The following letter was written by Walter G. Jones (1840-1909), the son of Rev. Aaron Baldwin Jones (1801-1889) and Lydia Pickett (1804-1857) of Smithville, Broome county, New York. Just prior to the 1860 Census, Walter and Lola L. Nusom (1838-1901) were married and enumerated in the household with Lola’s parents in Triangle.

Muster rolls inform us that Walter was mustered into Co. C, 8th New York Cavalry as a private on 30 August 1862. At that time he was described as a 5 foot 10 inch tall married farmer with blue eyes and light hair. He was mustered out of the regiment as a private on 15 June 1865 at Washington, D. C.

Being the son of a Baptist minister and undoubtedly raised in a religious environment, Walter clearly possessed a strong conviction that God would safeguard him in battle: “…soldiering is a challenging endeavor for a man until he becomes accustomed to it. I believe I have acclimated and been hardened by it, to the extent that I now fear nothing except the bullets. Yet, I place my trust in God, confident that He will watch over me for the next eight months as He has for the past two years and four months. At times, I find it miraculous that I have been spared for this long, but God has declared in His holy word that if we ask, we shall receive, and He has kept His promise to me in this regard, for which I am deeply grateful.” In light of this, the image below of Walter alongside the Bible he carried in in his breast pocket that provided him protection is all the more poignant. In 1896 Walter attended a National Encampment in Boston, and he took along his treasured war souvenir. He was offered $200 for it. “I am a poor man,” he said, “but $5,000 wouldn’t buy it today.” 

Note: This letter is from the private collection of Greg Herr and was offered for transcription and publication on Spared & Shared by express consent.

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T R A N S C R I P T I O N

Headquarters Co. C, 8th Regt. NY Vol. Cavalry
Camp near Winchester, Virginia
January 8th 1864

My dear sister Sarah,

As my comrades have all gone away today and left me alone, I thought I would answer your letter which I received a few days ago. I was very glad to hear from you and hear you was well for it had been a long time since I had heard from any of you. I am well and hearty and so is all the rest of the Boys here. I got the box that [my wife] Lola sent me the other day all safe and sound. The boots come very acceptable, I tell you, and all the rest of the articles.

I had a letter from Robert the other day. He wrote that he had been sick and never had no fever in his life, but was better when he wrote to me. If he lives it through and gets well, he will probably be tough after it, but soldiering is tough business for a man till he gets used to it. I think I have got use to it and toughened by it, so much so that I fear nothing now but the bullets. But I trust in God that He will watch over me for the next 8 months to come as he has through the past two years and four months. I sometimes think it a miracle that I have been spared as long as I have, but God has said in His holy word that if we would ask, we should receive and He has fulfilled His promise to me in that respect for which I am very thankful.

You say Augustus has got home alive. A few days before I got better, we got a letter from our Sergeant Major who was taken prisoner and he gave the names of all our regiment who was there when he left. He said Gus was a prisoner and in Richmond yet. I was about to write to our folks about it when I got your letter stating he had got home. Kershief [?] has shown himself and it is not the first time either. I would like to meet him here on the battlefield some time. I believe I would be a doing justice to shoot him before shooting a rebel, and I believe I could do it as easy too. But you may think these very hard words for me to use against a brother-in-law, but it is from the bottom of my heart sincerely, and I can never help them as long as they live together. It may be they [ ] happy for them, but if she would have no more to do with him at all and let her children out to someone, she could take care of herself and I should feel more at liberty to help her then. Out here it [ ] up by a miserable glutenous drunkard. But enough of this.

I got a letter from Lyman and [sister] Theodossia the other day. They were all bully when they wrote. I have not heard from our [ ] in a long time. I wrote to them a long letter some time ago but have received no answer. I inquired in the letter if he ever had a brother by the name of William or not. I wish you would find out…He says his father’s name was William Jones and used to live in Cortland County. He thinks that he and I are cousins. His name is Henry Jones. The name of the fellow who tents with me is Robert [B.] Lyday. There is three of us in the tent. Now Sarah, write to me often and all the news and [ ]… I remain your brother, — W. G. Jones