gunny sacks celebrating the war’s end also reflect real events.
The Children’s Aid Society in New York City operated orphan trains for decades. Partnering with the Five Points Mission, nearly one thousand children per year were sent west just from 1865–1874. We know of thirteen of these orphans adopted in Cedar Falls, Iowa, which was the western terminus of the Illinois Central Railroad during the war. Nearly 60 percent of the children put up for adoption by Five Points Mission had at least one living parent. Lewis Pease did, in fact, pay cash to destitute parents for giving up their children on at least a few occasions. He was also taken to court by parents who wanted their children back—but he usually won.
The text from Southern textbooks and newspapers are direct quotes. The arrangement between the New York and Richmond newspapers to print “family ads” lasted only about a year. By the end of 1864, and after two thousand family ads had been printed, war officials North and South put a stop to it, suspecting the ads contained coded messages of espionage.
Several historical figures also appear in these pages, including Col. George Washington Lee, Oliver Jones, Col. James Nesbit of the 66th Georgia regiment, Col. Andrew J. Johnson, Sam Richards, Cyrena and Amherst Stone, and Lewis Pease. Other historical figures referenced were Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell, Frederick Law Olmsted, and Charles Loring Brace. Brace and Olmsted are said to have been best friends. The man tending the Union wounded outside the Car Shed on July 22 was an enterprising slave named Robert Webster, who organized a team of former slaves to get the neglected Yankees to a hospital. The woman Caitlin saw digging lead from the battlefield with her slave was Decatur resident Mary Ann Harris Gay, who recorded her experiences in Life in Dixie during the War.
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