The following letter was written by George H. Welty (1833-1917) who enlisted in Co. B, 116th Illinois Infantry, serving as wagoner until he was mustered out in June 1865.

His obituary claims that he was married to Anna Enterline in 1858 and came to Illinois from York county, Pennsylvania, settling on a farm near Oreana. He served from August 1862 to June 1865 and was with Sherman’s army on his march to the sea. After the war he came to Decatur but soon afterward moved again to the farm and in 1874 moved back to Decatur.

Welty wrote this letter from winter quarters at Larkinsville, Alabama. They arrived there on 9 January 1864 after an exhausting string of brutal campaigns and rail movements. They remained stationed there to guard the strategic Memphis and Charleston Railroad until May 1864, when they joined the Atlanta Campaign.

[Note: This letter is from the personal collection of Evan Hammon and was made available for transcription and publication by express consent.]

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

Larkinsville, Alabama
January 17th 1864

Dear Friends, Mr. & Mrs. Sifleet,

I take my pen this afternoon to answer your kind and welcome letter which I received about a week ago but I have been busy putting up my house so I have neglected writing. These few lines leave me enjoying good health and I hope they may find you all enjoying the same blessing.

We have got up good, comfortable quarters. We built them out of logs and covered them with tent covers and we have built stone fireplaces in them. They are large enough for 4 or 6 in each mess. There ain’t only four in my mess. It makes me think of home to live in such comfortable quarters. It isn’t like being out on the ground in all kinds of weather and perhaps on scant rations. We have plenty now of meat and hardtack, sugar and coffee. Have have no cause to grumble at that for it is far better than nothing.

I think we will be able to stay here till there is a move made in the spring and the new call quit down here but I hope this awful war will come to a close without any more hard fighting. I think this awful war is nearly played out. I think that one more general move made on them will use them up. If there is another move made, I expect that the Vicksburg Gophers ¹ will be there for Sherman can’t go to battle without his Old Fighting 15th Corps.

I didn’t get a chance to see Job when we were down to Chattanooga for as soon as we got there, the army was put inn motion and then there wasn’t any time for visiting. And when we came back, the 4th Corps hadn’t got back from Knoxville. I wrote to Job today. I haven’t heard from him since poor James died.

I will have to stop writing and put on supper for I am mess cook now. So goodbye for this time. With my best respects to you all, from George

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¹ The 116th Illinois was called upon to digging sap-works, trenches and protective earthworks during the siege of Vicksburg that contemporaries and fellow troops likened their relentless tunneling to gophers.