Collections

Serving in the 28th Pennsylvania Infantry and then in the 147th, Josiah King witnessed some of the most memorable events of the war, including Gettysburg, Atlanta, and the March to the Sea. His letters home contain observations and asides, particularly on the Presidential election of 1864, as well as itemized lists of goods to be sent from home.

Josiah Edmond King served in two of the most active and "efficient" regiments from the state of Pennsylvania, although his first letters home contain few details about combat. Like many soldiers, he was preoccupied with the rigors of marches and camp life, and with requests for funds and packages of food and other essentials. His itemized lists for goods to be forwarded from home are excellent and unusually specific.

Beginning in July, 1863, the quality of King's correspondence noticeably improves, and his letters become increasingly detailed and peppered with keen observations. King witnessed some of the most memorable events of the war, including Gettysburg, Atlanta, and the March to the Sea, and although his letters provide little actual description of the engagements, they are full of thought-provoking -- and occasionally poignant -- asides. King was a particularly interesting, staunchly Republican commentator on the Presidential election of 1864, and thereafter it appears that his political leanings veered ever more into the Radical camp. An interesting motif in his letters is King's experimentation with handwriting styles, doubtless brought about by his heavy load of paperwork for the Army.

Three of the letters in the collection were written by Dr. Richard C. Halsey, surgeon with the 142nd Pennsylvania between August 4, 1862, to March 29, 1863. His two letters from before, during, and after the Battle of Fredericksburg are exceptional from the medical view. Halsey's casual style exhibits an interesting blend of sincere patriotism and cynicism. His letter of March 10, 1863 in which he reports excellent health and no plans to be home for some time to come, is interesting in light of the fact that he was discharged nineteen days later.

The Lyman Gardner papers contain the Civil War correspondence of Mr. Gardner, who served in the 26th Ohio Infantry Regiment, and a later account book which documents his work in the Ohio lumber industry.

The bulk of Lyman Gardner's collection consists of a series of letters to his parents in Ohio, including two letters to his brother and sister. The collection also contains a few brief articles announcing births, deaths, and marriages in the Gardner family. A ledger of his personal accounts and of his lumber business can be found in this collection as well.

Gardner's letters center around food, clothing, and money. He does not possess much understanding of why he is participating in the war. He views his service as a dutiful obligation, though he neither explains why he is dedicated to the Union, nor what he believes the Union cause to be. Gardner's letters reveal a strong religious background.

Gardner's letters serve as an account for his action in the Atlanta Campaign, and his regiment's assignments in Chattanooga, Tenn., Huntsville, Ala., Nashville, Tenn., New Orleans, La., and Irwin, Tex. He goes into some detail of his skirmishes, but the majority of his letters are filled with requests for supplies and money. Overall, Gardner seems to enjoy his involvement in the army and does not express a particularly strong desire to return from it.

Membership applications containing biographical data and summary of military record; index to membership applications; membership register; minutes, 1901-1927; financial records, 1885-1931; library records; and twenty-six reminiscences and papers of Union veterans.

The Nathan D. and Thomas Robinson diaries contain entries relating to the Civil War service of two brothers from Ohio, in the 104th and 143rd Ohio Infantry.

The Nathan D. and Thomas Robinson diaries consist of five Civil War diaries; four kept by Nathan D. Robinson, and one written by his brother Thomas. Nathan's diaries cover 1862-1870, while Thomas' volume spans January-May and September-December of 1864.

Thomas' 49-page diary documents his life on a farm near Hanover, Ohio, before and after his military service, as well as three weeks of his time with the National Guard unit he joined, which was incorporated into the 143rd Ohio Infantry. Between January and late April, in daily entries, he described farm work (including harvesting buckwheat and making cider), weather, routine activities, and his efforts to resist alcohol. From May 2-22, he briefly documented his military service, mentioning drilling, traveling by train, and exchanging weapons, though not in much detail. Thomas resumed writing in the diary on September 17, 1864, and added daily entries until the end of the year. These focus primarily on his health, duties, finances, and the weather. On September 27, he wrote that he had contributed $10 to a fund to hire volunteers to take the places of drafted men in the war. In the back of the diary are several pages of financial accounts.

Nathan D. Robinson's first diary spans August 15, 1862-January 14, 1863 and contains approximately 90 pages of entries. In it, he described his arrival at Camp Massillon in Ohio, movement around Kentucky, camp life, duties, and incidents of note, such as the arrival of "Contraband" (escaped slaves), who warned the soldiers of surrounding Confederates. On October 6, 1862, Robinson wrote down detailed instructions on how perform picket duty, including whom to approach and at what distance.

The second volume, covering January 1-November 18, 1864, mainly contains extremely terse descriptions of movements and military actions. In its approximately 100 pages, Robinson gave brief descriptions of such events as the Battle of Resaca (May 13-15, 1864), and the destruction of railroad tracks in Macon, Georgia, during the Atlanta Campaign (August 30, 1864). He also provided ongoing details about the weather and his regiment's casualties.

The next diary, spanning January 1-June 28, 1865, contains 100 pages and comprises lengthier entries. Topics include the health and diagnosis of typhoid fever of Nathan's brother Thomas (January 24, 1865), the capture of an Armstrong Gun "said to be presented to Jef Davise [sic] by the Queen of England" (February 13, 1865), and conflicting rumors about the Lincoln assassination (April 17-19, 1865). On April 22, 1865, Robinson learned that Thomas had died eight days before, and he subsequently drew a mourning curtain over the top and sides of his entries through April 26. In his writings of April 24 and 28, he mentioned several visits to the "Deaf, Dumb and Blind Asylum," which he found "entertaining" and "interesting."

The fourth volume, of approximately 100 pages, sporadically filled in, contains only occasional entries between 1866 and 1870. It also consists of miscellaneous financial notes, two messages from women, and the lyrics to the song "When Sherman Marched Down to the Sea." A single receipt is laid into the volume.

The typescript of William Putney's history of Battery I, 2nd Illinois Artillery Regiment, bound and stamped in gold with the title, was presented to the captain of the battery, Charles M. Barnett, as a Christmas gift in 1897. Putney was only the final editor and compiler of the history, which was based on the recollections, letters, and diaries of a number of men in the regiment, with snippets culled from sources as diverse as Sherman's memoirs, reminiscences from soldiers in other regiments, and popular histories.

The typescript of William Putney's history of Battery I, 2nd Illinois Artillery Regiment, bound and stamped in gold with the title, was presented to the captain of the battery, Charles M. Barnett, as a Christmas gift in 1897. Putney was only the final editor and compiler of the history, which was based on the recollections, letters, and diaries of a number of men in the regiment, with snippets culled from sources as diverse as Sherman's memoirs, reminiscences from soldiers in other regiments, and popular histories. The full, and rather complex history of authorship of the volume is discussed in his preface.

In many ways, Putney's narrative is characteristic of the genre of post-war reminiscences, in its selectivity and its tendency to gloss over or reimagine certain events. It is not, however, as thoroughly sanitized as many memoirs, and presents some of the unpleasantries of military service and the war with a surprising freshness. Inclined toward a literary style, Putney balances small, humorous anecdotes, mostly personal in nature, with larger-scale perspectives on the campaigns and conflicts in which the Battery was embroiled. The intrusion of narratives drawn from high ranking officers (such as Gen. Sherman) provides some insight into the average soldier's post-war opinions on what was significant about their experience, but it is the recollections of the minutiae of service, the practical jokes played by soldiers, their everyday coping, that makes Putney's memoir so valuable.

The History of Battery I includes a roster of the battery, with brief notes on the post-war activities of each member. The manuscript maps are probably copies of some printed works rather than recreations from memory. They depict 1) Route of Battery I from 1862 to 1865; 2) military and naval operations about Island No. 10; 3) the last day of the battle of Chickamauga and the route of Battery I; 4) Chattanooga Campaign; 5) the Atlanta Campaign.

Willia Kossak served on the staffs of Generals Grant and Sherman during the Civil War, rising to the position of Chief Engineer of the 17th Army Corps during Sherman's campaigns in Georgia. His journals cover the Vicksburg and Atlanta Campaigns with Sherman, including progress reports, accounts, and personal observations and opinions. The first journal also contains lists of private citizens in Vicksburg evicted to make way for military defense works, and a map showing fortifications in the city. The second volume includes lists of supplies for troops, pencils sketches of the area around Ackworth, Ga., and Nenesaw Mountain, and a section titled "Alphabetical list of Pontoncers, Ponton Train, Dept. of the Tennessee."

William Kossak's two journals cover only a portion of his Civil War service as an engineer in the command of William Tecumseh Sherman, but they include important information on two campaigns during which the engineers -- and Kossak in particular -- made key contributions.

Journal, June 16, 1863-May 3, 1864

During the Vicksburg Campaign, Kossak was responsible for various projects in Vicksburg and the surrounding countryside in Mississippi. His primary concern was with lines of defence, although he reported progress on the Vicksburg city hospital and on officers' headquarters. He was also involved in rationing whiskey and other liquor to the troops. Kossak's journal often takes on the mantle of a diary when he embellished cut-and-dried progress reports with his personal observations and opinions on subjects ranging from contrabands and countersigns to desertion (see esp. Feb 14, 1864), the weather, prices, pontoon-trains, and Generals Grant, McPherson, and others. In the margin, he kept an account book of sorts, showing cash spent.

Of special interest are lists of private citizens in Vicksburg evicted to make way for military defence works, and a note on March 18, 1864 that states tersely: "16th anniversary of the Revolution in Prussia (Berlin). God Bless the Dead!" Laid in the volume is a map showing fortifications in the city.

Journal, June 16, 1864-May 30, 1865

This second volume of Kossak's journal concerns the Atlanta Campaign and its aftermath, a period during which Kossak was chief engineer of the 17th Army Corps. Stylistically, the reports in this volume echo those of the first. Kossak wrote from James B. McPherson's headquarters until that General's death before Atlanta in July, 1864, after which he was assigned to Sherman's headquarters.

Kossak provides an engineer's perspective on several of the major battles of the Atlanta Campaign, particularly of the Battle of Atlanta itself, and he includes several excellent lists of supplies distributed to troops. Pencil-sketch maps of the area around Ackworth, Ga., appear on pages 3, 5, and 7, and of Kenesaw Mountain on pp. 119-123. At the back of this journal is a section entitled: "Alphabetical list of Pontoncers, Ponton Train, Dept. of the Tennessee."

The William L. Curry papers provide excellent documentation of a Union cavalry officer's life in the western theater of the Civil War, as well as some description of being a prisoner of war.

The William L. Curry papers provide excellent documentation of a cavalry officer's life in the western theater of the Civil War. Educated, highly motivated, and occupied with everything from active campaigning to the stultification of awaiting exchange as a prisoner of war, Will Curry's letters evoke the varied emotions felt by many soldiers serving in a conflict that seemed to have demoralized everyone who came in contact. For over three years, Curry fought off his longing for home and family and his repulsion at the degrading influence of the war on soldiers, and remained steadfast in his determination to do his service and see his enlistment through to the end.

While there are comparatively few letters describing campaigns or battles, the collection provides particularly good insight into the non-combatant experience of war -- training, learning to forage, performing scout and guard duty, and idling away in a parole camp. A few scattered letters suggest the depth of feeling cavalry men could hold for their horses, particularly, in Curry's case, his old horse, Billy. Equally valuable are the letters received by Mattie Robinson (later Mrs. Curry) from women friends, describing the home front, local politics, and life during war time, and from friends and relatives in the military service. The overall impression is one of a very tightly knit community, that zealously maintained ties even while separated by the exigencies of war or aging. There are two particularly fine letters discussing battles during the Atlanta Campaign, one written in the flush of "victory" describing Kilpatrick's raid to Jonesboro (1864 August 23) -- although the modern assessment is that the raid failed to accomplish its object -- and another, sadly incomplete, describing the battle of Lovejoy Station.

The collection includes five pocket-sized journals, four of which provide a nearly unbroken record of Curry's service in the 1st Ohio Cavalry. Although the journal entries are very short, the continuity of the documentation constitutes an important record of the activities of the regiment. There is a gap in the sequence of journals, however, from December 31, 1862-March 18, 1863, when Curry was a paroled prisoner of war at Camp Chase in Columbus, Ohio.

Memorandum book and journal, 1857-1858

Journal, 1862 January 1-December 31

Journal, 1862 October 2 (very sparse entries)

Journal, 1863 March 18-1864 March 1 (much smearing of pencil throughout, some illegible)

Journal, 1864 March 1-December 30

The entries in Journal 4 are longer and more informative than in the other journals, particularly for the Chickamauga Campaign. Journal 4 includes an excellent, though still somewhat brief, account of the battle itself and the withdrawal to Chattanooga.

Will Curry's letters are supplemented by a small number of letters from friends and relatives in other Ohio regiments, including his brother Ott Curry and Stephen B. Cone (both in Co. A, 121st Ohio Infantry), Samuel H. Ruehlen and Will Erwin (Co. K, 1st Ohio Cavalry), James Doig Bain (Co. E, 30th Ohio Infantry), David G. Robinson (Co. E, 86th Ohio Infantry); George P. Robinson (Co. D, 40th Ohio Infantry), Oratio McCullough (Co. K, 136th Ohio Infantry -- 100 days), and Frank W. Post (unidentified regiment).

After the war, Curry was active in veterans' organizations and wrote several historical sketches of his regiment and the campaigns in which they participated. Although the Clements does not have any of these histories in its holdings, a partial list is provided below for reference.

A miscellaneous collection of letters and a volume of telegrams, by or relating to William Tecumseh Sherman, collected by Clinton H. Haskell.

The William Tecumseh Sherman collection consists of 51 letters written by or relating to Sherman, 1813 to 1888 (bulk 1861-1882), and a volume of outgoing telegrams that he wrote, 1882-1884. The collector Clinton H. Haskell gathered these materials.

The Correspondence and Documents series is a miscellaneous collection of letters and documents, primarily written by Sherman to various correspondents. The earliest letters in the collection include one from Sherman's father Charles about a desired appointment as collector of internal revenue (August 24, 1813), and several by Sherman concerning several aspects of his early career in the west. Sherman wrote 13 letters in the collection during his Civil War service, and they span 1861 to 1865, with 1864 covered in the greatest depth (5 letters). In a letter of January 20, 1863, he wrote about plans for the capture of Vicksburg and called it "a great if not the greatest task yet undertaken in this war." In other letters, he recommended the strengthening of Fort Donelson (March 27, 1864), discussed troop positions at the beginning of the Atlanta Campaign (May 5, 1864), invited Colonel Absalom Markland and his wife to a social gathering in Savannah (January 3, 1865), and planned to move on Raleigh, North Carolina, after the capture of Richmond, Virginia (April 3, 1865). Also included is a set of special field orders, no. 20, dated February 18, 1864, which call for troop movements after Vicksburg and specify that "Buildings must not be burned on the return march…unless they are used as a cover to the enemy, from which to fire at our men." Special field orders no. 22 are also present (February 28, 1864).

The collection also includes several personal letters written during the Civil War period. In one of these, dated September 23, 1864, Sherman wrote to his foster father, Thomas Ewing, discussing money raised by his hometown of Lancaster, Ohio, to buy him a new horse. In it, he also noted that three of his horses had died during the war, with one shot out from under him, and commented on the training, care, and gaits of war horses. He wrote to his wife Ellen, describing souvenirs that he had sent home to her (April 6, 1865). Included are several letters concerning, but not addressed to, Sherman. In one, General Ormsby MacKnight Mitchel complains about Sherman's division of Mitchel's forces and the assignment of different leadership to part of the division (October 21, 1861).

The postwar letters in the collection mainly focus on Sherman's career as the commanding general of the United States Army. They pertain to such matters as personnel and appointments, the hiring of Edmund Palmer to sketch Native Americans on the plains (July 11, 1875), Civil War memorials (May 16, 1878), the construction of railroads (September 1, 1882), and other topics. Also present is an essay dated January 16, 1888, by William C. Shaw, entitled "What I Saw on Sherman's March to the Sea," in which he described participation in the campaign, including foraging, the destruction of railroad tracks in Georgia, and the slaves and slave quarters he encountered.

The Telegram Book contains 28 telegrams sent and received by Sherman in his official capacity as commanding general of the United States Army. The telegrams span June 19, 1882, to April 7, 1884. Many of the items concern routine matters of scheduling or personnel, but a few refer to larger issues. On April 19, 1883, Sherman wrote a telegram to General John Schofield, concerning the joint operations of the U.S. and Mexican troops in pursuit of "hostile Apaches depredating on both sides of the national border." Several telegrams also discuss governmental actions toward the Creek Indians (April 9, 1883; May 26, 1883).