Capt. Henry Coppee. The Field Manual for Battalion Drill. Philadelphia; J.B. Lippincott & Co., 1862. 8vo. Original dark green cloth.

With ownership inscription: "John W.M. Appleton Major 54th Mass".

John W. M. Appleton (1832-1913) was a 29-year-old clerk from Boston who, early in 1863, was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the 54th Massachusetts Infantry, the all-Black regiment recruited and led by Colonel Robert G. Shaw. Appleton was promoted twice, to Captain on 14 April 1863 and again to Major in July. He commanded Company A in the intense combat on the sea islands in 1864 and at the Second Battle of Fort Wagner on 18 July 1863, where he was twice wounded. Although a Confederate victory, the valor of the well-drilled Black Union soldiers at Fort Wagner was widely praised, and their actions led directly to the greater enlistment of Black soldiers.

Appleton's severe wounds from Fort Wagner forced his resignation and return to Boston in November 1864. He had recovered sufficiently in March 1865 to perform garrison duties with the 1st Battalion Massachusetts Heavy Artillery, notably serving as warden of the prison holding Confederate Vice President Alexander Stephens. 

After the war, Appleton moved to Kanawha County, West Virginia, where he managed the Mill Creek Cannel Coal Company, operated the Salt Sulphur Springs resort, and served in the West Virginia National Guard. He contributed extensively to compiling records of West Virginia's Civil War Union veterans. 

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