Category Archives: 36th Georgia Infantry

36th Georgia Infantry

1862: William Garner Harris to Mary Sophronia Harris

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The following letter was written by 1st Lieutenant William Garner Harris (1830-1901) of Co. H, 36th Georgia Infantry. He was promoted to Captain of the company in mid-April 1863 and resigned his commission on 19 March 1864, having been elected as Sheriff of Murray county, Georgia. William was married to Eugenia (“Jennie”) Carter (1841-1910) in 1861 and the baby referenced in this letter was Lucy A. Harris, born on 22 March 1861. William wrote the letter to his younger sister, Mary Sophronia Harris (1847-1922). William had a younger brother, Robert Harris, who served in Co. E, 60th Georgia Infantry who was mortally wounded at the Battle of Antietam; he died at the Grove Farm on September 18, 1862.

Glenn’s 36th served first in Tennessee, then in Mississippi where it was a part of T. H. Taylor’s Brigade, Department of Mississippi and East Louisiana. The regiment was engaged in the battle of Champion Hill (Baker’s Creek), Miss. May 16, 1863, and in the bombardment of Vicksburg, Miss. from May 18 to July 4, 1863. where it surrendered. After being exchanged, the regiment was brigaded under General Cummings and fought with the Army of Tennessee from Chattanooga to Nashville, Georgia, and the Carolina’s Campaign. In January, 1865, it was consolidated with the 56th Georgia Regiment. As originally organized, the regiment had 930 men. It suffered 43 casualties at Chattanooga, and reported 267 men and 213 arms in December of 1863.

POW Record when surrendered at Vicksburg, MS

Transcription

Camp Hatten
Grainger County [Tennessee]

July 2, 1862

Dear Sister M. S. Harris,

I take the present opportunity of answering your letter sent by Potest. I was truly glad to hear from you and Martha. You said if I needed anything to let you and Martha know what I needed and I should have it. I need nothing in the clothing line. I didn’t start with much and have sent half of that home and have wished several times I had nothing here but what I have on. There is always a fuss when we go to start about carrying baggage we have so much running around to do. Though I am very thankful to you for the offer.

I want you to go down and stay some with Jennie and the baby. I expect they are lonesome as Cate don’t stay there much since I left. I don’t know when I can come home but when I do, I will try and bring you some present if I can find anything you will have.

Give Martha my best thanks for her kind offer and tell her I will remember if I ever get home, I can’t tell you where to write but direct to Knoxville, Glenn’s [36th] Regiment, Georgia Volunteers, and I will get them some time. There are a great many old acquaintances in this Brigade. Gus Simmons & his brother is in Col. Harris’ Regiment, this Brigade.

I’ll close. Your oldest brother, — W. G. Harris

36th Georgia Infantry, Chattanooga, Tennessee

1862: Thomas Emory Jefferson to Frances (Foster) Jefferson

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Headstone 1Lt. Thomas E. Jefferson, Co. E, 36th Georgia Infantry

The following letter was written by Thomas Emory Jefferson (1820-1863) of Cherokee county, Georgia, who was married to Mary Frances Foster in 1844 and made a living as a school teacher prior to the Civil War. Leaving his wife and three daughters, Thomas accepted a commission as 1st Lieutenant of Co. E, 36th Georgia Infantry when it was formed during the winter of 1861-62. Its first major engagement of the war was at Champion’s Hill and then again in the defense of Vicksburg where those who were not killed or escaped were surrendered to Grant’s army on 4 July 1863. The date of Thomas’s death is not known but he was killed in or about Vicksburg. He is now buried in the Cedar Hill Cemetery at Vicksburg

[Note: This letter is from the private collection of Jack Dunagan who made it available to Spared & Shared for transcription and publication by express consent. Jack is a descendant of Lt. Jefferson.]

Transcription

Chattanooga, Tennessee
May 2nd 1862

Dear wife & children,

I this morning with pleasure seat myself to write you a few lines by which you may know that we are well. I am well this morning as common, hoping when these come to hand, they may find you all well.

Dear wife, I will give you a slight history of our travels to this point. We arrived in Atlanta on Thursday morning and staid there through the day. We left at 7 o’clock on the cars and arrived at this point, Chattanooga, Tennessee, on the same night about daylight. We staid in though the day. We all made down our beds under the car shed that night and slept till about midnight when we were all called up and run off on the cars to the Tennessee River about 5 miles from this place to a bridge where we expected to meet the enemy. The bridge was burned down in the morning. 1 We were formed in line of battle but we never saw the Yankees at all. We learned in the evening that they had fallen back. We then fell back to Chattanooga where we struck our tents and we are here now.

There are some 3 or 4 thousand soldiers here. They are expecting that we will be ordered away from here soon to meet the enemy below this point somewhere. I want you to reconcile yourself the best you can. I am better reconciled than I expected to be. I have not slept any since I left home scarcely till last night I slept very well. It has been the hardest thing I have ever passed through in my life, to reconcile myself to be away from you all. But I am here now and I will be content if I can. I intend to live right and I want you to do the best you can at home. Try to make something to eat for next year for we are going to have hard times sure.

I think if the Yankees does not come on to try to take this place in a day or two that our regiment will fall back to Dalton or Atlanta to drill for a month or two. I cannot tell much about it now. We may be in a fight in a few days and we may not. There is great excitement here. I want you to pray for me every day of your life that I may be spared to see you all again and if it should be my unhappy lot to fall, I hope to meet you in heaven.

May God be with and bless you all. I will write to you again soon. I want you to write to me every week sure. You will direct to care of Capt. Gilbert, Col. [Jesse A.] Glenn’s Regt., Chattanooga, Tennessee

Your loving and devoted husband until death, — Thos. E. Jefferson

to wife, Frances Jefferson

1 A pontoon bridge was later erected over the Tennessee river at this same location.

1st Confederate Regiment Infantry, 36th Georgia Infantry, Fort Gaines, Mobile, Alabama

1862: Columbus D. Harrison to his Brother

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This letter was written by Columbus D. Harrison (1836-1879) who enlisted as a private in the 1st Confederate Regiment Infantry, 2nd Co. E, on 1 May 1862. He was later transferred to 2nd Co. K. This regiment was originally known as 1st Villepigue’s Independent Battalion and the 36th Regiment, Georgia Infantry, (Villepigue’s). Its designation was later changed to 1st Confederate Regiment Infantry and it was also known as the 1st Confederate Regiment, Georgia Infantry.

Columbus surrendered with his regiment at Greensboro, North Carolina, on 26 April 1865.

Columbus was the son of John J. Harrison (1808-1874) and Saphronia McFarland (1810-1850) of Walker county, Georgia. He was married to Martha J. Cooper (1849-1921) in December 1868 in Catoosa county, Georgia.

See also—1862: Columbus D. Harrison to his Brother published on Spared & Shared 14 in March 2017.

Columbus’s Letter with image of Pvt. James Henry Pascoe of Co. E, 36th Georgia Infantry

Transcription

Fort Gaines, Alabama
September 15th 1862

Dear brother,

I take the present opportunity to write you a few lines to let you know that I received your letter that you sent by Jones and my but I was very glad to get my box and hear from home and hear that they was all well. My box come safe—all but one bottle of the brandy. The square bottle was broke but did not injure anything that was in the box. I was very glad to get all of my things, in particular the brandy, for it was the first drop that I have seen since I have been on this Island. As for clothing I was not needing any[thing] particular. Jones bought our uniforms already made in Atlanta. I was very glad to get the shirt that Jack sent me. I was offered ten dollars for it. I can’t see where Jack got such a nice one at and I was offered $14 for my shoes. They are the best pair of shoes in camp. I am so much obliged to you all for what you sent to me until you are better paid. I am very well off for socks, for I have got two pair that I fetched from home that I have not wore yet. I am well fixed for bed clothing now. As for provisions, we get a plenty to eat. We have a fine lot of beef cattle here now on the Island and we draw a plenty other provisions. My brandy tastes very well this morning. Jones brought 40 boxes to the Company.

I have nothing new to write to you. I don’t see any more prospect of a fight here than I did when I first come here. We all have fine health here now. Marshal Green sent for a transportation and the Captain sent him one. Tell him to not give it out for I don’t think that he can do any better than to come here. I think that we are a doing the best of any troops in the army, but tell him to use his own pleasure about it. I would like very much for Marshal to come down here. Our regiment is not organized yet. We are a looking for some more companies here before long.

I received three letters from the Cove the other day—one from Jane Collins and one from Matty and one from Jane Strong. Jane Strong wrote me a very nice letter. I think she is a taking on very much about you & said that she wanted me to write to you and tell you to come up oftener. I wish you could see the letters that they wrote to me. Tell Sal that I will write to her before long. I would to her now, but I nothing to write here but what I have just wrote you and there is no use in that. I sent you a letter that I got from Becky. I would like to know whether you got it or not. I want you to write to what you done about my corn. If you think that you will need it you had better not sell it. So do as you please about it. Tell babe that I have some pretty shells that I will send her before long the first chance I get. Tell Jack that I can’t get a present nice enough to send him now, but maybe I will some time. So I must close. Write soon. — C. D. Harrison