The Journals of Ambrose Abbott

"January 1, 1920
This is the Journal of Ambrose Sone Abbott. I was born on December 31, 1839, in this house near the village of Alexandria, Pennsylvania.
The handwriting was neat, rather small and faded. A great deal of writing was on each page...."

Inside a chance purchase of a basket of books at a Pennsylvania auction are two antique journals. Do they belong to an unknown relative?
The journals reveal the world of Ambrose Abbott as young boy along the early Pennsylvania Canal, the life-changing events when he joined the Civil War as a horse soldier, and his later life ponderings on history, philosophy and spirituality.