The following letter was written by James B. Simpson (1832-1908) of Co. B, 114th Pennsylvania Infantry. James was working as an upholsterer in Philadelphia when he volunteered as a corporal in August 1862 and mustered out in May 1865 as a 1st Sergeant. In 1892 he lived in Medford, Massachusetts. He died following “an attack of epilepsy” as he was “assisting in the decoration of a soldier’s monument in Oak Grove cemetery.”
[Note: The following letter is from the private collection of Greg Herr and was offered for transcription and publication on Spared & Shared by express consent. I did not correct the spelling or add punctuation to this letter.]
T R A N S C R I P T I O N
Addressed to James Markland, No. 237 South Street Philadelphia Penn
Head Quarters Army Potomac June 8th [1864]
Friend Markland,
Here i am once more with my Regiment i arived here on the 4th of this month after three weeks scouting through Virginna on the third of this month our Brigade supported the right of Burnsides Corps on the extream right of the Army Lee was trying to turn our right flank but did not succeed we did not get under a very heavy fire Lee finding our right to strong for him abandoned the attemp to turn it we held our line of battle untill noon next day when we pack up and started for our regiment got here in the afternoon the boys ware all glad to see us we are doing guard duty at Gen. Meads head quarters
[The] talk [of] Burnsides nigers fighting is all nonsense they have not been under fire yet and i don’t think Grant will put them in a fight you have not heird tell of any of them being wounded have you. their has been some of the hardest kind of fighting sence this campaign comenced the first two days fighting of Jonneys got the best of us but after that it was all up with them the seige of Richmond is a bout comenced head quarters is about 12 miles from Richmond the rebs have a very strong posision but i think Grant will make kite out.
give my respects to all my old friends i am in bully health and i hope you are the same i remain your friend J. B. Simpson
The following letter was written by George J. Schwartz (1842-1910), the son of Michael Sylvester Schwartz (1815-1894) and Margaretha Beck (1823-1859) of Philadelphia, who first enlisted in 1861 as a private in Co. C 18th Pennsylvania Infantry (3-months) and then reenlisted in the 114th Regiment, “Collis Zouaves,” or “Zouaves d’Afrique” as Captain of Co. G. After he was seriously wounded during the Battle of Chancellorsville in May 1863, he was mustered out of the service. He was active in Keystone State politics and veteran’s organizations after the war. He can be found in business directories as a jeweler and a piano maker. His story is illustrated with an engraving that pictures him during the war, two post-war photographs and his sword. He was married in August 1863 to Anna Shaw Allen (1844-1929) of Philadelphia.
The 114th Pennsylvania Regiment was conceived by Charles H. T. Collis, an Irish immigrant who settled in Philadelphia and subsequently emerged as a distinguished lawyer. Initially, Collis organized a modest company, dubbing them the “Zouaves d’Afrique,” which served while attached to various other regiments. This unit participated in significant military engagements during the 1862 Shenandoah Valley Campaign, the Battle of Cedar Mountain, and the Battle of Antietam. The “Zouaves d’Afrique” garnered considerable admiration for their discipline and effectiveness in combat, leading to the decision to establish a full-sized regiment, designated as the 114th Volunteer Infantry. Similar to other Zouave regiments formed in major American cities, the 114th enlisted a number of immigrants who were veterans of European conflicts; however, the majority of its troops were American-born citizens from Philadelphia and its surrounding areas.
In the winter of 1862, the regiment fought in the Battle of Fredericksburg. They joined a counterattack by Robinson’s brigade of the III Corps to help General George G. Meade’s division. When the Zouaves struggled against the Confederate line, Colonel Collis took the regiment’s colors and encouraged the men. Their counterattack stalled but eventually pushed back the Confederates, saving a Federal artillery battery. For his bravery in this battle, Colonel Collis received the Medal of Honor in 1893.
Carl Röchling’s painting depicting the 114th Pennsylvania Infantry during the assault on Prospect Hill at the Battle of Fredericksburg, December 13th 1862
Transcription
[This letter is from the private collection of Greg Herr and was offered for transcription and publication on Spared & Shared by express consent.]
Gen. Banks Headquarters Strasburg, Virginia May 23rd 1862
Dear Friend,
I take this opportunity to write a few lines to you to let you [know] that I am well and hoping these few lines find you the same. This is a splendid country here in the Valley. It is composed of mountains & hills but is bad watered. It is very soft and there is a great many sick on the account of the water. Strasburg is a miserable looking place. It has got three streets in it and old houses—all deserted. It is a hard job to see one white petticoat in it. The only kind you can see is black. It is said here the reason that Banks fell back to this place is that Jackson was reinforced by Johnson. We are a building fortifications all around it. There is a detail of twelve of our men a working on them today.
Yesterday our pickets brought in twelve of Colonel [Turner] Ashby’s men. They were a hard-looking set. Our men had to kill two of them and one of them had his eye knocked out before they could take them. Their uniform is home spun cloth gray and a light slouch hat. There are a great many guerrilla bands about in the mountains. They make a dash on our men once and awhile.
I expect you know that we left Geary and joined Banks. We are repairing all destroyed bridges. Our 2nd Lieutenant and twenty of our men have been to work near Woodstock and repaired a bridge across Tom’s Brook. We have plenty of duty to do for a small company and stand guard besides.
It is very warm down here. Sickness is commencing to get among the soldiers. Our company has only got about 10 sick but the hospitals all full. They say Co. K of Murphy’s Regiment passed here last night, escorting a corpse to the railroad. It was one of their men and they are going to send his body home to Philadelphia.
I got a letter from home today and it was from my sister Louvisa. I sent a letter home with money in it. One of our men went home on a pass and I sent with him two squirrels for father which I guess he has got before you get this letter. Our Captain and Orderly Sergeant are on detached service, absent from camp, and I am acting Orderly Sergeant in his place. I have a great deal to do at present. You can’t imagine how warm it is here. We have stopped drilling. If I come across anything worth sending to you, I will send it. When they leave a place, they take all of the small articles and leave the large ones in the deserted camps. We always find chests, trunks, tables, kettles, and &c.
News is very scarce so I will come to a close a hoping that the next time I write, I will have some news and some small relic to send you. Write soon and excuse my bad writing. I send my best respects to you and all inquiring friends.
Yours truly, — Sergt. George Schwartz, Zouaves D’Afrique in care of Capt. Collis, General Banks Headquarters, Strasburg, Va.
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