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Charles M. Barnett's Civil War journal documents important events in southeastern Tennessee between August and October, 1863, including the Tullahoma Campaign, the retreat from Chickamauga, and parts of the Chattanooga Campaign.

Charles M. Barnett's journal is contained in a single volume, beginning May 1, 1863. The entries for 1864 are written in the front part of the same volume, with corrections as to day and date noted occasionally. The journal contains particularly useful information on the signal events in southeastern Tennessee between August and October, 1863, including the Tullahoma Campaign, the retreat from Chickamauga, and parts of the Chattanooga Campaign, including the opening of the Cracker Line and the Wauhatchie Night Attack.

The Heinrich Spaeth papers contain letters, documents, photographs, and a diary, most of which relates to Spaeth's service with the 9th Ohio Volunteer Infantry, a German-American regiment that fought in the Civil War.

The Heinrich Spaeth papers contain 82 items: 33 letters, 29 photographs, 13 pieces of ephemera, 3 legal documents, 3 newspaper clippings, and a diary. The materials span 1862 to 1949, with the bulk of items covering the period between 1910 and 1915.

The Correspondence and Documents series contains letters to and from Spaeth, spanning 1871-1918. Though written many years after the Civil War, most of these relate to the experiences of the 9th Ohio Volunteer Infantry, particularly at the Battle of Chickamauga. Several men who served in Van Derveer's Brigade wrote letters to Spaeth with accounts of the closing hours of the engagement. They attempted to refute the claims of Archibald Gracie, who wrote in his book The Truth about Chickamauga that the soldiers under General Ferdinand Van Derveer had been routed and driven off Snodgrass Hill on the evening of September 20, 1863. The soldiers from the 9th Ohio Infantry who provided these accounts were George A. Schneider (May 24, 1912), C.W.H. Luebbert (June 7, 1912), Ferdinand Zimmerer (June 17, 1912), Alvin Arand (June 18, 1912), and Herman Gerbhardt (June 20, 1912). Though written almost 50 years after the battle took place, the letters provide many details in support of their claims. Also included is an undated letter from Spaeth to Gracie, which contradicts Gracie's claims and states, "the third and last stand on Snodgrass Hill was as perfect as any man could or would ask." In the letter, Spaeth also discussed the official and revised casualty figures for the engagement.

Additional letters from the same period relate to controversy over Civil War monuments in Chattanooga, Tennessee, commemorating actions during the Battle of Missionary Ridge. On November 26, 1910, Colonel Judson W. Bishop of the 2nd Minnesota Volunteer Infantry wrote to Spaeth, complaining of efforts "persistently made during the past fifteen years by the Turchin's Brigade association to appropriate for [General John B.] Turchin" ground allegedly captured by Van Derveer's Brigade at Missionary Ridge on November 25, 1863. Bishop called the claims for Turchin "preposterous." Spaeth seconded the opinion in a letter to Captain Philip Rothenbush of the 35th Ohio Infantry, in which he called the actions "contemptble [sic]." An additional letter, dated July 5, 1915, also further addresses the issue of monuments in Chattanooga.

The Diary series contains Spaeth's diary, kept during his service with the 9th Ohio Infantry. The volume was written entirely in German Kurrentschrift or old German blackletter handwriting; it describes his wartime experiences.

The Photographs series contains 29 graphic items, most of which are undated and unlabeled, spanning ca. 1860s-1949. The photographs are in a variety of formats and depict many members of the Spaeth family, including Heinrich Spaeth at various stages of life. One photograph shows a parade float advertising Spaeth's business with the sign, "Spaeth's Big Free China and Stove Show," and another shows Heinrich Spaeth in front of a home in Aurora, Indiana.

Ephemera series contains a roster for the 35th Ohio Volunteer Infantry (O.V.I.) Association and the Loyal Legion of the United States, newspaper clippings, German money, and a few miscellaneous items.

This collection of letters by Civil War surgeon and medical inspector Henry H. Seys to his wife, Harriet, provide animated accounts of conversations in camp, fatiguing marches, and day-to-day military activities - particularly during the Tullahoma, Chickamauga, and Chattanooga Campaigns

Henry Seys' letters are the product of a well educated man: sprinkled with Latin and French phrases, and quotations from poetry, they are written in a lively and engaging style. The strength of the collection lies in Seys' animated accounts of conversations in camp, fatiguing marches, and of day-to-day life during the heat of the critical Tennessee campaigns of 1863. Something of an artist, he left one map of the Tullahoma Campaign, but unfortunately, his pencil sketches of army life and personnel -- done for the benefit of his children -- have been lost.

Seys' surviving letters cluster around the Tullahoma, Chickamauga, and Chattanooga Campaigns. While not a combatant, per se, he records the eerie sensation of living with the possibility, if not probability, of imminent death. As a member of Rosecrans' staff, he became intimate with the general, and his letters provide some penetrating personal glimpses into that man's character and his subordinates' feelings about him. In a different vein, Seys' devotion to his horse, "Dr.," gives a sense of the affection that some soldiers developed for their animal friends during the stress of war. Finally, as might be expected, the collection includes information on medical aspects of the war. Seys treated not only soldiers, but his family (by mail); one letter recommends chloroform to aid his mother-in-law's asthma.

James Verity's journal is a post-Civil War transcript of his diary, probably completed within a few years of the end of the war. The journal covers his service in the 22nd and 18th Ohio Infantry Regiments. Verity pays particular attention to military aspects of the War and provides a detailed account of his wounding at the Battle of Chickamauga.

Verity's journal is a post-war transcript of his diary, probably completed within a few years of the end of the war. The introductory section of the journal covers his service in the 22nd Ohio, a three months' regiment, while it was stationed along the Ohio River and in western West Virginia. However it is his second tour of duty, with the 18th Ohio, that forms the core of the journal, and this part of the journal appears to be an accurate transcript of the diary that he kept in the field. Verity was an avid soldier, staunchly, unquestioningly pro-Union. Verity is not one to complain or to focus on the hardships of a soldier's life. Instead, his journal is an excellent, straightforward account of his service in the Union army, with particular attention to strictly military aspects.

The journal provides excellent accounts of several skirmishes and battles, most notably the attack at Huntsville and the Battle of Limestone Bridge, Ala., the three-day Battle of Murfreesboro and the skirmishes leading up to it, and the Chickamauga Campaign. The description of his wounding at the Battle of Chickamauga is uncommonly detailed and gruesome, and the account of his efforts to obtain medical assistance in a dazed state and unrecognizable condition is moving despite his calm prose.

Also included with the journal is an 1874 commission as Lieutenant in a militia company, and a flier for the fifth annual reunion (1895) of the veterans of Co. G of the 18th Ohio.

This collection is made up of a diary, 18 letters, 13 receipts, and other materials relating to John Egan Rapp during and after his service in Swett's Battery of the Mississippi Light Artillery. His diary spans just over year of his service in the Confederate Army and the bulk of the remainder of the collection pertains to his postwar life in Conyers and Atlanta, Georgia.

This John Egan Rapp collection is made up of a diary; 18 letters and a telegram; a group of receipts, a recipe, three newspaper clippings, two short lists of genealogical material, three empty envelopes, an advertising flyer, three blank voter oath forms; and a published history of the Battle of Chickamauga. These materials pertain to Rapp's life during and after his service in Swett's Battery of the Mississippi Light Artillery. His diary spans just over year of his service in the Confederate Army and the bulk of the remainder of the collection pertains to his postwar life in Conyers and Atlanta, Georgia.

Diary. John Egan Rapp kept his 96-page pocket diary between October 2, 1862, and November 23, 1863, during his service in Swett's Battery, Mississippi Light Artillery. He wrote in pencil, which has since become smudged and is at times so faded that it is difficult to read. At least one page of the diary has been torn out. Rapp routinely recorded where his unit camped each night, the number of miles they marched each day, rations issued, and enemy locations. He wrote some of his longest entries when his artillery unit was engaged in the battles of Murfreesboro (December 1862 and January 1863) and Chickamauga (September 19-25, 1863). He described harsh living conditions near Tazewell, Tennessee in October 1862, "we have had but half rations for the last week and tonight none is to be had." A week later, they camped in the woods near Knoxville in cold weather with no tents, with some men lacking shoes or adequate clothing. This contrasts with Christmas of 1862 when they were at College Grove, Tennessee, "General Liddell has prepared a barbecue for the Brigade--is expected to be a brilliant affair--number of ladies are expected and every preparations are made to receive them." Wet and weary after five days and nights "on the field" at the battle of Mufreesboro, he wrote, "our horses have not had anything to eat in thirty-six hours and have traveled 26 miles since midnight" (January 4, 1863). He mentioned seeing Gen. Joe E. Johnson reviewing the troops (December 10, 1862), and Jefferson Davis riding along the line (October 11, 1863). Although "elected" to become Lieutenant after the death of the serving officer, he wrote, "But declined." (October 11, 1863). On page 44 of the diary (December 22, 1863), Rapp wrote a farewell letter to one of his sisters (probably Elizabeth, Mrs. Thomas Postlewait) saying that if he died he hoped his diary would make its way to her, and that he owed the "onley few moments of happiness I ever new" to her. Much of the second half of the diary notebook consists of notes, addresses, accounts, etc. -- some refer to amts. of ammunition (Round Shot, Canister, Shell)--under the heading "List--Gun Napolean" are records of type of ammunition used, weight of ammo, distance in yards, and remarks about gun performance.

The collection's Correspondence (18 letters, a telegram, and three loose envelopes) spans April 13, 1864-October 30, 1891. John E. Rapp wrote four of the letters; his sister Elizabeth C. [Rapp] Postlewait (1833-1922) wrote two; his brother-in-law Thomas H. Postlewait (1826/28-1903) wrote two; his sister Emily [Rapp] Hair (1844-1915) wrote one; his cousin Dr. William E. Rapp (1819-1880) sent one; his cousin Enoch Thompson (1808-1898) wrote one; and P. K. Montgomery sent one. Most of the remaining letters are business related.

John E. Rapp wrote the two earliest letters in this collection during the Civil War. On April 13, 1864, he informed his wife that he was awaiting the arrival of his second "Certificate of Disability." About three weeks later, P. K. Montgomery advised Rapp how he could safely cross the Mississippi River at St. Joseph, Louisiana, despite Yankee gunboats, "Crossing is done in Canoes and mostly by Night. The horses have to Swim the River . . . The charges are pretty high as the Boats have to be kept some distance in the Country and hauled in when needed." (May 8, 1864). Dr. William E. Rapp's Reconstruction Era letters from Franklin Parish, Louisiana, described difficulties resulting from the disruption of mail and railroad service. "We have not mails here yet & consequently, scarcely ever get a letter except by the boats in the winter by way of New Orleans. No Rail Road in operation from here to Miss. River & no navigation now, so that we are cut off from the world." (Oct. 11, 1867). He also commented several times on the use of freedmen as a labor force, "We have been trying the planting with the Freed men, but not to any great success . . . Labour is much wanting in this country as not more than half of the Freedmen are of any account & none very valuable." (October 11, 1867). "I am striving as usual to make a fortune with free Negroes, which is rather a slow business . . . I am working, or feeding about 35 hands & their families & sometimes they pay for it, and sometimes they don't." (March 30, 1879).

A November 18, 1881, letter from Emily (Rapp) Hair in Ohio expressed her wish to make peace with her brother, John E. Rapp. She was unaware that he had a wife and family, so the brother and sister must have been out of touch since at least 1863, and it is possible that they quarreled over his decision to fight for the Confederacy. A single letter dated October 10, 1886, written by a railroad official, described a raid that John E. Rapp was ordered to make on thieves poaching fish from railroad property. "...two men who fished the pond every day or night during the past week & that these parties had taken over 500 fish, the most of them they had put in their own private pond for future use." Also of interest is a letter from Rapp's 83-year-old cousin Enoch Thompson, who claimed to have written the first accurate description of the creation of the Universe. "Moses wrote a run and jump darklantern description of the Creation of this world . . . This historic account of the structure of the Universe I have written for your perusal is, in all probability, the first Historic description of the Universe ever written by man in any age of the world and therefore may be considered something new under the Sun, and might serve as a relic in the future." (October 30, 1891).

The Documents, Receipts, Newspaper Clippings, and Other Manuscripts include 13 receipts, a recipe for "copaiba," two short lists of genealogical material, three undated newspaper clippings, one advertising flyer, and three blank Fulton County, Georgia, voter oath forms from 1891.

The receipts include four for quarterly tuition at The Gordon School in Atlanta, Georgia, for Rapp's son Fred in 1891, and one for tuition at the Atlanta Classical School in 1892. Also among the receipts is one dated May 8, 1876, acknowledging that Station House Keeper W. A. Bonnell received "the body of one Henry Redding, alias Wm. Christopher." On the back of the receipt is a penciled note, "$4.00 Guard House fee." This is a reference to a "colored" convict who escaped from the convict camp near Marietta, Georgia, with five other prisoners, March 23-24, 1876. Despite searching an 8-mile radius with dogs, the men made a clean escape, and a $25 reward was offered for each man. Redding was recaptured about six weeks later, and for a time was confined in the Station House mentioned in the receipt of May 8, 1876. As the May 5, 1876 issue of the Atlanta Constitution wryly put it, "Henry Redding, who has been sentenced to the penitentiary for lifetime and 20 years additional, is now a guest at the Hotel de Bonnell." Henry Redding's serious problems with the law began in 1869. He and two other "negroes" were convicted of arson for starting a fire in a jail where they had been detained, in an attempt to escape. They received a sentence of hard labor for life after being convicted of arson. While serving this sentence Redding escaped from a convict camp near Marietta, Georgia, in 1876 and was recaptured six weeks later. Eleven years later, in 1887, he applied to Governor Gordon to reduce his life sentence to 20 years. Based on an earlier court decision that "an attempt to burn a jail in order to effect an escape is not arson," and in consideration of the long term Redding had already served, the Governor ordered him "forthwith discharged from confinement" (The Atlanta Constitution, Aug. 6, 1887, p. 7).

The newspaper clippings include one entitled "The Gallant Charge" about Cheatham's Division at Franklin, Tennessee, one about a reunion of Confederate veterans, and the last an obituary for John E. Rapp's son Joseph W. Rapp

The collection includes a 16-page Confederate imprint entitled GREAT BATTLE OF CHICAMAUGA: A concise History of Events from the Evacuation of Chattanooga to the Defeat of the Enemy (Mobile, 1863) by S. C. Reid of the Mobile Tribune, with John E. Rapp's penciled annotation on the margin of page six correcting the account of Swett's Battery's part in the battle.

This collection is made up of typescripts and copies related to Lewis C. Mead's service in the 22nd Michigan Infantry Regiment, Company I, during the Civil War, including his time as a prisoner of war. He wrote letters home while serving in Kentucky, Tennessee, and Georgia, and during his imprisonment in Libby Prison and other Confederate prisoner-of-war camps.

This volume (177 pages) contains typescripts and copies related to Lewis C. Mead's service in the 22nd Michigan Infantry Regiment, Company I, during the Civil War. The collection includes an introduction by Mead's youngest daughter.

Pages 1-148 largely consist of letters that Mead wrote to his parents and sister during his military service. He described camp life, marches, and scenery in Kentucky, Tennessee, and Georgia (particularly in and around Lexington, where the regiment was stationed for much of the winter of 1862-1863). He mentioned Lexington's African American population, his African-American servant in Nashville (shared with his tent mates), promotions and officer elections within his company and regiment, executions of deserters, and a skirmish with Confederate forces. From October 1863 to November 1864, he wrote from Libby Prison and other Confederate prisoner-of-war camps. Mead discussed his health and his possible release or exchange. By the time he resumed his correspondence in March 1865, he had returned to the regiment. He remained with the unit until at least May 1865.

A small number of letters by other writers include an early order by J. W. Trueman authorizing Mead to raise a company for a regiment of lancers (October 3, 1861) and several written to the Mead family during the war. E. S. Woodman, an acquaintance, and other soldiers provided news about Lewis C. Mead's capture and imprisonment in October 1864. Postwar correspondence includes family letters and a letter from H. S. Dean to Lewis C. Mead regarding a visit to the Chickamauga battlefield by Michigan veterans (October 25, 1893).

The letters are followed by Mead's ca. 1886 reminiscences of his Civil War service, including his experiences during the Battle of Chickamauga and his subsequent imprisonment (pp. 149-164); a speech by Mead about the 22nd Michigan Infantry Regiment's Civil War service (pp. 165-172); and additional reminiscences written after a 50th anniversary visit to the Chickamauga battlefield, Chattanooga, Tennessee, and other locations related to Mead's wartime experiences (pp. 173-177).

The volume contains a photocopy of a newspaper obituary for Lewis C. Mead, published in The Daily Press. Photocopied photographs include Lewis C. Mead around the time of his enlistment and as an older adult; "Johnny Clem," a 12-year-old soldier who was embedded with Mead's regiment (pictured in uniform holding a gun); James Arthur Gallery wearing Mead's dress uniform; and Owen Carlisle Frost in a World War I-era army uniform.

A typescript copy of a letter by William Hayden Smith regarding his experiences with the 1st Michigan Infantry Regiment around the time of Robert E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox is pasted into the volume's back cover (April 9, 1865).

The McCreery and Fenton families were prominent Genesee county, Michigan residents some of whose members distinguished themselves in local and state government, as soldiers during the Civil War, and in the United States diplomatic service. Papers include diaries, correspondence and other material relating to the Civil War, local and state politics and aspects of diplomatic service in Central and South America.

The McCreery-Fenton family collection documents the individual careers of family members who served their community and their nation in a variety of roles. Through correspondence, diaries and other materials, the researcher will find information pertaining to the Civil War, to the history of Flint and Fenton in Genesee County, Michigan, and to facets of America's diplomatic relations with some of the countries of Central and South America. Arranged by name of the three principal family members represented in the collection - William M. Fenton, William B. McCreery, and Fenton R. McCreery, the papers also include series of general family materials, business records, and photographs.

Microfilm of a selection of the papers of the McCreery-Fenton families of Genesee County, Michigan. Civil War correspondence and other papers of William M. Fenton of Fenton and Flint, Michigan, Democratic state senator, and lieutenant governor, later colonel with the 8th Michigan Infantry; correspondence, diaries, and other materials of William B. McCreery of Flint, Michigan, Colonel in the 21st Michigan Infantry during the Civil War; and photographs.

This microfilm edition of a portion of the McCreery-Fenton family collection includes only materials relating to the Civil War service of William M. Fenton and William B. McCreery.

The Washington Irving Snyder collection contains several letters and diaries relating to the Civil War service of Washington Irving Snyder, of the 11th Michigan Infantry, and his brother, James Madison Snyder, of the 25th Michigan Infantry. Also included are several miscellaneous pieces of 19th-century ephemera.

The Washington Irving Snyder papers, 1862-1898, contain 25 items: 2 letters, 2 diaries, 13 offprints from Photographic History of the Civil War, and 8 pieces of ephemera.

James Snyder wrote the first letter on January 23, 1863, to his brother (presumably Irving Snyder), describing the poor health of his regiment (25th Michigan Infantry), his impressions of Bowling Green, Kentucky, and some orders which he found peculiar. The second letter, written by W. Frankish to Snyder's parents, is a notice of Irving Snyder's death and the circumstances surrounding it (October 5, 1863).

Also included in the collection are eight ephemera items: an illustration of Major-General John Logan; a photograph of Borden M. Hicks of the 11th Michigan Infantry; an 1864 dance card for a "May Party" held in Elgin, Illinois; an undated postcard from Havana, Cuba; an order for the 33rd Michigan Infantry during the Spanish-American War, dated August 1, 1898; and a souvenir program for the inauguration of President Benjamin Harrison. The last four items have no direct connection to the Snyder family.

The Diaries series contains two pocket diaries kept by Irving Snyder during his service in the 11th Michigan Infantry. The first contains 194 pages covering January 1-December 31, 1862. In it, Snyder described movements around Kentucky and Tennessee, duties, health, and interesting incidents in very brief, near-daily entries. He did not write between September 15 and November 8. In his March 12 entry, Snyder wrote about a visit to Sulphur Springs near Shepherdsville, Kentucky, where he was treated to good whiskey by a generous saloonkeeper. On April 11, he described his arrest of two soldiers for getting drunk and abusing superior officers while on duty. Throughout the year, he kept meticulous records of letters sent and received.

The 1863 diary contains 30 pages of very short entries, for January-March and September of 1863. In early January, Snyder wrote briefly about the Battle of Stones River (Second Battle of Murfreesboro), noting that he took part in driving the Confederates across the river (January 2, 1863). Entries become somewhat more detailed and frequent beginning September 1, including descriptions of time spent in the woods for several days, of wounds sustained during the Battle of Chickamauga (September 20, 1863), about his transfer to a hospital, and about updates on the wound that killed him on October 5, 1863, five days after his last entry.

The William Leontes Curry Papers provide rich documentation of his service as an officer in Company K of the 1st Ohio Cavalry Regiment in the western theater of the Civil War, as well as some description of being a prisoner of war. The collection includes over 100 letters, five journals/diaries/memorandum books, a photograph, and a decorative ceramic presentation canteen awarded to Curry for his service.

The William Leontes Curry Papers provide rich documentation of his service as an officer in Company K of the 1st Ohio Cavalry Regiment in the western theater of the Civil War, as well as some description of being a prisoner of war. The collection includes over 100 letters, five journals/diaries/memorandum books, a photograph, and a decorative ceramic presentation canteen awarded to Curry for his service. 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.