1843: August Frederick Lawyer to Thomas Lawyer

April 17, 2026 Griff Leave a comment

The following letter was written by August Frederick Lawyer (1807-1863) to his father, Thomas Lawyer (1785-1868), an attorney practicing in Lawyersville, Schoharie county, New York, where he also served as the town’s post master.

We learn from this letter that Frederick arrived in Rio de Janiero aboard the USS Warren, a second class sloop-of-war built at the Boston Navy Yard between 1825-1827. The letter reveals that they were on a journey that would take them around the globe. In October 1843, she departed for the Pacific, where she acted as a guard ship at Monterey during the Mexican–American War before transferring to San Francisco as a stores and receiving ship. Further research from period newspapers inform us that Frederick was serving as the Assistant Surgeon aboard the vessel.

The letter provides us with a description by first hand observation of the harbor and city of Rio de Janiero in 1843.

T R A N S C R I P T I O N

*Addressed to Thomas Lawyer, P. M. [Post Master], Lawyersville, Schoharie county, New York*

Rio [de] Janeiro [Empire of Brazil]
July 20, 1843

Dear Sir.

We arrived in this port 4 days since after a passage of 53 days from Norfolk. The passage was so far as winds & storms were concerned a delightful one. We never met a squall or tempestuous weather during the whole passage [but were] all the time in the trade winds which are the most pleasant in the world. The health of the ship’s crew has been extraordinarily good, averaging from 12 to 15 men out of 500 men. Lost one patient by scurvy the morning we entered the harbor—the only one we had of this disease. During the passage one man fell overboard who was saved by cutting away the life buoy upon which he rode in safety until the boat picked him up about ½ a mile from the ship.

The Harbor of Rio is one of the finest I have ever seen & the most Romantic, situated under the Andes [Serro do Mar Mountains] & surrounded by hills and mountains from 100 to 2500 feet in height. There must have been at some remote period an immense convulsion of Nature to have thrown up so many remarkable mountains as here surround us. The town appears to be well defended at its entrance by several Forts. They are, however, very old & I think a good force from the sea would find no difficulty in bombarding the place and capturing also.

The city is in a plain among these hills & if it could have been built by any perfectly civilized nation would have been one of the most delightful on earth. Nature has [paper torn] … as it is. The houses are old & low. Streets very narrow filled with all variety of shops that could be imagined. One of the streets, however, is independent of its narrowness—very pleasant. The stores are fitted up handsomely & at evening brightly illuminated, filled with all kinds of fancy articles of French & Portuguese manufacture. The people seem to be very busy in their small way of deal & pay, but little attention to each other or to strangers. Officers are so common of the various navies that they excitge scarcely any interest. Your society is limited in consequence to your own.

I haunted the town several times & walked through the principal streets and thoroughfares examining all I could see of interest. The churches are some of them very large & fine, but I should think had lost much of their former magnificence by the wars of the country. You see in them many catholic priests but very few of them about the streets. The carving & height of the interior is good & well worth examining.

The Palace of Dom Pedro covers a large surface of ground but is not magnificent as it is low & not by any means imposing, near the water’s edge, fronting on a dirty square. It is of marble, I think—one of a yellowish color. It is said to be very handsome in the interior which I fear I shall not be able to see.

View from the Imperial Palace at Rio de Janeiro with a cavalry battalion in front of it. Late 1840s.

Attended the opera a few evenings since where I saw the young Emperor & princess. I was not much pleased with his appearance but think the princess decidedly the most dignified, handsome & intelligent-looking lady in the theatre. She was plainly but richly attired, & probably as she stood was very valuable—-if not for her person, at least for the large quantity of diamonds decorating her person. Her head dress & necklace was the most brilliant I ever saw. There was a great many Ladies in the theatre and among them all could not discover one handsome or, according to our ideas, have any claim to beauty. The Spanish are far superior to them. The best specimen as to color was the prince & princess, being quite white. There is too much dark color under the skins of some. The soldiers are mostly negroes & very inferior.

*Emperor Dom Pedro II and Teresa Cristina as they looked in 1843.*

I have not seen much military excitement as yet. I suppose their soldiers are near Montevideo where I understand there is some hostilities existing. ¹ There is an immense quantity of low population & slavery crowded together in rooms, looking like holes in the wall, where I suppose they sleep away an existence in very great ignorance except of the comforts of eating, if they can get it, which I much doubt. There is no currency in the country that can be depended upon. It is fluctuating from day to day. They have a paper currency and copper for daily use. I have not seen a particle of specie used since our arrival except that which the various navies circulate. Have no doubt there is abundance of it, but it is kept in the vaults of the country.

There is a very fine French eating & drinking house in this place where the officers congregate to pass off their time. Billiards appears to be the principal game of amusement. We suppose we shall remain here 10 or 12 days longer to water ship, get in fresh provisions, & prepare for our voyage to Bombay to receive our minister, Mr. [Caleb] Cushing. ² We shall probably be about 60 days or 70 in reaching there. This will be a long cruise. After this, [we’ll] proceed to Singapore & then to China or Canton in the China Sea which we expect to reach next December or January, remain in this sea about a year, visit Ceylon, Manilla, Singapore & perhaps several other places during the year. In December 1844, [we’ll] leave for the Pacific & visit many of the Islands, coast of South America, Valparaiso, Lima, Callao, & then round Cape Horn & return to Rio Janeiro, from whence we will again sail for the United States, having accomplished a journey around the world. I think we shall reach home about August or September 1845. I anticipate seeing the most interesting portion of the Globe except the Mediterranean, a cruise which I shall have some claim to on my return.

You will have perceived by my letters from Norfolk that I had but 4 or 5 days to get ready for my cruise. Therefore, it was out of my power to make such arrangements as I could have wished for the cruise. I wrote a letter to Tiffany by the Pilot Boat of the pilot who conducted us to sea which I hope he received. The worst of this cruise is that I cannot hear from home. But you will often hear from me as there are ships constantly sailing from all these ports. There are occasionally store ships for the Squadron sailing from the United States & from New York East India merchantmen weekly by a little trouble you might send [me a letter]. I often think, could I be satisfied [if] all was harmony & peace & contentment in all members of the family, how great a sense of gratification I should feel when I often think of them. Could they but know as much of the world as I do, they would daily thank God for their comforts so superior to most I see. Happiness unalloyed is in the power of the family & God knows I would like to see it if I ever return again.

Before we Leave this port, I shall write you again giving you all the news and interesting discoveries I make here.

¹ In 1843, Brazil was not officially at war with Montevideo, but was heavily involved in the region’s instability during the Uruguayan Civil War (Guerra Grande, 1839–1851). Brazil watched the 1843 start of the Great Siege of Montevideo closely, supporting the Colorado faction to prevent the expansion of Argentine dictator Juan Manuel de Rosas.

² Caleb Cushing (1800-1879) was appointed in 1843 by President Tyler to be commissioner and United States Minister to China, holding this position until March 4, 1845.

1860 Presidential Election

1860: F. G. C. to Harriet Swan

April 16, 2026 Griff Leave a comment

This letter presented for transcription by the “Alabama Dirt Digger” was composed in the Nation’s Capitol on November 26, 1860, a mere three weeks following the election of Abraham Lincoln. This correspondence reflects the anticipated turmoil facing members of the 36th US Congress as they returned to the Capitol, confronting both the shift in political party dynamics and the looming threats of secession. Originating from the U.S. Post Office Department, the letter suggests authorship by an individual affiliated with that department; however, the absence of a full signature, with only the initials “R. G. C.” provided, precludes my ability to identify the writer despite my review of the Post Office Department employee lists in Boyd’s 1861 Washington Directory.

He composed the letter to his close acquaintance, Harriet Swan (1834-1893), a 26-year-old daughter of Tavern Keeper John J. Swan (1793-1878) and Eunice A. White (1805-1855) from Swanville, Erie County, Pennsylvania. Harriet was the younger sister of Andrew F. Swan (1832-1876), who subsequently served with distinction in the Civil War as a member of the 6th US Cavalry, achieving the rank of Lieutenant Colonel by the war’s conclusion. It is notable that Harriet never entered into matrimony.

I find it ironic that the letter, which serves as an invitation to attend Lincoln’s inaugural in March 1861, was sent in an envelope bearing the political endorsement of John C. Breckenridge for President—the Southern Democratic candidate in the 1860 election.

T R A N S C R I P T I O N

Post Office Department
Washington D.C.
November 26, 1860

Miss Hattie,

Altho’ you are now one letter in my debt, having some leisure this morning and feeling like having a little chat with you, thought I would not stand on ceremony, but write again. The picture is a long time arriving. It certainly ought to be very pretty when it does come. Judging from the length of time it required to gain your consent to give it, it would I presume, require a much longer period to get your consent, should I, one of these days have the presumption to ask for the original. What say you to that?

Congress meets this day week and I never saw so few strangers at the Metropolis at this season. I do not know of the arrival of a single member of Congress except Mr. [Thomas] Corwin of Ohio. ¹ I expect they will have a stormy session. The city will of course soon be full of persons willing to serve their country in any and all capacities. They will have a jolly time of it. There will be more applicants than there are offices in the whole world. I wish you would come on to the inauguration. Has Miss Mary returned? if so, remember me to her.

I must now conclude this poor apology for a letter, hoping to hear from you soon. I am very Respectfully Yours, — F. G. C.

¹ Thomas Corwin of Ohio led the House of Representatives’ effort to end the secessionist crisis that arose following the 1860 elections. Corwin sponsored a constitutional amendment that would have forbidden the federal government from outlawing slavery, even through further constitutional amendments. Though several states ratified the amendment, it did not prevent the outbreak of the civil war. Corwin resigned from Congress in March 1861 to become the United States Ambassador to Mexico. He held that position until 1864 and died the following year.

Illinois Homefront, Waukegan, Illinois

1863: Benjamin S. Kennicott to John Emerson Anderson

April 16, 2026 Griff Leave a comment

The following letter was written by Benjamin S. Kennicott (1817-1877) of Waukegan, Illinois. In the 1850 US Census, Benjamin—a native of Saratoga county, New York—was enumerated in Waukegan with his wife, Jane (b. 1822), and two children, Melissa (1842-1860) and John (b. 1846). At that time, his occupation was given as a bookkeeper. When he wrote this letter in August 1863, he was most likely a widower, but he remarried in April 1868 to Helen M. Edgecomb (1835-1928), the daughter of John Edgecomb (1803-1878) and Abby Gates (1806-1893) who outlived him by 50 years.

Benjamin wrote the letter to his friend John “Emerson” Anderson. At the time of this letter in August 1863, Emerson was serving in Co. D, 2nd Massachusetts Infantry and probably at the regimental camp near Kelly’s Ford, Virginia.

The letter provides us with a good description of Waukegan, Illinois, where Emerson Anderson once worked as a boot maker in the S. S. Greenleaf & Company, boot & shoe manufacturing firm.

*Genesee Street became the primary business street in Waukegan, Illinois, in the 1860s.*

T R A N S C R I P T I O N

Waukegan [Lake County, Illinois]
Sunday p.m., August 30th 1863

My dear friend,

Yours of the 12th inst., came to hand something over a week since and read with exceeding pleasure. I was indeed surprised and knew not to whom I was indebted for a letter away in that direction, seeing it was postmarked Washington D. C. Nevertheless, I assure you, it was very welcome and was never more gratified in reading a letter. I have not forgotten you by any means, but had only heard from you once or twice by way of Warren more than a year since and concluded it was quite likely you had offered up your life on the battlefield in the cause of the country you went to defend and help uphold. Am glad to know you have escaped thus far and hope you may be spared to see the end of the conflict and return safely to your home and friends.

Well, I presume you will be pleased to learn all about your Waukegan friends and acquaintances, so here goes. In the first place, myself and the Boss and the shop’s crew. I have been with [Samuel Smith] Greenleaf ¹ about four years and nearly all that time in the store doing the cutting principally and attending to the boys in the shop. Of the old hands, Kelly and Hadden are the only ones that remain of the lot you left. Tom White, ² who worked at Bachellor’s when you left, has been with us nearly three years. Mr. Turner left last winter some time, but does an occasional job now. An old man by the name of [David A.] Gillmore is fitting for us. [Edward] Tyrell ³ has done nothing for some three months on account of hurt he received putting his shoulder out of joint in a fall he got one evening when tight. He will work for us again as soon as he can work. Another man by the name of R. H. Lee works for us and an apprentice boy. Mr. Dorsey works for Stafford and takes his work home.

*Capt. Asiel Z. Blodgett (1832-1916) of Co. G, 96th Illinois Infantry, from Waukegan, IL.*

The boss & wife are all alone. Amos [Greenleaf] ⁴ enlisted about a year ago this month with many others in this place and is in Rosecrans’ army in Tennessee—the 96th Regiment Illinois Infantry. Their little boy, Henry, died a year ago last May. Johnny ⁵ was in the 96th a few months as cook for Capt. [A. Z.] Blodgett. He did not enlist so only remained a short time. He is now in a bank in Chicago. Franklin ⁶ left home the first of June professing to go in the country a little way to work on a farm in company with two other putty hand boys. In a few days, they heard from him & the others going down the Mississippi in a small boat they had procured in some way and in a few days thereafter they were in St. Louis, enlisted as teamsters in the Government service. They were at Pilot Knob [Missouri] a short time and finally left with Gen. Davidson’s Cavalry Division for Arkansas. They heard from him yesterday ay Clarendon, about half way from Memphis to Little Rock. You would hardly know Frank, he has grown so since you saw him. He is rather taller than Warren. I believe he is not sixteen years old yet—a large boy of his age.

Gay Wiseman ⁷ did not enlist. He and all his family are Copperheads—the old man in particular. Gay does not live in Waukegan now, nor does George [Wiley Wiseman], his brother. Mr. Clarkson, C. Morse, Eugene Payne ⁸, A[siel] Z. Blodgett, and many others enlisted from Waukegan, many of whom probably you did not know. Nelson Roorbach ⁹ is now in Chicago—rather a worthless sort of a fellow.

[George] Grant lives in Mattoon, Coles county, Illinois. His son, Robert, is in Chicago and doing well, I believe. He has improved greatly since you saw him. Old Scott (Sally Ann) lives where he did and keeps boarders and is doing better than he has for many years. His daughter Mary plays the melodeon at the Episcopal Church at a salary of 50 dollars per year.

My boy Johnny is in Waukegan and works at the Waukegan House. He is now 17 years old and almost as large as I am. He is all I have left. Daughter [Melissa] died three years ago last July. I boarded round at Taverns for three or four years but am now at a private family—Beecher Hitchcock’s, whom no doubt you remember.

Waukegan has improved somewhat since you left and is improving as much or more this season than any since you left. The business is leaving the street we are on and going more on Genesee Street towards the Waukegan House. Nine brick stores are now building on that street. Business is very good It has been for some time past. Boot and Shoe Making is better than when you were here, and there is more demand for workmen and at improved wages. We seldom see a tramping “Jur” [Journeyman?] nowadays. The war seems to have taken all the loose shoemakers. Stock is very high and consequently the manufactured articles have advanced a good deal. Kip boots ¹¹ sell for four and a half dollars, f 5 1/2, Fr. f. 6 1/2, and other articles in proportion. Crops came in good & everything brings a good price. Farmers are nearly all getting rich.

How long is it since you left Waukegan? I’ve forgotten entirely. I have not been 3 miles from the store in as many years and not as far as Chicago in five years, and have not been absent from the store half a day since I came here to work. Indeed, I go scarcely anywhere and see but little of the world outside of Waukegan. I may spend the remainder of my days here for aught I know to the contrary. It seems more like home than any place I know of and I am reluctant to go again amongst strangers so I do the best I can to be contented with my lot and take everything philosophically.

I believe I have now written all that’s needful in one letter and hope if this reaches you, you will write again speedily. I hope that “stray bullets will not wipe you out” but that you may see Waukegan again before I die. Any enquiries you may make of persons & things, I shall be glad to attend to, and post you in regard to what is doing in all this “upon round about.”

Please accept of my best wishes for your welfare and safety and believe me ever thy friend, — B. S. Kennicott

[to] John E. Anderson

¹ Samuel Smith Greenleaf (1818-Aft1900), was the son of Flavel Greenleaf (1791-1850) and Eunice Smith (1794-1847). He was the owner of S. S. Greenleaf & Co., “manufacturers and dealers in boots, shoes, leather and findings” in Waukegan.

² Thomas Francis White (1826-1879), was born in Sligo, Ireland, and came to the United States in 1847, settling first in Haverhill, Massachusetts. He moved to Waukegan, Illinois, in 1854 and worked as a bootmaker for S. S. Greenleaf in 1860. In March 1864, he mustered into the Chicago Mercantile Independent Light Battery and served until July 1865.

³ Edward Tyrell (1835-1863) was born in Ireland and came to the United States in 1848, settling first in Brooklyn. After a few years in Utica, New York, he came to Waukegan where prior to 1856. He was a shoemaker for the S. S. Greanleaf & Co.

⁴ Amos Greenleaf (1836-1914) was the son of Flavel Greenleaf (1791-1850) and Eunice Smith (1794-1847) of Oakland county, Michigan. Amos served as a sergeant in Co. G, 96th Regiment Illinois Infantry. In 1860, Amos was enumerated as a 24 year-old clerk in Waukegan, Illinois.

⁵Johnny Flavel Greenleaf (1845-1887) was the son of Samuel Smith Greenleaf (1818-1915) of Waukegan, Illinois.

⁶ Samuel Franklin Greenleaf (1847-1933) was the son of Samuel Smith Greenleaf (1818-1915) of Waukegan, Illinois.

⁷ Gaius (“Gay’) Wiseman (1833-1918) was born in Gainesville, Wyoming county, New York. He came with his parents, James Wiseman (1799-1879) and Orril Lawrence (1804-1884), to Waukegan, Illinois, in the 1840s and married Mary Yeager in 1858. He was a tinner in Waukegan until 1863 when he left town and settled in Sycamore, DeKalb county, Illinois, employed by R. Ellwood and also the Haight Brothers.

⁸ Eugene Beauharnais Payne (1835-1919) of Seneca Falls, New York, came to Waukegan with his parents in 1837. In the Civil War, Eugene joined the Waukegan Zouaves who were eventually made part of the 37th Illinois Infantry. Eugene was made the captain of Co. C. He rose in rank to command the regiment and later made a Brigadier General.

⁹ Nelson Roorbach (1818-1904) was a shoemaker who lived in his later years in Chicago but was buried in Waukegan.

¹⁰ George Grant (1817-1891), a native of Scotland, was enumerated in 1850 and 1860 working as a shoemaker in Waukegan. His son, Robert Daniel Grant (1841-1911) lived in Chicago.

¹¹ “Kip boots” in 1863 refers to durable, long-legged boots made from “kip leather”—a hide from a young cow, smaller than a full-grown ox but larger than a calf. These were commonly worn during the American Civil War era and were highly prized for their durability in heavy mud.

St. Louis, Missouri, Vicksburg, Mississippi

1863: Evan Thomas Rinehart to a Friend

April 15, 2026 Griff Leave a comment

The following letter was written by Evan Thomas Rinehart (1828-1891), formerly the regimental quartermaster of the 165th Pennsylvania Infantry—a nine-months unit that mustered out of the service in July 1863. After he was mustered out, I believe that Evan was made a government paymaster though I have not found an 1863 record to confirm it. One such appointment of “E. T. Rinehart” dated 12 March 1864 does appear in military records.

Evan’s parents were Israel Rinehart (1792-1871) and Mary Snader (1797-1865). In 1850, he resided in Frederick, Maryland. He was married in 1861 to Euphenia Knox of Adams, Pennsylvania. He died in Baltimore in 1891. Evans’ older brother, William Rinehart (1825-1874) was a prominent neo-classical, Italian trained, sculptor. Another brother, Daniel Rinehart (1823-1886) served as captain of Company F, 7th Maryland Volunteers.

While waiting to be transported to Union-occupied Vicksburg, Rinehart’s letter gives us a good picture of St. Louis in the fall of 1863. He describes the appearance of the city, the activities, and the politics prevailing at that time, split primarily over the issue of immediate or gradual emancipation of slaves.

T R A N S C R I P T I O N

St. Louis, Missouri
September 29th 1863

Dear Judge,

According to promise I will give a few of the outlines of the state of things out here. I have been sojourning in this city about four weeks expecting every day for the past two to leave for Vicksburg or wherever Grant’s army may be to make our first payment. To me—I suppose as other strangers—the time passes heavy and slow in this place. I have yet had nothing to do and as a matter of course I find some trouble to dispose of the day. True, I can make a pretty good staggers at killing a few hours in the morning with an extra nap but the balance of the day after reading the morning papers get very heavy.

We have rooms assigned us in a large building for an office and sleeping department. The entire house is nearly occupied by Paymasters. We use simple army cots upon which we sleep & which we take with us into the field. I make up my own bed every day which is no great matter as it is composed of a mattress & pair of blankets. I am boarding at the Everett House and find it well kept. Living is very expensive there. For good board with lodging they charge from nine to twelve dollars per week.

St. Louis is by no means a handsome city. The streets are narrow and many of them badly paved. There are many fine commercial buildings and hotels but there is such dull, gloomy and rusty appearance about the whole city occasioned by coal smoke continually pouring from steamboats, factories, and many other chimneys that it looks more like an ancient town that one of recent growth. It is now considered one of the best governed cities in the Union. The population are about one third German whom almost to a man are loyal to the core. In fact, it was owing to that element which held the balance of power that saved the city from falling into the hands of the Rebels at the onset of this rebellion.

Steamboats are now regularly flying between this place and New Orleans and all intermediate points. By some unaccountable means—supposed to be incendiary—a number of the finest river boats have within a few weeks been burned. Four were burned at the wharf since my arrival.

Politics here are very spirited and while all claim to be good Unionists as elsewhere, they differ in the mode of “running the machine.” The political fight here at present is entirely a local or state matter. We have a party who call themselves conservatives or gradual emancipationists, and another party who boldly come out as radicals and demand immediate emancipation. The latter appear to be gaining ground & many of the citizens who were formerly proslavery men declare since emancipation has become a settled fact for the state, why the sooner it is accomplished the better and there is no use in making piecemeal of what can be done at one sweep. Just so long as there is a vestige of it in the state, so long will be kept up this spirit of contention, animosity, & strife that now exists.

The contest is bitter in the extreme. The journals handle each other with ungloved hands. The conservatives support Gen. Schofield who is in command of this department while the radicals denounce him in unmeasured terms. Gen. Frank Blair who a short time since was king of the radicals quarreled with that organ & by a prodigious leap falls in with the other party. But he is too late. He made a speech here last night. Those who heard it pronounce it a perfect failure. The fact of it is the Blair influence in this state is completely played out, and as for slavery, it is about ditto.

Union people here laugh at the idea of Vallandigham being elected governor of Ohio and it is generally expected Curtain will be reelected in the Old Keystone. How do things look at home? I suppose the Copperheads will make a clean sweep of the county this fall. I have not yet heard who are nominated but I guess it matters but little who they are if they are only “dyed in the wool.” The party will support anything that hasn’t horns & cloven feet.

Well, Judge, I fear my letter will not prove as uninteresting as you might expect but you must excuse it & attribute it partly to want of more influence on the Mississippi. I have the assurance we will get off this week for Vicksburg. Present my kindest remembrance to your family while I remain with the highest regards your friends, — E. T. Rinehart

28th New Jersey Infantry

1862: Thomas W. Wick to Elizabeth Brick

April 14, 2026 Griff Leave a comment

The following letter was written by Thomas W. Wick (1839-1891) while serving as a private in Co. G, 28th New Jersey Infantry—a nine-months regiment mustered into service in September 1862. Thomas claims that he is “willing to do my part” to put down the rebellion though many of the men who enlisted in the regiment probably assumed they would see comparatively little service in their nine-months. They were wrong. Instead, the regiment led the charge on Marye’s Heights at Fredericksburg and they were in the brutal fighting around Salem Church near Fredericksburg in the Chancellorsville Campaign.

Thomas was the son of John Wick (1806-1876) and Eliza Ann Eldridge (1810-1893) of Turnersville, Gloucester county, New Jersey. In the 1860 US Census, Thomas was enumerated at Chew’s Landing in Camden county, New Jersey, residing in the household of Thomas A. Chew where he was identified as a “laborer.”

Thomas wrote the letter to his friend, Elizabeth (“Lizzie”) Brick (1845-1919) of Hurffville, Gloucester county, New Jersey. Lizzie married John C. Thompson (1838-1911) in 1864.

T R A N S C R I P T I O N

*Addressed to Miss Elizabeth Brick, Hurffville, Camden county, New Jersey*

Chain Bridge
November 5th 1862

Dear Lizzie,

I received your most affectionate letter and was very glad to hear from you and was well and your letter found me the same.

I have just come in from picket duty and I thought that I would write to you again for the last letter done me so much good that I received from you. We have been thrown out on picket 48 hours about 6 miles from camp and we have had a very nice time of it. We have not seen anybody that wanted to hurt us not anybody that we had to hurt, but if anybody had undertook to get inside of our lines, we would have been right on hand. But everything went smoothly. We have to stand on two hours and off 6 in the day time, and at night on two and off two. It comes midling hard on us at night but we make it all right when the sun begins to pop up.

It is a very nice place out here. There are several nice farms. They are Union men that lives in them but the secesh farms look as if there had been some of the true blues. [They need] to work at their fences. You cannot see a sign of a rail on any of the farms. There are real nice fields all out to the commons. It looks too bad, but we cannot pity them for it is their own fault. I went out to look around to see what I could find and about the best thing that I found was a rabbit sitting in a brush heap and I up with a stone and killed him and I took him in and dressed him and broiled him over the fire. It was quite a treat, I tell you Lizzie. We do our own cooking when we are out on picket and you can imagine how nice it is done. It would be a great note if we come out extra cooks before we come home.

They have been fighting for two or three days close to Winchester. We heard the cannons all day on Sunday. The rebels is retreating towards Richmond. They are heading for their winter quarters but I guess thy will not get any this winter without they lay down their arms and give up the struggle for our generals says that they do not expect to put up this winter. They lay out to go right through and put an end to this war. I hope that they will for God knows that it has been going on long enough. For my part, I am willing to do my part and I guess that the rest are too for they are just getting in earnest now.

Lizzie, you said that you heard that Iks Cark [?] was dead. It is not so for there was a man over here out of his regiment and he is all right yet and there was some Boys over to our camp to see me that used to live to Turnersville. They are encamped right along side of Jakey and Bill Chew and Tom Clark. They are well and as fat as pigs. They said they are about 8 miles from us. Bill Chew is Fife Major now. ¹ I would love to run on to them some day unbeknownst to them. It will do me so much [good] to see them.

Lizzie, I suppose that Mr. Thompson’s class is going on now Saturday night and I hope that you all have good and happy times as we once did. Oh when I think of the happy seasons that we have had together, it fills my heart with joy. Oh, never will I forget the night when God removed all my sins and Oh! the joy that I received. And Lizzie, I have been made happy many times when I have heard you and Mary Hurff and Amy tell of the goodness of God to your heart. Oh Lizzie, may God ever keep us all faithful and one day we shall rise where war will be no more, but where all will be love and peace and where Jesus is that hung on the cross for our sins. Oh that all the world would turn to God and live.

It makes me feel bad to see how that some of my dear friends go on from day to day taking the name of God in vain. It seems as if some of them has give up to the Devil since they have come down here. But may God open their eyes before it is too late. When you pray, think of me and I will remember thee. I must bring this bad writing to a close for the present. So good night. Write soon. From a true friend, — Thomas Wick

Direct your letter to 28th Regt. N. J. V., Co. G, in care of Captain [Louis W.] Schock, Washington D. C.

¹ William S. Chew (1821-1911) was Fife Major of Co. I, 6th New Jersey Infantry. He served from August 1861 to September 1864.

4th Minnesota Infantry, Benton Barracks, Siege of Corinth

1861: William W. Milhollin and Saul M. Milhollin to their Family

April 13, 2026 Griff 1 Comment

I could not find an image of William but here is one of Albert Woolson of Co. I, 4th Minnesota Infantry. His leg was injured in the Gladiator steamboat accident on the Tennessee River on 13 May 1862 (mentioned in letter).

The following letters were written by William W. Milhollin (1839-1864), a native of Ohio, who enlisted in Ramsey county, Minnesota, as a private in Co. K, 4th Minnesota Infantry. He was discharged for disability on 30 January 1863. William (“Billy”) died on 24 May 1864 at Champlin, Hennepin county, Minnesota, and lies buried in Champlin Cemetery.

Serving in the same company with William were his older brothers, Jonathan McClintic Milhollin and Saul M. Milhollin. Though not signed, I believe the second letter to have been written by Saul who died in December 1862 at Quincy, Illinois.

The brothers were the sons of William Milhollin (1796-1871) and Rebecca Ann Henkler (1816-1906) of Champaign county, Ohio. The Milhollin’s moved from Ohio to Minnesota in 1853.

Letter 1

Camp Benton
December 25, 1861

Dear Sisters,

Tis Christmas yet I would not know it if I did not hear the boys shout it once in a while. One of the cooks were taken sick day before yesterday and we help by turns till he is well. It is my turn today and I am slopping around washing dishes, carrying water, &c. There was a snow fell last Sunday and the ground froze, but it is so warm yesterday and today the water is running in streams so that it is very disagreeable walking. All is quiet today. There are none on drill and very few crossing the parade ground. So different from a few days since when it was like fall weather that the camp looks almost deserted. It is evening or night.

I worked hard all day and feel tired but like to write on Christmas as I feel almost certain you are at home. You must write what you are doing and if there was anyone at our house and who it was. There is a man here by the name of Coe who got the privilege of treating the boys and some of them are having a merry time in their own way.

I received a letter from Martin Smith a few days since. He is well and very well and busy. He said he wrote to Kate and got an answer. He says also that he is almost in despair of having a fight. They take a few prisoners but let them go after swearing them in. There was nine hundred horses brought in here captured from the rebels. I did not see them but others say they are very fine horses but were poorly equipped. I have seen several men who have been in battle. There is one in the same barracks who was at the Battle of Bull Run. He was in all the fight and says the secessionists had the advantage of numbers nearly eight to one and were fresh while the Union men had to travel considerable and the rebels were scarcely ever seen while themselves were exposed all the time from crossfires.

I saw a splendid thoroughbred stallion and a beautiful shetland pony which had been taken from an old rebel colonel whose name is often mentioned in the papers but I have forgotten it. The ones who took them were infantry but they keep them for show. They stopped at the colonel’s house for several days in hopes he would come home. They had part of their men concealed so as to deceive them. The pony is the smallest thing of horse kind you ever saw. He is six years old and could almost walk under Mary’s belly.

Ten or twelve regiments have left here lately and only a few come in. Must go to supper now and will write after supper.

Thursday, December 26th. It is warm this morning. The snow is all gone and the ground is drying fast. I sleep on the top bunk eight feet from the floor. I have cut a hole in the boards with my knife large enough to put my head through and looking this morning at daybreak, saw the Iowa 3rd Regiment leaving quietly without music or noise. Tis a very fine regiment—all well dressed in black with bright bayonets flashing and banners flying. ¹

¹ The 3rd Iowa Infantry moved from Quincy, Illinois, to Benton Barracks in late November 1861. They marched out of St. Louis on 26 December 1861 to perform guard duty at Mexico, Missouri, and along the Northern Missouri Railroad where they remained until March 1862. They were then ordered to Pittsburg Landing, Tennessee, prior to the Battle of Shiloh.

Letter 2

[Editor’s Note: The regiment moved from the siege lines around Corinth (which ended May 30) to camp at Clear Creek, Mississippi, which is roughly 6 miles south of Corinth. During this period, they were tasked with protecting the railroad and scouting the area for Confederate activity.]

Camp 6 miles south of Corinth
June 6th 1862

Dear Mother,

Your kind letters was received late last night & we were very glad to hear that you were all well. I got one from T. S. with the wreaths in it & one from father & you. Both of them was written on the 26th. T. S. said that you had heard of the Gladiator breaking down & he thought the 4th Regiment was not on board. Now I will explain. We did leave St. Louis on the John J. Roe but got off of it at Paris Landing 10 miles above Fort Henry. We went back in the country some 20 miles in pursuit of some rebels that had captured some of our cavalry. We was gone 3 days, came back to Paris Landing, stopped there 3 or 4 days, and then took the Gladiator for Hamburg Landing. It was on this part of our trip that the accident happened which you spoke of but you got an exaggerated account of the affair. The truth was that there was only one man lost. He was on guard on deck and was either knocked overboard or was scared and jumped over and was drowned. There was several slightly hurt but none seriously injured so you can see you live about far enough from the seat of war to get big tales. None of us was hurt. For my part, I was asleep back between the engines & knew nothing of it until the thing was all over.

One month ago today we marched through Corinth. We had got our entrenchments up pretty close to theirs & had our siege guns planted within half a mile of the town. On Thursday evening, we threw a few shells among them. They thought best to leave. They left the place leaving everything they had behind. We found beef, flour, sugar, molasses, guns, cartridge boxes, clothing, camp equipage of every kind. In many places they had been cooking. Some had their flour in the pan and had their biscuit made out & some had them in the oven baking & the fire was not dead on the lids. They use the dutch oven for baking altogether.

About a mile from here the rebels tried to burn a large lot of commissary goods, wagons, &c. They had piled them up and set them on fire but they did not burn very well. Some 30 or 40 was somewhat injured. Some had a wheel, some the tongue or an axel. We took a good many barrels of sugar & molasses. No pen can describe the scene. Some of the dead secesh were not covered entirely up & the flies were on them. You may judge that I turned from the sight with disgust. From every appearance the rebels were awfully scared & perfectly demoralized, I will not attempt to estimate the value of the property they left behind.

The health of the regiment is pretty good considering the circumstances. Today [Robert S.] Perkins was taken back to the hospital. He has the bilious fever. He is pretty sick. [Brother] Clint is back some 5 miles. He has the rheumatism but the last I heard he was able to walk about. I hope to hear from him tomorrow. Billy & me are in tolerable good health & getting better. The change of climate and water has given us all the diahhrea but we have got over it now. Milo has been troubled in the same way. He is better. He is able for duty & you would be surprised to see how cool all our boys are when they expect an engagement every hour. They will march up as cool in a skirmish as they would to eat. In some cases it is necessary to skirmish a piece of woods…

33rd Independent Regiment, 62nd Pennsylvania Infantry, Baltimore, Maryland

1861: Casper Bradenbough to Andrew Bradenbough

April 11, 2026 Griff Leave a comment

*Sergt. Major Charles Seager showcasing the special chasseur-style uniforms awarded to the 62nd Pennsylvania for their excellence in drill. These were distributed in mid-December 1861.*

The following letter was written by Caspar Bradenbough of Co. D (the “Finley Cadets” of Armstrongcounty), 62nd Pennsylvania Infantry (he signed his name Casper Brady). Enrollment records describes him as 18 years old, with brown hair, brown eyes, and 5′ 6.5″ tall. According to a letter from 1st Lieutenant Putney, Bradenbaugh died at Washington Street General Hospital, Alexandria, Va. on 18 May 1862 at 7 P.M. of pneumonia. He was buried on 19 May 1862 in the Alexandria National Cemetery in Section A, Grave 9. Bates, in error, indicates Grave #8.

The 62nd Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment was organized by Colonel Samuel Black at Pittsburg as the 33rd Independent Regiment under the authority of Secretary of War Simon Cameron. T. Frederick Lehman was appointed Lieutenant Colonel and Jacob Sweitzer was appointed Major. The authority to raise ten companies was later raised to 12. The name of the regiment was changed to 62nd Pennsylvania Infantry on 19 November 1861.

In late August 1861, the regiment moved to Baltimore, Maryland, after training at Camp Cameron near Harrisburg. The regiment, commanded by Colonel Samuel Black, camped at Patterson’s Park, across the harbor from Fort McHenry, before continuing to Washington. It was at this location that Casper wrote the following letter.

T R A N S C R I P T I O N

Camp Bagley
22nd August 1861

Mr. Andrew Bradenbough,

Dear Brother, It is with pleasure that I seat myself to inform you that I am well at present and I hope that these few lines may find you in the same state of health.

We can see a great part of the city from our camp. Our camp is joining a park. There was a battle fought on this ground in 1812. We can see where the entrenchments were thrown up. I like this place very well and I like my travel very well so far. We have not got our uniform yet but I think we will get them before long. This is a very nice place. I can see a great many nice things here. I see the ships sailing on the Bay here and a great many camps around here. It is a beautiful place. It is the nicest place that I have seen yet. But the one half of this city is secessionists but they dare not say anything or Fort McHenry will fire on the city and blow it up. The stars and sripes are waving here in the city.

I have not very much to say at present and I think I must bring my letter to a close. Tell John Bartho that I send my best respects to him and tell the rest of the folks that I send my best respects to them and I would like to know if Maggie got the letter I wrote her and if you got the one that I sent the paper in that you was to give to mother.

Write soon. Direct to Casper Brady, Camp Bagly, Col. [Samuel] Black’s Regiment, care of Capt. [William C.] Beck, Baltimore, Maryland

Commandeering Property, Natchez

1864: Mason Brayman to Natchez Citizens

April 9, 2026 Griff Leave a comment

This letter was written by 50 year-old Mason Brayman (1813-1895) while commanding the Union forces in the District of Natchez in August 1864.

Brayman was born in Buffalo, N. Y., May 23, 1813. Brought up on a farm, he became a printer, then editor of the Buffalo “Bulletin,” studied law, and in 1836 was admitted to the bar. Removing to the West, he became city attorney of Monroe, Mich., in 1838, editor of the Louisville “Adviser” in 1841, opened a law office in Springfield, Ill., in 1842, and in 1844-45 revised the state statutes. In 1843, as special government commissioner, he adjusted the Mormon disturbances at Nauvoo, and conducted the negotiations which resulted in the withdrawal of the Mormons from Illinois. He was from 1851 to 1855 attorney for the Illinois Central railroad, and then, until the outbreak of the Civil war, was a promoter of railroad enterprises in Missouri, Arkansas and the southwest.

In 1861 Brayman joined the Union army as major of the 29th Ill. volunteers, became colonel of the regiment in May, 1862, and fought with such conspicuous gallantry at the battles of Belmont, Fort Donelson and Shiloh that he was promoted brigadier-general of volunteers. He was in command at Bolivar, Tenn., when Van Dorn’s attack was successfully repulsed. He afterwards reorganized about sixty Ohio regiments, at Fort Dennison; was president of a board of inquiry to investigate the conduct of Gen. Sturgis, commanded at Natchez, Tenn., from July, 1864, to May, 1865, and was presiding officer of a committee to investigate cotton claims. He was mustered out of the service at the close of the war with the brevet rank of major-general of volunteers. After the war he was engaged in reviving railroad interests in the south, was editor of the “Illinois State Journal” in 1872-73, practiced law in Ripon, Wis., from 1873 to 1877, and was then appointed by President Hayes governor of Idaho. At the expiration of his term, in 1880, he resumed the practice of his profession in Ripon, Wis. He afterwards settled in Kansas City, Mo., and died there Feb. 27, 1895.

Brayman’s letter formally addresses a request from the citizens of Natchez for the return of horses that had been seized by his order to equip his cavalry in the pursuit of rebels and guerrillas within his District. He respectfully declines the request, citing military necessity as the rationale for commandeering the horses, while simultaneously expressing an understanding of the vital role that these animals play in supporting civilian physicians who care for the ill both in town and the surrounding areas. Brayman assures the citizens that he will facilitate the provision of horses liberated from the rebels as soon as it is feasible to do so.

One of the two gentleman that Brayman addressed his letter to was Judge Josiah Winchester, a native of Salem, Massachusetts, who studied law in Boston before moving to Natchez. His uncle, George Winchester, was a prominent lawyer, member of the Mississippi Supreme Court, and the longtime tutor to Varina Howell, future wife of Confederate President Jefferson Davis. He married in 1846 to Margaret Graham Sprague, a first cousin on Varina Howell—an attendant to Varina’s wedding to Jefferson Davis the previous year. He was a prominent Union sympathizer despite his ties to Jefferson Davis.

T R A N S C R I P T I O N

Headquarters United States Forces
Natchez, Mississippi
August 11, 1864

Stanley J. Trott & J[osiah] Winchester, Esq’s.,

Gentlemen,

I have carefully considered the paper presented personally by yourselves, signed by a large number of respectable citizens of Natchez, asking in behalf of its people that horses recently taken from certain physicians may be restored to them that thereby they may be able to minister to the sick, &c.

The order for seizing horses was one of necessity. The enemy in large numbers and in marauding bands infested the neighborhood, taking and destroying property and endangering life, being well mounted and in many cases on horses furnished by their families and friends in and about Natchez. It is my duty to pursue, capture, and destroy these depredators. I must have mounted men to do it. My cavalry were mostly on foot. I could not get horses from the North. I did the next best thing—took them in Natchez. In this way, many that I know of, who have voluntarily furnished horses and supplies to the enemy have, though not willingly, aided us. I must confess, however, that they have done it gracefully.

If rightly advised, I may class the physicians you name, Drs. Davis, Lyle, Harper and Page, among whose friends are outside. But they have fared no worse than their neighbors, the Union men. The question was about horses, not loyalty, though it is intended to take more, hold longer, and pay less, in the case of men who are responsible for the first necessity of taking—that is to say, adopting the doctrine of Andy Johnson in his Nashville speech that, “a rebel has no right to own anything.”

These physicians are very excellent gentlemen. Personally I think I may say that I like them. Yet they, as such, can get no horses, not even a mule from me. Why should they, per se, ride, while Union men, equally venerable—perchance more denefied [?], go on foot? But gentlemen, you ask that the doctors may ride for the good of the sick and suffering. This is an appeal on the score of humanity and I admit its force. When God lays his afflicting hand upon his creature, that touch makes the sufferer sacred to us, and, whether it be an enemy or an offender against the law, our hand must be stayed or extended only to relieve.

Your appeal is just to deny what you ask would not fairly represent the humane policy of the Government, whose servant I am. The horses taken from the physicians have been branded “U. S.” and are doing loyal service. In fact, they have “taken the oath” and are showing their faith by their works. I really would not think it safe for the doctors to mount them again. The horses might throw them.

That the sick and suffering may at this dangerous section have prompt attendance, I will endeavor (as I cannot give them branded horses) to provide them the best that I can find in place of them as soon as they can be captured from rebels not belonging to the learned professions. I will try to have them mounted as soon as possible so that their patients shall not fail of their professional ministrations. Respectfully, your obedient servant.

[1st draft retained]

35th Pennsylvania Infantry, 6th Pennsylvania Reserves, Gen. Edward O. C. Ord

1862: Joseph Alexander Davison to William Dunlop Dixon

April 8, 2026 Griff Leave a comment

The following letter was written by Joseph Alexander Davison (1838-1879), the son of Abraham Smith Davison (1802-1854) and Sarah Loller (180201895) of Antrim, Franklin county, Pennsylvania. Joseph enlisted on 24 April 1861 as the 1st Sergeant of Co. D, 6th Pennsylvania Infantry (35th Pennsylvania Infantry). In August 1862 he was commissioned a 1st Lieutenant, later a Captain and finally, in March 1865, was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel. Before the war ended, he married Anna Mary Taylor and later fathered Charles Meade (b. 03/10/65), Smith L. (b. @1868 – Sp-Am War vet), Robert Francis (b. 1870), and Maud M. (b. 1872).

The letter was sent to Joseph’s captain, William Dunlop Dixon (1833-1916). He eventually commanded the regiment and was brevetted Brigadier General of US Volunteers in March 1865 for “gallant conduct at the battles of Spotsylvania Court House, North Anna, and Bethesda Church, Va.”

T R A N S C R I P T I O N

Camp Pierpont, Virginia
March 2nd 1862

Capt. W. D. Dixon,

My dear friend, enclosed you will find a letter which arrived in camp last evening and which I hasten to forward to you, hoping it may reach you in due time.

Well, inspection and muster is over. Gen. [Edward O. C.] Ord was the mustering officer. I assure you that the [general] put things through with a rush. He was only about two minutes in inspecting our company. He said nothing to any member of our company except Sergt. [Samuel K.] Furley. And to him Gen. Ord said, “Sergeant, what No. boots are those? If you should go on a march, you will find it very difficult to take all that leather with you!!“

We were then marched to company quarters where we were mustered afterward. The quarters were not inspected. The payrolls did not come until the evening of the 28th. I finished them yesterday and handed them in.

Well, we heard from Henry B. Smith this morning. There was an order came here from the Adjutant Generals Office for his descriptive roll and for a copy of his clothing account which I made out and sent it in. He is reported to be perfectly well but it is recommended that he be discharged from the service. I understand that he will be in camp for a few days.

There was also an order came to us to make a requisition for six Sibley tents, poles & pins, which we did on February 28th. This will place about 14 men in a tent—rather a crowded arrangement I think.

We have been having fatigue drills since you left. The regiment marched once to the picket line and twice to the Chain Bridge with knapsacks, with overcoats packed on top.

We have been under marching orders ever since you left with three days rations in our haversacks. But I think that was only for a march in case Gen. Banks was attacked in crossing the river. Everything is going on smoothly. Give my respects to your family, Lt. Burgess, and all friends. We have received one of Burgess’s recruits. Yours, — J. A. Davison

to Capt. W. D. Dixon, St. Thomas, Pa.

17th Illinois Infantry, Bird Point, Missouri

1861: John F. Kent to Friend Ellen

April 8, 2026 Griff Leave a comment

The following letter was written by John F. Kent (1836-1866), the son of John Greer Kent (1808-1862) and Margaret Hanna Gardner (1812-1900) of Cuba, Fulton county, Illinois. John was 25 years old when he enlisted on 25 May 1861 in Co. H, 17th Illinois Infantry and was promptly promoted to a corporal. He enlisted at the same time as his younger brother, David A. Kent (1838-1862), who was severely wounded in the Battle of Fort Donelson and died on the steamer D. A. January on 14 April 1862. Two other younger brothers, Elmer Y. Kent (b. 1841) and Charles W. Kent (b. 1848) also served in the war. Elmer a private in 17th Illinois Infantry and later in the 11th Illinois cavalry. Charles was in the 137th Illinois and 151st Illinois.

John survived the war, mustering out of the regiment in June 1864, but died not long after in 1866. He was married to Charlotte C. Corbin (1837-1918) in 1865.

T R A N S C R I P T I O N

Camp Lyons, Bird’s Point, Mo.
August 4th 1861

Dear Ellen,

I take my seat to write you a few lines to let you know how we are getting along in camp life. Well we are all well at present, hoping these few lines will find you the same. We have been over a considerable portion of Missouri since we left Illinois. We went from Alton into the northwest part of Missouri and then to St. Charles and then to St. Louis and then to Bird’s Point, Missouri, and we still remain here. We are now in an enemy’s land and we know not when we will be attacked by the Rebels as they are on all sides of us.

General Frémont says he is prepared for them at any time. General Frémont is a fine-looking man. He is here himself in command of the Western Division of the army. We are making great preparations for the fight. There is a detail of so many men from a company for work every day. When I say from the company, I mean the privates. Therefore, I am exempt from it. The work is throwing up breastworks. The present breastwork extends about two and a half mile in length.

I received a letter from Eliza when we was in St. Louis stating that you wanted me to write you a letter and let you know how we are getting along in camp life. I have hardly spoken to a girl since we left home. It would do me good to have the pleasure of conversing with some of the ladies of Old Fulton County, but God only knows whether I ever shall or not.

Ellen, you know a soldier’s life [is] very uncertain. We may be killed at any moment but we live in hopes that we will gain the day. We will try for it. There is several men here that I know. The health is pretty good here. I must close my letter. I will write more the next time. Please write soon and often. Please excuse haste with a bad pen. So goodbye. From your sincere friend till death, — John F. Kent

Direct to Company H, 17th Regt. Illinois Volunteer. Infantry, Bird’s Point, Mo.

Write all the news.