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Description:
A series of Civil War letters, most from a union soldier to his wife. There are over 60 letters in all, one from a friend in the Indiana 20th to this soldier before he was mustered, then 57 letters to his wife and “son”, who had a different last name, and I assume was from the wife’s previous marriage, or was illegitimate, 2 letters to his sister and brother-in-law, then 2 letters to the wife from a visitor to the hospital in St. Louis, and one to the wife from a fellow soldier in his regiment. He died in the hospital. Then there are two letters to the wife concerning a bounty and pension. He served in the Indiana 48th. I have a copy of his service record, which I will include. Many of the letters have their original envelopes with stamps, and 32 are on what must have been army-issue stationery, since there are various wonderful printed union mottoes and art work on them, such as portraits of McClellan, eagles, flags, etc. There are 29 envelopes with stamps, 14 of them army-issue, 2 stamped envelopes (3-cent pink Washington), and 8 army-issue envelopes without stamps. The friend’s letter is dated December, 1961, then his letters start on Jan 6, 1962, and end June 7, 1863, shortly before his death. Much of the material is personal in nature, some very explicit sexually, but there are a lot of insights into army life, and stories of a lot of interesting incidents. (I did not try to read these originals. I handled them with cotton photographic gloves, and copied them, then read the copies.) The stories start out in Camp Ellis, near Goshen, Indiana, where there is smallpox in the camp and no one is allowed to leave, then move to Paducah, where they had 12 prisoners who were taken in Illinois, and had “8 nigers baking bread, black as old scratch”, then to Fort Anderson, then in April he tells of being on guard when several boats came in, loaded with wounded from both sides, says he never wants to see such a sight again. In May he tells of deserters coming over who were living on half rations, and their own (Union) coffee mills being worn out, so grinding coffee with the butts of their guns in a pan. In June, on a “Brave Gun Boat Boys” letterhead he quotes the old saying, “If one burns his ass he must sit on the blister”; another letter says the boys have had enough of the South, and are tired of running after the “Cesesh”; 10 days later he says he thinks it’s about over, but within a month says it looks like they are going to be kept all summer and maybe winter; poor rations, but no complaining, he says. Then complains of high prices for food; says they have flour but no way to bake; all women have to leave in 30 days; details camp life, what the beds were like, etc.; “scouting” for food, coming up with corn, potatoes, turkeys; camp near “Jacinther” Mississippi; lots of talk about “nigers” - very racist stuff; mentions talk of a draft in the Plymouth (Indiana) paper; then in September, firing is heard, near Corinth, Cavalry and Artillery on the move; then in October he is ill in Benton Barracks at St. Louis, and in late Oct. writes that he still has the “Mississippi Quick Step”, though he is back with his regiment, and writes about a battle near Corinth. In November he tells about deserters from his company, and names them. Now in Tennessee, he complains about not much food, some men with no blankets; they are guarding the railroad near Memphis. In Feb of ‘63, he tells of a small action near a bridge, and hearing cannon fire; in a letter to “brother and sister” he says he enlisted to put down the rebellion, there was nothing said about freeing the Negroes, and them fighting for the Union, and if it came to him having to salute a “black buck nigro” you would see a boy about his size being called a deserter; says he guessed his wife is a “Dimicrat” and would like to see ol “Jef” win the day and conquer the north, and she’d probably like a wench, but he’s seen enough nigros and wenches. In March, at camp in Louisiana, sick with dysentery, came down river on a boat, stayed on boat for a couple of weeks, the “grileys” fired on the boat and killed a man, cotton being thrown in the river to keep Union troops from getting it.
At various times he mentions the captain having a wench, and the captain and a friend visiting a “hore house”, stealing food, wading “ass deep” in the river to get to his post, etc. By April 13, he was in the post hospital in Arkansas, then taken to St. Louis, where he died of “Chronic Diarrhea”. On June 21, a friend in the regiment, who doesn’t know what has happened to him, briefly describes the horrors of war, tells of seeing many dead, seeing men begging to be killed during amputations, etc. This was the last letter from a soldier. There are about 4 incomplete letters, and one envelope that I can’t match to a letter. There is an expense ledger to and from St. Louis, probably to pick up the body.
The photos show some of the envelopes and letterheads. Not all are on army-issue paper or in gov’t envelopes. This is an unusual opportunity to own a real archive of one soldier’s letters, in addition to the valuable stamps.
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| Status: For Sale |
Reference#: 55fz174 |
| Condition:
fair to excellent |
Year:
1861-63
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| Country:
U.S.A. |
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Weight: 5 |
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| Title:
Civil War Letter archive |
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| Materials:
paper |
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