Browse All Letters (449 total)

Douglas Hospital May 18. 64 My Dear Wife: I rec'd a telegram from Mr Forrer yesterday in which your attention of coming over was announced. I immediately answered forbidding it. If I were dangerously, or even seriously wounded, and likely to be in hospital here a long time I should be glad to have you with me and expect you to come. As my wound is…

[May 16th 164] #May 16th 1864# U.S. Sanitary Commission Douglas Hospital May 16 64 My Dear Wife; I sent a telegram to you this morning informing you that I had arrived here wounded, but as my telegram was not prepaid it may not have gone thro'. one sent by Capt Anderson having been returned to him for that cause. My wound is not a dangerous one,…

Camp between Dodd's Tavern + Spottsylvania CH. May 13. 64 My Dear Wife: A mail leaves camp to-day + I avail myself of the opportunity of telling you how I was + how I have been getting along. In the first place, then, I have escaped untouched so far, altho eight officers out of seventeen have been killed or wounded and one half of my men are…

[1864] May 13th. 64 My Dear Wife: I wrote you this morning telling you how I was and what kind of a time I had had. A couple of hours afterwards the rebs began throwing shells at troops moving in our rear and also some in a piece of woods in our front. The fire was very hot and while I was hurrying up the men who were throwing up entrenchments a…

In the Wilderness May 7th 4 PM My Dear Wife: Here I am out in the front - the frontier part of the army. We came out to *shove* the enemy, only about *one* thousand strong - but we have not found many of them. There are three or four guns not far from us which fire shells over us and hit us every once in a while, but we have had few casualties. I…

Camp Near Culpeper Va. May 3. 1864 My dear, dear wife: Your sweet letter of the 26th has reached me here this afternoon, and you may be well assumed that it was a great comfort to me. I wrote you the day before yesterday, but am not certain that the letter was sent away from the army. This I shall send by a private hand and you may get it before…

Camp near Brandy Station May 1. 64 My Dear Wife:Your letter of the 24th reached me at our camp near Bealston. We left our camp yesterday morning at 8 o'clock and marched to near Bealston. The day was warm, but the march was quite pleasant, and as as I could take my own time, the men were not much tired. The march however was not a very hard one. We…

Hon. P.M. General: Washington, D.C. -- On the 15th day of April 1864 I mailed at Nokesville, a station on the O. and Alexandria RR, a letter containing a $50 green back. The letter was addressed as follows: Mrs. A.F. Bruen, Dayton Ohio Care of S. Forrer This letter never reached its destination. If it should have miscarried and turned up in the…

Nokesville April 27. 64 My Dear Wife: We rec'd our orders to move up to Catlett's as soon as we are relieved, this evening. We shall probably remain there a day or two and then go on to Rappahannock Station, and then in a few days, move on to Culpepper, and then move on when and whither Gen. Grant may direct. We shall hardly begin the movement for…

Nokesville Va. April 26 64 My Dear Daughter: I am going to write you another letter today; it will perhaps be a long time before I can write you again, and it may be that this will be the last you shall even receive from me. This might, indeed, be said of every letter one writes, but we do not often write so strong a probability of soon being in…