These letters were written by Daniel N. Roberts (1836-1906), the son of Morehouse Roberts (1790-1847) and Susannah Newman (1806-1898) of Sunbury, Delaware county, Ohio. Daniel was 25 years old when he enlisted as a private in Co. D, 20th Ohio Infantry on 3 October 1861. He remained in the service for three years, mustering out on 17 October 1864.
In his first letter of 24 April 1861, Daniel recounts the significant events of the Battle of Shiloh, which occurred near Pittsburg Landing on April 6-7, 1862. The 20th Ohio Infantry was consolidated with other Ohio regiments within the 3rd Brigade of Maj. Gen. Lew Wallace’s 3rd Division within Grant’s Army of the Tennessee. Despite being within a reasonable distance to reach the battlefield by noon of the first day’s combat (just six miles), a tangle of confusing orders and miscommunications led to a tardy arrival, which only allowed them to engage in the fighting on the second day.
In his second letter of 7 September 1863, Dan writes considerably about his brother Giles Hartley Roberts (1845-1908). Giles enlisted at the age of 18 in Co. G, 96th Ohio Vol. Infantry (OVI) in August 1862. He was transferred to Co. D of the 17th Veteran Reserve Corps in January 1864. He also mentions brothers Lord Byron Roberts (1827-1889), Edward Henry Roberts (1841-1912) who also served in the 20th OVI, John L. Roberts (b. 1838) in the 18th Illinois Infantry, and Benjamin Franklin Roberts who served in the 18th Illinois Infantry and later in the 15th Illinois Cavalry.
After the war, Dan settled in Ottawa, LaSalle County, Illinois, and was married in 1870 to Julia Branin (1845-1923).
Letter 1
Pittsburg [Landing], Tennessee
April 24th 1862
Dear Brother,
I received your welcome letter yesterday and was very glad to hear from you. We are all well at present. I have been sick ever since the battle here, My disease was mostly bowel complaint. I have gotten over that now and getting quite hearty again. Edward is as hearty as anyone in our company. He has been hearty most all the time. Ben and John is camped about two miles from us. Tip and me was down to see them last Monday. They was both well then. Benjamin came up from Cairo the same night the fight ended.
Our division was down the river about six miles from here when the fight commenced on Sunday. We was ordered to march Sunday after noon. We reached the battlefield that night and was out in line of battle that night for next morning. The ball opened about daylight. We was put on the right wing. The most of the fighting on that day was done on the left and center. We only had one killed and about fifteen wounded in our regiment. I don’t believe none hurt htat you was acquainted with.
George, it was [an] awful sight the next day on the battlefield to see the dead. I never want to see another such a battle. I expect we will have a big one to Corinth about 18 miles from here. I can’t tell when we will move. There [are] troops coming up the river every day now.
Well, George, we was badly whipped Sunday but the rebels got it worse Monday. I don’t see how our men let them come on them Sunday morning like they did. George, we wrote to mother right after the battle. Edward has done the writing since the battle for I have been sick. It was no wonder I was sick for we did not fetch our tents here when we came here. We laid out four nights and [it] rained every night. As quick as we got our tents here, it quit raining.
It has been very sickly in our regiment since that exposure. Two men died in our regiment yesterday. Well, I must close. I came very near forgetting about that money you spoke about. You can have it. I don’t expect I will want it that soon. Please write soon. Yours truly, — D. N. Roberts
Letter 2
Vicksburg [Mississippi]
September 7, 1863
Dear Brother,
I received yours of the 14th and was very glad to hear from you once more but was sorry to hear that your children had such sore eyes. My health is very good now. Ed has gone home on a sick furlough. He left here the 23rd of August. He was getting better all the time. Most all the boys that had been sick or was not well got a sick furlough. I have not heard from him since he left here. Sanders and John Mayfield got a furlough too. Tip has not got back yet. He has been gone over a month.
I have not had a letter from home for a long time. I got one from Giles last night. His health is very poor yet. He has the chills yet. Giles is talking about going to his regiment. He says he can’t get his discharge. He thinks if he was to his regiment, he would get it. The 96th [Ohio Infantry] has gone to New Orleans. Giles is now at Schofield Barracks Hospital, Mo. I wish you or Byron would go and get him home. He would get his discharge. I think you had better write to him and see what he says about it. I do wish he had his discharge and at home for Mother worries the most of her time about him.
I heard from John about a month ago. He was at Helena then. He said they had marching orders then. He thought they would go up White River. John was not very well then. He had been quite sick but was getting a great deal better then.
I had a letter from Ben about the same time I got one from John. Ben was well. He was at Corinth, Mississippi, then.
Well, George, we just got back last Thursday night from a long march. We was gone fifteen days. We went to Monroe, Louisiana. We got on the boats here and went up the river sixty miles. We got off the boats then and it was 75 miles to Monroe. We had to walk. The weather being very warm, it made a very hard march. We suffered a great deal for water.
The rebs had quite a large force of cavalry at Oak Ridge, about fifty miles from the river. They heard it was Johnny A. Logan’s rats 1 that was after them [so] they pulled up stakes and the way they went for Monroe. We followed them [and] we expected to have a fight when we got there but they did not stop there. They left a good many sick there in the hospital. George, it was the lonesomest country that I was ever in—nothing but woods and swamps and any number of rattlesnakes. I saw one killed seven feet long. It had 13 rattlers on. There was a boy bit by one of them. He did not live one hour after he was bit.
Well, George, I must now close by asking you to write soon.
Your brother, — Dan
1 John Alexander Logan (1826-1886), nicknamed “Black Jack” was at the height of his popularity at the time this letter was written, having lead his division with distinction in campaign to capture Vicksburg, most notably in the assault following the explosion of a mine. I have not been able to find any other references to Logan’s men being called “rats.”
Spared & Shared 23 