Category Archives: 5th Iowa Cavalry

1864: George O. Wheeler to a friend

October 17, 2025 Griff Leave a comment

The following letter was written by George O. Wheeler (1844-1922) of Locust Grove township, Jefferson county, Iowa, a native of Waitsfield, Vermont), who enlisted on 22 December 1863 in Co. G, 5th Iowa Infantry. He was transferred with the veterans to Co. I, 5th Iowa Cavalry when the two regiments were consolidated in the fall of 1864 and mustered out of the regiment in August 1865 at Nashville.

George died 18 March 1922 at Des Moines, Iowa.

*First Squad of Co. E, 5th Iowa Cavalry. The verso has an inscription from George Wolf, a member of the company. called. 1864 (Iowa Civil War Images)*

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

Camp of the 5th Iowa Cavalry
Near Nashville, Tennessee
[November 1864]

Friend Steven,

It has been quite a while since I wrote to you. We left this place for Louisville the 27th of October. There we drew horses and started back and arrived here last week. We were 13 days on the march, nine of which were very rainy & I was very wet most of the time with plenty of mud spattered over my clothes to make it agreeable. On arriving in camp, I found eleven letters & twenty-six newspapers in the mail line & as a matter of course opened the letters first. I was a little surprised to see yours & Mrs. Stevens’ as I did not hardly expect you would have time to write but the letters were all the more welcome & I was glad to hear from you.

Since my last letter to you, my health has improved & I am once more well. I was weighed while in Louisville & weighed 140 lbs.

We are camped three miles from the city on the railroad leading to Huntsville, Alabama. We are to draw new arms in the morn and will have the saber, Spencer carbine, and no revolvers. The carbine is a seven shooter & I do not want to be troubled with a revolver. After all I have seen of the service, I am not yet sick of it & I would have enlisted in the Navy ere this & informed Mother of my intention of so doing but she begged me not to so hard that I have concluded to wait a while and make her a visit before so doing & explain the matter to her. Then perhaps she will feel better on the subject.

Tell Mr. Martin that I feel a little ashamed of myself for not paying him before I left home last spring but I did not think of it, but will not forget to send it as soon as I am paid which will not be long. It is true it is not much but I always believe in doing as I promise. And besides, a person who has to work for a living wants what is their own. If I could borrow it, I would send it in this letter but the Boys have all spent their money. It is impossible to borrow.

Last eve as we were marching through the streets of Nashville on our way to camp, I heard a person enquiring for Old Co. G, 5th Infantry. On looking around I discovered Wildrous Boll. I stopped & shook hands with him & noticed that he was not looking very well. On enquiring the cause, he informed me that he had been wounded not long since. I was ordered forward and was obliged to leave him with only a few words. I told him I would see him again & I will. Where I stopped the street was very narrow and so crowded that there was barely room to allow of two marching through & my stopping caused all of the column in the rear to wait & the surly Captain ordered me forward. I intend to get a pass & go to the city & hunt him up as I want to see him & apologize for leaving him so abruptly. I would not have done so if not forced to.

Your buying a horse and paying $160 for him and having him killed so soon is rather rough but such things will happen & I trust it is all for the best. In regard to investing my money, I will send some more soon & you may invest it in which way you think best. If I were up there, I could find a way to invest it. As it is, I am not posted & do not know where to invest it so it will pay. Use your own judgement & I will be satisfied & will pay you for your trouble & be very much obliged in the bargain.

I have written a long letter & hoping to hear from you soon, will close. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, –Geo. O. Wheeler

5th Iowa Cavalry, Dakota War of 1862

1862: George W. Douins to Morris Thomas Denny

June 13, 2023 Griff Leave a comment

The following letter was written by George W. Douins (1834-1863) who served as a private in Co. B, Brackett’s Battalion, Minnesota Cavalry. This company was organized at Fort Snelling, Minnesota, and ordered to Benton Barracks, Missouri in November 1861 where they were attached to Curtis Horse, an independent regiment of cavalry, which was later designated the 5th Iowa Cavalry. Co B was redesignated Co I at the time they were transferred to Fort Henry (Tennessee) in February 1862. They served unassigned in Tennessee most of the remainder of 1862, repairing roads and erecting telegraph lines (escorts). This particular letter was datelined from Fort Heiman across the border in Kentucky.

I could not find an image of George but here is one of Joseph S. Rich of Co. D, 5th Iowa Cavalry
(Iowa Civil War Images)

George Douins was the son of John Douins (1805-1841 and Rebecca Dow (1805-1870) of Clark county, Indiana. He was married to Nancy S. Denny (1835-1869), the daughter of Morris Thomas Denny (1811-1896) and Martha Trowbridge (1822-1847) of Washington county, Indiana. They were married in May 1856 and moved to Des Moines county, Iowa, where their first child Lucinda was born in March 1858. The couple then moved to Belle Plains, Scott county, Minnesota, where their second child Jennie was born in September 1861. Just after Jennie’s birth, George enlisted in the service but he would never see his home again.

George’s service record can be found under Co. I, 5th Iowa Cavalry and his pension card under Co. D, 1st Mississippi Marine Brigade Cavalry—the unit he was serving in when he died of pneumonia as a sergeant at Little Rock, Arkansas, on 18 December 1863. After her husband’s death, Nancy took the children back to Indiana where she died in Salem in 1869, leaving her children to be raised by relatives in Clark county, Indiana.

In his letter, George enquires of Nancy’s brother, Sgt. Gilbert Harvey Denny (1833-1865) who served in Co. G, 18th Indiana Infantry, who also died of disease in March 1865.

George’s letter also mentions having received a letter from his wife stating that “the Indians were so bad that she had to leave home” and return to Indiana. This of course refers to the Dakota War of 1862 and though no attacks took place in Scott county, it was a location through which travelers, refugees, supply trains, and soldiers passed on their way to or from the prairies, and a general sense of fear and excitement prevailed.

Transcription

*Addressed to Morris T. Denny, Kossuth, Washington county, Indiana*

Fort Heiman [Kentucky]
September 24, [1862]

Dear Father,

I take this opportunity of writing you a few lines to let you know that I am well at present and hope these few lines will find you the same. I never had better health in my life.

I had a letter from Nancy the other day. She wrote the Indians was so bad that she had to leave home. She wrote that she was going to start to Indiana that evening and I have not heard from her since.

We have been here about a month. I don’t know whether we will stay here this winter or not. If we do, I will try to get a furlough and come up there. I have been riding a good deal this summer. I have been all over Tennessee and part of Mississippi State and now in Kentucky. I want you to write and let me know how Gilbert is and where he is and whether he was well or not. I wrote George Leach a letter some time ago. Tell George that if he knowed how well that soldiers liked to hear from his friends, he would be a little prompter to write.

If Nancy comes there, tell her that I will send her some more money when I get my pay. So no more at present—only I remain your son until death. — George Downs

5th Iowa Cavalry, Battle of Nashville, General Hood

1865: Sanford Tuttle Bliss to Kent Jarvis

August 13, 2022 Griff Leave a comment

*I could not find an image of Sanford but here is one of Sergt. Finley M. Smock of the 5th Iowa Cavalry* *(Michael Huston Collection)*

This letter was written by Sanford Tuttle Bliss (1839-1897) of Dubuque, Iowa. Sanford enlisted on 6 September as a private in Co. E, 5th Iowa Cavalry, and was promoted quickly to sergeant. He reenlisted as a veteran in January 1864 and mustered out with the regiment at Nashville on 11 August 1865.

Sanford was born in Hartwick, Otsego county, New York, the son of Jesse and Fanny (Tuttle) Bliss. Sanford’s older brother, Norman Ingles Bliss (1814-1882) became a mormon, lived at Navoo, Illinois, for a time and traveled with Brigham Young’s party to Utah in 1848.

Prior to the Civil War, Sanford had been a student at the Hartwick Theological and Classical Seminary.

Transcription

Camp near Nashville [Tennessee]
January 4th 1865

Dear Nephew,

Your last very interesting epistle has remained some time unanswered for the simple reason that I haven’t had time to write. Old Hood wished to take his Christmas dinner in Nashville but Thomas very unreasonably objected and to settle the difficulty many valuable lives were lost and much property destroyed in Tennessee. Three weeks ago our army moved out and gave the Rebs battle. Whipped them bad & have had a running fight of it ever since, Old Hood is glad to get across the Tennessee [River], I guess as he has from the last account from the front, with part of his army having lost nearly all his artillery & wagon train and many of his men although he had the largest & best part of the reel army in the West.

We were on the right wing & fought their cavalry & artillery for a week when I had an attack of fever & ague & had to go to the hospital. The weather was perfectly awful—raining continually & cold some of the time. Our clothes and blankets would get wet through and then freeze on us.

I went to the hospital at Spring Hill, staid a short time till I got a little better, and then went to a Lady’s house as safe guard to keep the soldiers from ribbing and insulting her and her two lovely daughters. I saved considerable of their property and consequently walked into the affections of the whole family and had a most agreeable time for two weeks. On leaving, received a pressing invitation to make my home there if I ever got sick or wanted a furlough.

I am staying with the dismounted part of the regiment. As soon as we get horses, shall join the regiment near Pulaski.

You seem to be having pleasant times at the old sem[inary] this winter but you must not neglect your studies too much for pleasure, if there are ever so many pretty girls there.

How did you spend the holidays? Sleigh riding with the Miss Davidson any? She used to be a nice little girl. I would liked to have been in Old Otsego about that time to [have] got a good Christmas dinner of roast turkey, mince pies, &c. &c. I didn’t enjoy my furlough last winter much for I was sick all the time. But if I was there now, I think I could do a little better.

Dinner is ready and I must close. Write soon. You have plenty of time. Yours &c. — S. T. Bliss