The following letter was written by John W. Morgan of Brownsburg, Hendricks county, Indiana. John was 22 years old when he enlisted on 30 August 1861 in Co. B, 7th Indiana Infantry. Sometime prior to the Overland Campaign, John was promoted to corporal. He was taken a prisoner on 5 May 1864 in the opening fighting in the Wilderness. His military records indicates that he died on 22 April 1865 and was buried in the National Cemetery at Hampton, Virginia. POW records suggest that he was held at Andersonville for a time but later transferred elsewhere, not stated.

John wrote the letter to his mother who I believe was Nancy (Larimore) Newham (1813-1891)—married to her second husband, Thomas Newham (1816-1898), about 1849. It was written from the regiment’s encampment near Falmouth just after the Battle of Fredericksburg in which they were present but held in reserve and never called upon to engage with the enemy. The regiment was brigaded with the 76th and 95th New York, and the 56th Pennsylvania in Col. Gavin’s 2nd Brigade of Abner Doubleday’s 1st Division, 1st Corps. Morgan’s letter tells of the nighttime retreat across the Rappahannock and alleges that whiskey was being offered to the men in the event they were called upon to charge the enemy’s breastworks or batteries.

To read letters by other members of the 7th Indiana Infantry transcribed and published on Spared & Shared, see:

Theodore & Mortimer Longwood, Co. C, 7th Indiana (Archive)
John H. Denton, Co. E, 7th Indiana (1 Letter)
George Washington Sefton, Co. E, 7th Indiana (20 Letters)
Phillip Jones Carleton, Co. G, 7th Indiana (1 Letter)

Transcription

Fredericksburg, Virginia
December the 17th 1862

My dear mother,

I received a letter from you the 15th. Was glad to hear from you all. I wrote father a letter on the 15th and told him what I was doing that night. About nine o’clock, [Lt.] Col. [John F.] Cheek come to the Capt. [William Cyress Banta] and told him to get his men in line without making a bit of noise. He said that we was going to charge the enemy batteries. I began to think that somebody was going to get hurt and I made my calculations to hurt somebody if I didn’t get hurt first.

“He said that we was going to charge the enemies batteries. I began to think that some body was goin’ to get hurt and I made my calculations to hurt some body if I didn’t get hurt first.”

—John W. Morgan, Co. B, 7th Indiana Infantry, 17 Dec. 1862

But I soon found instead of charging the enemy’s batteries that we were going to get on our own side of the [Rappahannock] river as easy and as quick as possible. We wasn’t allowed to speak above our breath not let our canteens rattle. Our cannoneers wrapped their blankets round the wheels to keep them from making noise.

Just before dark a barrel of whiskey came to us to give us before making the charge. I seen the barrel but didn’t know what it was for—only to give because we was so exposed to bad weather. They wouldn’t of got me to drank any if I had knew it was to charge a battery. I think that I have got nerve enough to go anywhere the 7th Indiana Regiment goes and it will go anywhere it is ordered. If it is ordered to charge a battery, it will do it without whiskey. I guess that this beats any retreat that has been made since the war commenced. We went across the river and hardly a man spoke a word.

Gen. McClellan went up in a balloon and looked at the enemy’s breastworks and told Gen. Burnside that he would not undertake to take them and he knew that if he didn’t fight that he had to get out of there without the enemy knowing it. I don’t know how many we had killed and wounded. We have not made any report yet.

Mother, I am very much obliged to you for that 10 cents you sent me although I had plenty of money at that time. I had been paid off and had about $50 in my pocket at the time. But I hope I will have the chance to do you a favor someday. I guess that you was mistaken about the 7th regiment being a town. I guess if you had seen us on the 13th, 14th, and 15th, you would have thought that there was not much chance for us ever seeing town any more. I wish that we had been there. I would give a good deal to be at home a few days. — John W. Morgan