The following letter was written by 43 year-old Edmund J. Gorgas (1819-1901) of Philadelphia who began his service in May 1861 as a sergeant in Co. K, 19th Pennsylvania Infantry. He was mustered out of that 3-month’s regiment on 29 August 1861 and the following March was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in Co. A, 90th Pennsylvania Infantry. He was wounded in the Battle of Fredericksburg but returned to his regiment in time for the Battle of Gettysburg where he was taken prisoner and confined at Macon, Georgia. Following his exchange he was promoted to 1st Lieutenant of the company.

Before and after the Civil War, Edmond worked as a “coach trimmer” in Philadelphia—good with his hands but so great with the pen. His spelling was atrocious and I have done my best to interpret his meaning in the following letter to his Captain written just three weeks after the Battle of Antietam in which he claimed his company in “deplorable condition.” We learn from his letter who among the members of Co. A actually fought in the Battles of South Mountain and Antietam.

Transcription

Camp near Sharpsburg
October 7th 1862

Capt. Durang,

Dear Sir—I have just received your very welcome letter. The company is in a deplorable condition for the want of clothing. They are ragged, lousy, and without shelter and nothing to cover them these cold nights. Captain, it is [a] hard case. But I suppose we will have all the clothing in a few days.

This Division has lost twenty-seven hundred men since we started out in the campaign that is reported at headquarters. Sergt. [Hillary] Beyer has wrote to you in which he has given you all the information you want concerning the company. [William L.] Thompson has wrote to Lieut. [William P.] Davis and given him the history of the company since he left, I believe, which you will see no doubt. There is in our company some good men but they are very scarce. I have had a hard time with some of them such as [David] Leslie. When there was to be a fight, they would be among the missing.

The day of the Battle of South Mountain we started from Frederick with 30 odd men. In the battle, I had Sergeant Roodt, [Wm. L.] Thompson, [Thomas] Benner, [Isaac]Warren, [E. A.] Dunnecliff, [John] Ruhl, [George W.] Sutton, [Joseph] Bowers, [James H.] Gouldy, [David] Diehl, [Emile] Coblentz, [George] Land, [William] Revoudt. In this last fight we started with 21 men and went in with 16—-all I have named above with the exception of [Joseph] Bowers and [William] Revoudt. Sergt. [Hillary] Beyer, [Henry] Schwartz, [Albert] Ozias, [Henry] Parker, [Augustus M.] Theiss was in the last battle which makes the 16 men, Out of them, there was six wounded—[George] Sutton, [John] Ruhl, [Augustus] Theiss, [Albert] Ozias, [James H.] Gouldy, [&] [Emile] Coblentz. Those sixteen men compose our fitting company.

The reason, I think, that that the non-com officers ought to be filled up—for we have not got enough to fill their places—there is two detailed every six days for picket duty. [Henry] Schwartz—he has give up the corporalship and sent to the hospital and Revoudt is sent too—is sick with a [ ]. [Hillary] Beyer has been acting first, but he don’t [suit?] me. He is too slow and has made such men as [Henry] Parker and his party his comrades. I have no personal feelings against him. There is [William L.] Thompson. He would make the best one of the two and I think he ought to have something for he has been a good man. He is a man that you can depend on. I have seen all non-coms fall out in the long marches we had, but Thompson was at his post always. There is other, [George] Land [& Isaac] Warren.

Your trunk is in Washington, corner of 18th & G Street in care of Capt. Dana. They were ordered to Philadelphia when they left us. You send an order for it and you will get it. Generally will be attended to. Thompson has got 10 dollars 75 cents he sent to him. Give my regards to Lieut. Davis and all the rest of the boys,

Yours truly, — E. J. Gorgas