The following letters were written by Edgar B. Bennett (1842-1918), the son of Smith Bennett (1807-1875) and Susan Snow (1809-1851) of Monroe, Connecticut. He served in Battery K, 1st Connecticut Heavy Artillery. He remained with his battery until March 25, 1865 when he was slightly wounded and taken prisoner during the Battle of Fort Stedman ¹ (in front of Petersburg) and confined in Libby Prison for five days until he was paroled. On April 9, 1865, while on parole, he married Mary E. Marsh (1849-1919), daughter of Lewis and Evaline (Stone) Marsh.
Several years ago I transcribed and published 15 letters that Edgar wrote during the war. See 1863-65: Edgar B. Bennett to Mary E. Marsh. Four of those letters were also written from Fort Richardson—a detached redoubt in Arlington, Virginia, that was part of the defense ring surrounding Washington D. C.
Edgar wrote most of the other letters in 1864 from Redan No. 2 and Redoubt Anderson, fortifications on the Bermuda Hundred line south of the James River, not far from Petersburg, Virginia. Enclosed with many of the letters (including this one) are swatches of silk purported to be cut from the Regimental flag of the First Connecticut Heavy Artillery. The color of the swatches seem to match those advertised in an on-line auction claiming to have hand-written provenance to support it.
Letter 1
[Note: This letter is from the personal collection of Richard Weiner and was transcribed and published on Spared & Shared by express consent.]
Fort Richardson
June 11th, 1863
Dear Mary,
It is with the greatest of pleasure that I now seat myself to answer your kind and affectionate letter which came to hand today. I was so glad to hear from you and that you were well. I am well and hope this may find you all enjoying the same great blessing. I am glad you have got my last picture. I also sent you some others the next day and I think they must have reached you by this time. There is a great battle progressing on the Rappahannock now.
Yesterday Fort Lyons blew up killing 26 and wounded 14 but it is thought there is more in the ruins but I hope not. 1 But there has some kind and loving sister lost her brother by it. Oh! how many a poor mother has lost her only son in this war and never to see him more on earth. But dear Mary, this will learn us all a lesson that never will be forgotten. I know it will me. It has been to me the greatest lesson I ever learned, and to many others. But when I left home, I did not expect the war would last till this time. But it has and I am afraid it will last for 2 or 3 years to come yet for there is not as much signs of its coming to close now as there was 18 months ago. I want to see peace again, but we will not till Abe ——- then there will be some hopes of it. But not till then. But they are getting the Negroes to fighting and I am glad of it. They have now in service 35,800 Negroes so the government will not want so many white soldiers from the North.
Yes, Mary, next summer I hope to be in Burlington if nothing happens and hope to meet you there. I wish I was where I could call in and see you this eve, but no, I cannot. Mary, I shall always try to be a good boy and if I try, I know I can.
The weather has been very pleasant this Spring but it changes so often. It is so warm one day [such that] we can hardly stand the heat, and the next it is so cold we want overcoat and mittens.
I have not seen anything planted this Spring here for if they did, it would do them no good for there is too many soldiers here that everything would be stolen from them. There is but one thing we can get that we want that is milk and that is not very plenty and that is two-thirds water. Everything is very high. There has been a few strawberries here but there is so many to pick them we cannot get more than one apiece. I can’t think of any news at present so I shall have to close.
Give my love and best wishes to your Father and Mother. My most affectionate love to you. I shall remain you true friend, — E. B. Bennett
Co K 1st C Vol, Alexandria, Fort Richardson, VA
I will write again in a few days
1 See “Disaster in the Defenses of Washington—the June 9, 1863 Explosion at Fort Lyon,” by Nathan Marzoli published on Emerging Civil War.
Letter 2
Fort Richardson [Alexandria, Va,]
Friday Eve, August 7th 1863
Dear Mary,
It is with pleasure that i now seat myself to write you a few lines as I have just received your affectionate letter. I was so glad to hear from you. When I wrote to you one week ago tonight, I told you I should go over to Fort Lyons on Saturday the next day and I done as I told you, I went there and was very glad I did for I saw your uncle and a number of others that I knew. your uncle and myself had our pictures taken together so he had one and I have one myself. I would send it to you but they are not good ones for the day was too warm and they were taken in a tent. But if you wish for it, I will send it to you. I had a nice visit with your uncle.
We do not get any news here from the army and we know nothing about it at all. In fact, we don’t get any news at all from any part. It is too warm for the army to move anywhere now. We have not had any rain at all for a long time and it is very warm here. Last Sunday there was 7 men in our regiment was sun struck. One of them died instantly. The others are very feeble. Our doctor was also sun struck and he has not been able to get off from his bed since Sunday and Monday there were 13 sun struck in Washington City. The people here say it is about as warm as they ever knew it to be.
I am well and hope this may find you in the same good health.
Mary, I do not think of any more to write so I will close by sending my love and best wishes to your father and mother, mu kindest and affectionate love to you. I remain your true friend. I hope, dear, we shall all live to meet again once more for I long for the time to come when we may see each other. I will now bid you a happy good night. From your ever loving friend, — Edgar
To Mrs. E. M. from E. B. B.
Co. Km 1st C. V. H. A., Washington D. C.
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