The following letter was written by Christian B. Grossman (1838-1913), the son of a pottery maker of Rockhill, Bucks county, Pennsylvania named Christena Grossman and his wife Catharine.

According to muster records, Christian Grossman enlisted on 17 September 1861 in Co. D, 104th Pennsylvania Infantry and he was promoted to Hospital Steward on 15 October 1864. He was discharged from the service on 25 August 1865 at Portsmouth, Virginia.

After the war he married and moved to Philadelphia where he initially also worked as a potter like his father. Then, by 1880, he entered the restaurant business.

Christian’s letter includes a description of the Battle of Trent’s Reach which took place between 23-25 January 1865 on the James River. In that battle a powerful flotilla of Confederate warships attempted to break the blockade on the James River and attack Grant’s supply base at City Point, but they were foiled and withdrew back up the river to Richmond.

[Note: I have only transcribed approximately two-thirds of the letter as the ink has faded and it is difficult to make it out.]

Transcription

Bermuda Front
January 28, 1865

Dear Friend,

Having waited for a letter from you in answer to my last written in the Valley and not getting any, I thought I would try again. It may surprise you to see such a long but as I have nothing much to do, I thought I might as well pass my time away with writing as anything else.

In the first place, I will admit a mistake I made in my last to you. I wrote that we had a snow 8 feet deep. I intended to say 8 inches deep for that is all it was but that was deep for that part of the country.

Since that letter was written we have made a change in our residence. We now reside at Bermuda Front on the James River within 9 miles of Richmond in what used to be Butler’s Department & in close proximity with the Johnnies. We are so near that on picket, we can see each other & talk together. There is a sort of contract entered into by our men, or our pickets and the Reb pickets, not to fire on each other while on picket so they stand out and talk to each other for quite a spell at a time.

For a week or two back, we heard their bands play & drums beat but now it seems to be quiet. It’s generally thought that they have taken some of their force away from here to work on the Danville Railroad that was damaged so much from the last heavy rain but whether they took their force away or not, I take notice they tried to show themselves. Last Sunday and Monday night they made an attack on our picket line from the James River down till the point of our camp which is but a few thousand yards from the picket line. They made several charges but every time bravely met by our pickets and sent back in a hurry feebler than they came. I have since heard that they were short in wood and tried to advance their line to take a strip of woods. Our pickets held but they could not [ ]….

It is a most awful hard thing when a man must stand out all night at them breastworks to keep watch to see that the enemy does not surprise & the nights so dark that you cannot see any distance ahead of you & then so cold that you almost freeze & every once in awhile a ball going over you with its song, “zip, zip.” I do not need to take a gun nor do I need to fight. My business is in the rear of the fight, to help to dress the wounded. Last time when the Rebs made the attack, the regiment was out to the breastworks all night. I lay in a tent by the fire sleeping & have made up my mind to take it easy & stick to the boys by the breastworks for there is as much or more danger going to the rear as there is staying here.

It is now bed time. The drums are beating all around so I will finish it tomorrow. My man just put pork on to cook for breakfast so I thought I would write awhile while it is cooking. I have now been writing a half of an hour. It is a rather slow process to write this way. A have a small book on my bunk on which I have to pull the paper along to keep it on the book so to make it easier to write. But a good night to you all and hoping I may sleep as well as you and not be molested by the rebs.

Sunday, 29th, one o’clock pm. I will now resume my writing again. I can not bid you a good morning for its too late so I will bid you a good afternoon. In the first place, I must say I had a good nights sleep. The Johnnies did not try anything. They behaved themselves well. I hope they will continue to do so in the future.

I have just been down to the Point of Rocks Hospital about two miles from here to see about some things by one of our men that was sent to that hospital last week some time. He was a sergeant in Co. D. His name was Jonas Marton. ¹ The Point of Rocks is situated on the Appomattox River and contains two or three houses and a lot of barracks. It derives its name from a Peak of Rocks by the river.

It would be quite a sight for some of our Bucks countyans to see the long lines of entrenchments we have thrown up here. It would take over a days walking to come to the end of it. It’s 40 miles long. Runs from within 5 miles of Richmond to the other side of Petersburg. Besides the long line of entrenchments, every half mile or so, or in some places four and five, in ever half mile is a fort with large Bull dogs made of iron and brass called cannon. There is two forts by our camp that done a good deal of barking last Monday night. We lay right in [ ] the James & Appomattox River midway between the two.

But to come back to my first subject, I told you of the attack we had the very night that I was laying in my tent by the fire while our boys were out at the breastworks. I fell asleep & did not find out much about the fight till daylight when I woke up….

…I was standing along side of one of our guns–a 30-pound Parrott gun that was shelling the other two Rams….but not doing them much harm for the iron coat on them was too much for it. The shell would splinter to pieces on her just as though they were pumpkins. The rams…both got off and started back to Richmond…..that ended the fight. There was four or five wounded on our side and quite an artillery loss to the enemy. I was telling you that I found our men or regt. gone from the camp. I found they had gone up to the James River to meet the rebs…When they come, they seen the boat go up and also seen a man go up in the smoke. I heard it when it went up and seen the smoke and afterwards the wreck. I got some papers off of it that blowed over where I was standing. There is a report that they are going to try us again soon brought in by a deserter from their army who came in last night. We have had quite a lot of them come in. Sometime back over 30 came in. They are fine looking young men.

If the Johnnies want to try us again, they are welcome to come. They take the daytime for it. I think we will show them a modus operandi. They little think of our men in line every morning at 5 o’clock ready…Our regiment drawed new guns last week and turned in the old ones. They now have the latest, improved rifles called the Springfield Rifle made in ’61.

You will please excuse me if this incompetent writing don’t seem to meet your approbation. I will now chance the subject again.

What do the people in Old Bucks county seem to think of the Blair Peace Initiative? Do they seem to think Old Davis’s Administration will be willing to make peace? I want peace as much as anyone. I don’t think there is anyone longing for it more than the soldiers, but they started the thing and disgraced one of the best colors on the face of the globe and ruined one of the best and most prosperous governments. They never were [ ] and did not seem to know when they did have it good. It was their proud, chivalric spirit that provoked them to start that fuss in Jackson’s time. It was then they started the spirit of discontent…I am opposed to peace till we have totally exterminated or subjugated that race. Then we may be a place that will be lasting. I think they have found out to their sorrow that the North’s resources to carry on the war was not as limited as they thought and that the fire of ’76 still burns in their breasts, except the Cops [copperheads]…to dumb to know what was at stake…But enough of this for this time.

Oh yes, I came near forgetting to tell you we just got through building a house…of logs and plastered with mud. It is 8 by 11 feet and 7 feet high, tile all around, and I have a little warm stove in it. The chimney is made of logs and plastered inside with a [ ] on the top. The roof of my house is canvass. Today we made a table. Our bunk is made of staves also split out of pine logs. We live gay for to be so close to the Johnnies…I can say with safety better than any other Nation on the globe for there never was any better.

But I must come to a close hoping this may find you well. Just excuse poor writing and blunders that I could not avoid….Give my love love to all my enquiring friends and yourself and Fannie. Your most sincere friend.

—C. B. Grossman

Address: C. B. Grossman, Hospital Steward, 104th regt. Penn. Volunteers, Bermuda Front, Va.

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¹ Sergt. Jonas Martin died at the Point of Rocks Hospital on 24 January 1865. He was buried in the National Cemetery at City Point, Section F, Division 1, Grave 138.