Dorence Atwater was maligned in his time, mistreated by a small military and government clique and remains the subject of disagreement and even embarrassment among his descendants to this very day. Dorence was the creator and keeper of the “Andersonville Death List” or “Atwater List” in which he covertly recorded the names and grave locations of the 13,000 Union soldiers who died in the infamous Confederate Civil War Prison at Andersonville, GA. This list later became the document which Dorence, as part of a group led by Clara Barton, used to mark the graves of the brave patriots who died defending the Union. Without Dorence’s initiative and courage, tens of thousands of relatives and descendants of these soldiers would never have known the fate or location of their loved ones lost in the war.
The rest of Dorence’s story, from surviving Andersonville to becoming the US Consul to Tahiti and marrying a Tahitian Princess, is more than worthy of a Hollywood movie. It contains all the elements of life, from tragedy to overwhelming joy and love.
Surprisingly, the amazing story of Dorence Atwater’s life has never before been told. His sacrifices at the Andersonville Prison Pen as a teenager; his kindnesses; his lifelong friendship with Clara Barton; his personal grief, his rise in status because he was intelligent & kind & a natural businessman; his marriage to a princess of Tahiti - & so much more, woven into his exceptional life – make a unique, heroic American story.
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