For its “Saturday Speaker Series,” the National Museum of Civil War Medicine in Frederick will present Dr. Jonathan S. Jones. Dr. Jones will talk about his new (and first) book, “Opium Slavery: Civil War Veterans and America’s First Opioid Crisis” (University of North Carolina Press).

A Q&A and book signing will follow his presentation.

Dr. Jones is an assistant professor of history at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia.

“Opium Slavery” explores how the Civil War sparked an epidemic of drug addiction among survivors, and investigates the traumatic experiences and personal toll of addiction, which upended the lives of veterans and their families for generations.

“Opium Slavery” has been covered in the Washington Post, HISTORY, NPR, and BBC, among other outlets.

This manuscript is based on Dr. Jones’ doctoral dissertation, which won the Society of Civil War Historians’ Anne Bailey Dissertation Prize, the inaugural Chancellor Distinguished PhD Graduate Dissertation Award from the State University of New York, and Binghamton University’s Distinguished Dissertation Award.

This event is included with admission to the museum, and it is free for members of the museum, which is located at 48 E. Patrick Street in historic downtown Frederick.

The event will be streamed live on the museum’s Facebook page for those who cannot attend in person.

For information, visit civilwarmed.org/event/opium-slavery-civil-war-veterans-and-americas-first-opioid-crisis/.