Collections : [University of Michigan William L. Clements Library]

In February, 1864, Andrew S. Parsons left his farm to become a recruit in a veteran regiment, the 33rd Wisconsin Infantry for the duration of the Civil War. His letters to his wife Louisa give detailed accounts of battles and campaigns, and provide glimpses into his home life and relationships with his wife and children.

The Andrew S. Parsons papers document the life of a recruit added to the rolls of a veteran regiment of the western theatre. The 47 letters written by Andrew Parsons to his wife, Louisa, comprise the bulk of the collection, along with two letters to his children and one to a temperance society of which he was a member. In addition, there are two letters from Parsons' nephew Charles Spencer to Louisa Parsons, and one letter from a friend named Laura to Andrew Parsons. Well written and eventful, Andrew Parsons' letters have many strong points. Among the letters are detailed accounts of skirmishes in northern Mississippi, the battles of Blair's Landing, Franklin and Nashville, and Spanish Fort, as well as the Red River, Tupelo, Missouri, Franklin and Nashville and Mobile Campaigns.

Equally interesting are the glimpses that emerge through Parsons' letters of his home life and his relationships with his wife and children. His letters are laced with a fine sense of humor, and convey a sense of concern for the well being of his home and family. The occasional hint of jealousy that peers subtlely through some letters is leavened by his advice to Louisa on managing the farm, caring for the children, and seeing to the family finances. He seemingly accepts the trying circumstances of a wartime separation, and tries to make the best of the situation, all the while eager to return home.

Duncan's journal is a brief account of the earliest operations of the 23rd Ohio Infantry while serving in West Virginia in 1861. The orderly book contains copies of orders issued in 1864 and 1865 from the Headquarters of the Army of West Virginia and the Army of Shenandoah, including some signed by William McKinley.

Duncan's journal is a very well written, unfortunately brief account of the earliest operations of the 23rd Ohio, from its mustering in at Camp Chase through the first two months of its service in West Virginia. Even though the passages are generally short, they provide an excellent idea of the difficulties of operating in the mountainous country, and of the problems of poor training and discipline. There is a good second-hand description of the Battle of Rich Mountain, as well as two descriptions of the battlefield a month after the fact, and a long and detailed account of the Battle of Carnifex Ferry. As good as the battle descriptions, though, are his descriptions of the aftermath of Carnifex Ferry, particularly his powerful, grisly description of the expressions on the faces of corpses littering the battlefield.

The orderly book contains 35 routine carbon copies of orders issued late in the war from Headquarters of the Army of West Virginia and the Army of Shenandoah. The book was apparently originally William McKinley's, and many of the orders from Shenandoah are signed by him. Two orders are of some interest: one (in triplicate) dated April 27th, 1865, noting the capture of John Wilkes Booth, and the other, dated April 29th, reporting the surrender of Johnston's army to Sherman.

Duncan included four pencil sketches in his diary, 1) a rough sketch of a "Virginia secesh," 2) a view of Glenville, West Virginia, and sketches of the battlefields at 3) Rich Mountain and 4) Carnifex Ferry indicating troop placements, etc.

This 108-page orderly book belonged to Major General Amos Hall, who commanded a New York militia unit near Buffalo, New York, during the War of 1812. The volume contains general orders and communications between Hall and other commanding officers stationed in western New York between December 24, 1813, and April 10, 1814. Two newspaper articles, published as late as 1893, are pasted on the book's final pages. The orderly book is accompanied by 4 copies of 2 reports of the United States House of Representatives in the 1840s, concerning financial claims John R. Williams made for property lost during the Niagara campaign of the War of 1812. Also included are a belt and attached buckle.

This 108-page orderly book belonged to Major General Amos Hall, who commanded a New York militia unit near Buffalo, New York, during the War of 1812. The volume contains general orders and communications between Hall and other commanding officers stationed in western New York between December 24, 1813, and April 10, 1814. Two newspaper articles, published as late as 1893, are pasted on the book's final pages. The orderly book is accompanied by 4 copies of 2 reports of the United States House of Representatives in the 1840s, concerning financial claims John R. Williams made for property lost during the Niagara campaign of the War of 1812. Also included are a belt and attached buckle.

The Orderly Book contains copies of general orders and correspondence issued daily between December 24, 1813, and December 29, 1813 (pp. 1-20), as well as orders and correspondence issued less regularly between January 10, 1814, and April 10, 1814 (pp. 20-108). Entries are composed in a number of different hands. Most orders were issued at American headquarters in Batavia, Buffalo, and Williamsville, New York, and from other unnamed posts in the Niagara region. The first order pertains to Hall's assumption of command of troops assembled near Buffalo. Throughout the following months, he issued and received orders about several aspects of the campaign in western New York, such as troop movements, troop numbers, and developments in the war. Other topics include the transfer of prisoners of war (January 10, 1814, pp. 40-41) and the hire of local Native Americans (December 27, 1813, pp. 11-12).

A copy of Amos Hall's certificate of membership in the Society of the Cincinnati is laid into the volume (July 4, 1786), and 2 newspaper clippings are pasted on its final pages: "In Olden Times. Robert Sutcliff's Travels in the Genesee Country" (Stephen B. Ayers, Post-Express, February 28, 1893) and "Interesting Sketch of Gen. Amos Hall" (Myron S. Hall, the Journal, undated).

The Government Publications series is comprised of 2 copies each of 2 printed reports issued by the United States House of Representatives, concerning claims John R. Williams made against the United States government for property destroyed by the British Army in December 1813 (Report No. 102, February 7, 1845) and for land near Detroit, Michigan (Report No. 5, December 20, 1847).

The Realia item is a belt with its original buckle still attached. The buckle depicts a grenade over the number "100," and originally belonged to a member of the British Army's 100th Regiment of Foot grenadiers.

Albert Martin, a Canadian citizen, enlisted in the 16th New York Cavalry at the age of 18. His letters home during the Civil War describe skirmishes with Mosby's Rangers and the frequent desertions from his regiment, as well as his stay in Belle Island Prison.

Albert Martin's letters provide an interesting point of view on the Civil War. The anguish expressed in the first three of his letters is particularly moving, as he attempted to come to grips with the feeling that he had abandoned his mother and to console her and let her know that he intended to behave as a moral man. While in the service, Martin provides two very good, though brief, descriptions of scrapes with Mosby's Rangers, and his reactions to the desertions in his regiment and his thoughts on the war are of interest because they represent the views of a Canadian citizen, rather than a native New Yorker. Finally, the single letter written from Belle Isle stands in stark contrast to the miserable impressions of the prison found in other Union soldiers' letters: "I cant complain of the useage for we get used vary well here all is a fellow cant run about as much is if he was in his own Lines" (1863 November 6).