ONE DAY NOT SO LONG AGO…
And then one day not so long ago, in the late winter when the weather was a bit dreary, she was coerced into taking a craft class on creating porcelain dolls. This was not something she had ever envisioned herself doing. But with three daughters this was a wonderful skill to learn. And it grew.
Moving beyond the class, Tecla set up a kiln in her own home where doll parts were baked – arms, legs, heads. And what happened next? That first doll that she had painted, baked, dressed, with hair and eyes inserted, had been tucked safely into a sheltered corner. It was a corner from where those dark glass eyes could take in all that went on in day-to-day life. Those eyes seemed to be asking “Who am I?” They were searching for not only a name, but a tale that needed to be told.


Through many different roles she comes alive with tales that tell of her varied and wide-ranging history. The reader meets her as Jenny, a young girl from Gettysburg, who is well known to history. From there it’s Bitsy’s story, who in the 1700s wrote a letter that was found not so long ago. It’s a tale of how she was captured and sent off to the Colonies as an indentured servant. Olivia is introduced as a young girl who took on the role of mother to her family, while unwillingly caring for the Yankee troops.
Then there’s Gale. Is it true? It’s the tale of a trunk that was found washed up on the rocky coast of Maine after a late winter storm. And now, in the most recent addition, we’re introduced to Hock who survives Andersonville, one of the most dreaded prison camps of the Civil War.
It’s all there, all the tales that can be shared through history’s young voices, any of whom could easily have stepped out of one of our classroom history books. The stories are told by the characters who have always been there, some lost in time, but now reintroduced to be savored and enjoyed through books read by today’s young readers.

BOOKS BY TECLA EMERSON

READERS REVIEW
He sold his daughter into indenture!
“Tecla Emerson clearly weaves Bitsy’s past and present together. The unintended resulting depth of her punishment gives us a realistic picture of the era that she lived in. I tried to imagine what it is that was so terrible that she had to struggle to survive every day. What is it she did? How is it that one jealous lie can affect another person’s life so profoundly? In spite of it all, she loves her father and desperately tries to make him understand without upsetting him. I enjoyed reading “The Letter” and found it hard to put down until I learned the answers.”
Jennie Wade really inspires me …
“I recently ordered one of your books on Amazon. It was the book about Jennie Wade. The reason I got the book, was because I am studying Jennie Wade for the wax museum. I just got the book, and I have been reading bits and pieces of it. I love to read. Jennie Wade really inspires me to a lot of things. So far, I have donated to a homeless family-$173. And I donated to St. Judes hospital for children. Your book has a lot of detail, and it really helps me understand what happened to Jennie Wade.”
The Civil War was on her doorstep
“A friend recommended that I read this. Antietam – Waking the Fury I’m glad I did – it renewed my interest in the Civil War. I looked up information about Antietam after I read the book. I didn’t know anything about Antietam and that President Lincoln wrote the Emancipation Proclamation following this, the bloodiest battle in the civil war.
“Antietam” is written on a level that young school children can relate to on a personal level – how the battle affected young people that unintentionally became part of the war.
The story shows that when confronted with situations beyond our control we can find a strength beyond our own expectations – becoming a stronger person as a result.
I will buy this book for my grandchildren when they study the civil war.”
A NEW twist on an OLD story!
“A wonderfully NEW story about a young woman who was killed more than 150 years ago, and very informative about her early years. Very well written”