[2] He wrote a book about his four years of Civil War experience called Detailed Minutiae of Soldier Life in the Army of Northern Virginia 1861-1865.,[3] first published by Carlton McCarthy and Company in 1882[4] with a second edition published in 1888.

[3] A copy of this book is on display at the Museum of the Confederacy as well as at the Virginia Historical Society.

His writings have been featured in other publications, such as chapter 6 of The Civil War Soldier: A Historical Reader by Michael Barton, Larry M. Logue[5] and a chapter in Albert Bushnell Hart's book, The Romance of the Civil War, published in 1896 and now in the public domain.

[1] McCarthy also authored a book in 1871 (published by McCarthy & Ellyson) entitled Walks about Richmond: a story for boys, and a guide to persons visiting the city, desiring to see the principal points of interest.

[1][8] In 1894, McCarthy was the orator at the unveiling of Richmond's Confederate Soldiers and Sailors Monument.