The following letter was written by John Ewing Jenson (1839-1927), the orphaned son of John Singletary Jenison (1793-1853) and Martha McNabb (1804-1858) of Menard county, Illinois. He wrote the letter to his older sister, Martha (Jenison) Estill (1837-1866), the wife of Samuel Estill (1824-1900). After his parents died, John went to live with his older brother William “Luther” Jenison (1832-1905) of Greenview, Menard county.

John was 20 years old when he enlisted as a private on 21 September 1861 to serve in Co. A, 10th Illinois Cavalry. At the time of enlistment, he was described as standing 5 feet 8 inches tall with hazel eyes and dark hair. He remained in the service until 22 November 1865, mustering out at San Antonia, Texas.

The 10th and the 15th Illinois Cavalry regiments were consolidated late in the war, each regiment having been reduced in number. They were reorganized as the 10th Illinois Cavalry.

In this letter, John gives his sister some details of the Skirmish at Huntersville which took place on 8 July 1864. When rebels guerrillas attempted to disrupt supply lines to the Union-occupied city of Little Rock, Col. James Stuart sent out a party of twenty enlisted men and one lieutenant to scout for guerrillas. In the brief engagement that followed, the Federals captured one enemy soldier and “killed or wounded four more” while not suffering any casualties of their own. The remaining Confederates escaped, and the Union troops did not pursue. John’s letter also speaks of the efforts by Joe Shelby to press into service men between the ages of 15 and 50 to participate on Price’s anticipated raid into Missouri later in 1864.

[Note: This letter is from the personal collection of Richard Weiner and was transcribed and published on Spared & Shared by express consent.]

Transcription

Huntersville, Arkansas
July 10th 1864

Dear sister Martha,

Your very friendly and pleasing letter of June 24th found me enjoying very good health. The health of our regiment is good and especially our company for the time of year. I hope when this comes to hand it will find you well and enjoying yourself well. Also that you had a good time on the 4th.

I traveled all day on the 4th and guarded prisoners at night. We started out on the second and was gone four days. Was ordered out again on the 8th. A good portion of the regiment went. I fixed to go and did not get my horse shod in time. They started in the morning that evening. I was called for a surprise scout. There was one lieutenant and twenty-two men of us. We started about dusk. We rode the most of the night. About ten the next day we ran afoul of a squad of guerrillas. We captured one and killed one. The one we killed shot ten times at us. We was mounted and he was afoot. We halted him and he would not stop. I and one other fired our carbines at him and he did not stop. We then three of us ran up onto him [and] he got behind a tree. All three of us fired at him and then I rode up [with]in about ten feet of him and demanded his arms. He said nothing but fired at me. He had before that fired some three or four shots at us. He fired one at me and I one at him when we was [with]in ten feet of each other. He shot a hole through my blouse sleeve. It knocked a piece of flesh off of my arm. By this time, I being on a very wild horse, the horse commenced jumping so I could not get a shot any more. The man next to me could not get his arms to go. The caps bursted. When he found out that his arms would not go, he got out as if there was a lot of varmints after him.

The reb started to run ahain. He ran about twenty yards and lay down in some weeds. By this time the lieutenant came up with two or three men. He shot at the lieutenant and shot his horse in the neck. There was two men shot him through just then. He died with one groan and without a word. A braver man I never seen, I don’t think. We shot him four times. He died with his pistol in his hand.

Pure as its white the future see!
Bright as its red is now the sky!
Fixed as its stars the faith shall be,
That nerves our hands to do or die. ¹

Now for a change. The weather is very warm here now. It is clouding up for rain now and it makes it very pleasant this evening. I have less to do today than any Sunday for some time. I wish I was sitting in your shanty where I could talk to you in the language of my pen but this is not likely to be the case for some time. I generally make myself contented, let my position in life be as it will.

It would be a easy matter for me to soldier was it not being absent from a set of sisters and brothers for which I feel the most sincere regard. Notwithstanding, I would like to be at home and enjoy the luxuries that I would enjoy was I there. I would not purchase preferment had I it in my power for everyday more ffirmly convinces me that the cause I am in is the cause of justice.

Since Shelby crossed on this side of the river, they have kept us on the move watching his movements. His headquarters is across White River. He sends men on this side to press in every citizen from the age of fifteen to fifty. While they are pressing in the citizens, we are picking up them. That is the way we spend the most of our time. We keep our horses saddled I guess about as much as the farmers keeps horses harnessed in Illinois. Almost all of our men is mounted now and very poorly too. The boys threaten to go out this fall unless they get to furnish their own horses. Col. [James] Stuart has got on his eagles now and he is commanding the post.

We are on the opposite side of the river from town. The Colonel of the Third Regulars has been inspecting here. He is a cavalry Colonel. He inspected quarters and arms and horses. When they went to to look at the quarters, Col. Stuart told him he need not go to Co. A [because] their quarters was always right & he did not inspect our quarters. He inspected our arms and pronounced them in very good fix. It was said that he said the 10th Regiment was the best regiment that he ever seen but they was not mounted.

I will close. I remain most sincerely your affectionate brother and well wisher, — John E. Jenson

The bugle has blown in for church. Direct as before. Since I have been writing, the band has been playing. It plays three tunes three times a day.

---

1 The last stanza of a poem by G. W. Curtis entitled, “The American Flag.”