Did you know that a Yankee soldier saved the life of Confederate President Jefferson Davis? Between May 24, 1865, and December 25, 1865, Union surgeon John J. Craven was assigned to care for the newly arrested Davis, imprisoned at Fort Monroe, Hampton, Virginia. Dr. Craven immediately demanded that his superiors put an end to Davis’ barbaric treatment, and set about making improvements in the prisoner’s conditions that included new clothing, a fresh nutritious diet, current reading material, and daily outdoor exercise.

These betterments changed the course of history. Thanks to the doctor’s kindly nature and attentive care, Davis was brought back from the brink of death and went on to live another 22 years, throughout which he vigorously defended the South and wrote several important works on the Southern Confederacy (one of which Sea Raven Press has reprinted: A Short History of the Confederate States of America).

Fortunately, Dr. Craven took notes during his visits with the great Southern leader and later compiled them into a provocative book entitled, Prison Life of Jefferson Davis. First published in 1866, it humanized the great but misunderstood Confederate leader and helped soften the Liberal North’s negative image of the Conservative South. In our ongoing effort to preserve Southern history, Sea Raven Press is proud to publish Craven’s book as a beautiful reprint, respectfully arranged, edited, designed, and copiously illustrated by award-winning writer-historian-artist, Lochlainn Seabrook, a cousin of President Davis, a member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, and the author and editor of nearly 100 scholarly and educational books.

As with all of our reprints, not a single word has been added to or subtracted from the original text. Along with a helpful Notes to the Reader section (that provides background on mid 19th-Century politics as well as his comments on his role as Craven’s editor), Mr. Seabrook includes an absorbing introduction that lends context, interest, and background to Craven’s already intriguing work.

A bestseller in its day, Prison Life of Jefferson Davis stirred up its share of controversies in both the South and the North, creating unsolved mysteries and partisan disputes that have continued into the 21st Century. Our Left-wing controlled education system and mainstream publishing houses have all but ignored and even suppressed Craven’s book. But Mr. Seabrook has rejuvenated it in this attractive, easy-to-read edition - the only reprint currently available with illustrations and an informative South-friendly introduction. Available in paperback and hardcover.