John Pushe DeMeritt (1836-1921) was born in Montpelier, Vermont, the son of John and Almira DeMeritt. Following graduation from the University of Vermont in 1861, he moved to LaCrosse, Wisconsin, to teach school. On August 15, 1862, he enlisted in Company S of the 29th Wisconsin Infantry. He served in the quartermaster’s office for the regiment and was eventually promoted to quartermaster. He was mustered out June 22, 1865. After the war, he returned to Vermont, and in 1870 was ordained a minister in the Congregational Church. He died July 23, 1921, at the National Soldiers Home at Bennington, Vermont.

Four more of John P. DeMeritt’s letters while he was serving in the quartermaster’s office with the 29th Wisconsin Infantry in 1862 (with notes added by him in 1900) may be found at the Butler Center for Arkansas Studies.. Additional Civil War materials of John P. DeMeritt are held by Tulane University Special Collections and by the National Library of Australia.

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

Quartermaster Dept.
29th Wisconsin
Dauphin Island, Alabama
February 28, 1865

Dear Sister Julia,

The end of another week has come and I feel it my duty to write home though I have no news of importance to communicate. I wish I had, however, a letter from home to answer now for it is more pleasing and easier when we have and answer to meet.

The past week has been rather rainy and business has been uncommonly dull. Of course we are not disposed to complain for not having work when it rains, not a bit, but these rainy days though dull, are on the island, even delightful. It is on such days that sewing, reading, pleasant chatting, writing letters &c. occupy our attention more than on other times.

March 2. I was interrupted in my writing here and this evening resume it. As I was about to write, “very little has transpired upon which one can arrange an interesting epistle,” I have written you so many letters about camp life—a life that is almost as monotonous as life in the kitchen, that I hardly know how to present the subject in a new light. Every camp has its peculiarities just as villages have fashions and customs wholly their own.

You know how shells were “all the go” at Pas Carrallo, Texas, and ornaments from clam shells all the rage at St. Charles, Arkansas. So here oyster hunting and pipe making reign supreme. On one part of this island is an oyster bed and by wading waist deep the boys can fish out all they can carry to camp. So oyster peddlers are plenty and that food, despite butter or milk to cook them, find its place on our table quite often. The briar-root from which tobacco pipes are made to a great extent North is found in large quantities here so the boys give the many leisure moments they have here to pipe making. I wish you could see the workmanship thus displayed for it is really interesting. You would see pipes of all sizes and carved into numerous figures. I have seen a pipe which had a mule’s head nicely joined to a face. Another had a hand grasping the neck of a fierce looking Turk. Another was a turtle, a horse’s foot, and a man’s head neatly joined together. Another represented a frog united to some other figure. And all these relics are finely executed and so successfully wrought that I am not sure that I would have made an attempt at the business if the article manufactured had been one useful to society. As it is, I find more pleasure in occupying my odd moments in study and reading. In this pastime, I have engaged much of late.

As the weather has moderated so much we have set our store aside altogether. We begin to talk much of resuming our evening prayer meetings and if permitted to remain much longer here, I think we shall begin again those meetings. A few of us have lately formed a Bible Class and for a few weeks have held sessions two or three times a week. These have been very interesting & doubtless to our good. But the last few days has taught us that our life on this island is soon to be disturbed and we be moving into more active duty. Already orders have come cutting down our train to the teams and others taking our tents and allowing only dog tents to the men & one wedge tent to the field and staff, &c., all of which mean “march.”

And among these trimmings I must not forget to tell you that Major. Gen. Granger got his eye on our White Team and ordered that for his use, so the flag-of-truce team has gone. I have seen too much soldiering to scold over such a mishap or to get ruffled beyond what Martha was when she called the peddler’s fish “chubs.” In like manner I console myself by saying that one of my teams I have now, though to so gay, is a more serviceable team. From all I can see, I guess we shall start off on a campaign within a fortnight. As the weather is now very mild, we all are by no means reluctant to enter field service, even though it be as grand as that done and being done by Sherman, nor are we willing to rest so idle when many other soldiers are doing so much to smother the last feeble gaspings of this wicked rebellion.

March 4. I thought it best to defer this letter a little longer as I have sent several papers home lately and you certainly must know from them that I am all right. A day ago I sent to Laura a small book which purports to be the life of Mead Holmes. I sent it because it gives a minute notice of the hero’s life as a soldier and hence much in accordance with our present circumstances. I think you will be interested in the book for in many respects it is a good thing.

March 7. I was interrupted in my writing and expecting a letter from home daily, I waited a little longer. But as the mail goes today, I will close this letter of paragraphs and defer my next for the expected message from you. I have said so much about how I think about not having a letter every week when I have three sisters to answer my letters that I do not want to say more. Yet I can assure you it’s not a thought at all pleasing to dwell upon. The last letter I had from home was received February 17th and written February 2nd, so I am over a moth without the least word. As it does not take more than ten days for a letter to come, I cannot think otherwise than you have delayed a long time. I hope however that this long suspense is not because of sickness or other misfortune.

My health is the very best. In a short time we expect to be moving towards Mobile and I hope you will hear soon of th fall of that city, that another joy may be added to those splendid rejoicings from the East. With much love to you each and all, I am with much love your dear brother, — John

Direct to New Orleans and not put on via Cairo.