We Are in His Hands Whether We Live or Die — Howard 1859

Edited by David K. Thomson Many soldiers who served in the American Civil War found solace in their faith during the most trying times of the war.  But few soldiers took such a providential view of life and the Civil War as Charles Henry Howard [Bowdoin Class of 1859].  Born in a small town in Maine, Howard came from a family with a distinguished history of soldiering: his grandfather was a Revolutionary War veteran and his brother, the older and more well-known Oliver Otis Howard, attended West Point and rose to command an army in the Civil War.  Following in his brother's footsteps, Charles Henry Howard graduated from Bowdoin College in 1859.  After graduation, Charles visited his older brother at West Point during the tumultuous election of 1860.  While at West Point, Howard saw the tensions between Northern and Southern cadets escalate as he weighed his options for a military or theological career.  The choice was made for him on April 12, 1861, with the firing on Fort Sumter. Res