"Memoirs of a Confederate Gentleman" is a work of historic fiction by Thomas Tear. The story traces the lives of three family members, Charles Everson McGuire, his aunt, Euphemia Mackinnon Everson Scott, and his wife, Josephine Abigail St. John, through the years leading up to and immediately following the American Civil War. Just as the famed mansion Tara and its owners the O’Hara clan of Georgia were the creation of Margaret Mitchell, Grand Oak, and the McGuires exist only in fact, in the mind of their creator.

The inspiration for the book came to me one April afternoon after my friend Karen's birthday. We were to attend a civil war reenactment ball In Annapolis. The ladies were looking forward to showing off their new dresses, but the ball was canceled. We decided to have a dress up dinner at a historic restaurant for our immediate group of friends instead, this would give the ladies the chance to show off their new gowns. Since Karen had the next birthday the diner became and impromptu party for her. Everyone's "present" to Karen was to create a "personality" who had lived during the war years and read a few brief paragraphs or tell a short story about who they had been.

The Major, Josephine and Aunt Effie

Maj. Charles E. McGuire

Each person in the group was impressed with the lives and events which we had all created. Karen created the persona of Josephine, Roxanna the persona of Aunt Effie, and myself the persona of Maj. Charles McGuire. It was from the characters created for this evening's entertainment that the concept for the book grew. Research for the book has taken be to wonderful places like Charleston, South Carolina and Gettysburg, Pennsylvania as well as many other historic sites from north to south. It has also introduced me to numerous books, periodicals, and diaries which, I would not otherwise have encountered. Another one of the benefits of my research was meeting all of the wonderful people who have shared their knowledge and experiences with me.

"Memoirs of a Confederate Gentleman" is basically a work of fiction. In order to make the story informative as well as believable I have tried to stick to historic facts, events and customs whenever possible, however much of my inspiration did indeed come from actual events and family stories. I have changed names and embellished details for the sake of making the story more interesting. I anticipate publication in 2010, in the meantime please enjoy the following excerpts and keep checking back for the latest updates.