Category Archives: Southern Historical Collection

7 March 1865: “Troops are assembling at Lynchburg and Fitz Lee will move up James River.”

Posted on 7 Mar ’15 by

Item Description: Letter from Robert E. Lee to Alexander Robert Lawton.  He discusses Union troop movements and gives orders for the movement of Confederate troops. Item Citation: Folder 4, in the Alexander Robert Lawton Papers, #415, Southern Historical Collection, Wilson … Continue reading →

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6 March 1865: ” What have you decided to do with your family and yourself in case the enemy come to Raleigh?”

Posted on 6 Mar ’15 by

Item Description: William Horn Battle was born in Edgecombe County in 1802, graduated from the University of North Carolina in 1820. He served on a commission that revised the statutory laws of North Carolina in 1833. In 1840, he was appointed … Continue reading →

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5 March 1865: “The building after they were rifled were nearly all burnt & the Provisions & stock destroyed.”

Posted on 5 Mar ’15 by

Item description: A. G. Magrath was the confederate governor of South Carolina during the Civil War. This letter reports back on relief efforts sent to Columbia after it was burned and remarks on both the condition of the town and … Continue reading →

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4 March 1865: ” this outlaw party who I expect for he is mean enough to do any thing”

Posted on 4 Mar ’15 by

Item Description: Letter dated 4 March 1865 from Mary Satterfield to her son. She expresses her and her husband’s reluctance to send their son any more money, but in the end, she writes that she will send some anyway. Item … Continue reading →

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2 March 1865: “we are living on very simple fare and it is likely to become worse so”

Posted on 2 Mar ’15 by

Item Description: Letter written by Godfrey Barnsley to his son George.  He discusses food shortages in the area.  He writes that it is hard to cultivate crops because Union troops and marauders have been stealing all the horses and mules. … Continue reading →

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1 March 1865: “the enemy was sharp shooting all day.”

Posted on 1 Mar ’15 by

Item Description: Zaccheus Ellis was a lieutenant from Wilmington, N.C. This letter to his mother recounts how his battalion left Wilmington, and engaged with their enemies in some detail. He was killed in action in Bentonville, N.C.  Item Citation: From Folder 1, … Continue reading →

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27 February 1865: “numerous desertions are now occurring among the troops from our State and many of them are going to the enemy.”

Posted on 27 Feb ’15 by

Item Description: Letter dated 27 February 1865 signed by the officers of the North Carolina Troops. It brings up concerns about desertions and low morale among members of the army. Item Citation: Folder 212, William A. Graham Papers, #00285, Southern Historical Collection, … Continue reading →

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26 February 1865: “I now have the honour to tender my resignation”

Posted on 26 Feb ’15 by

Item Description: Frank G. Ruffin turns in his resignation to his commanding officer. He cites his failing health and other personal reasons. Ruffin owned a plantation in Virginia before the war. Item Citation: Folder 58, in the Frank G. Ruffin … Continue reading →

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24 February 1865: “Sunday night about 6 P.M. we got the word officially that Charleston was ours…”

Posted on 24 Feb ’15 by

Item Description: Letter dated 24 February 1865 from Jonathan Lewis Whitaker to his wife, Julia A. Wells Whitaker. He was a physician from Orange County, New York serving with the 26th United States Colored Troops near Beaufort, South Carolina. Whitaker … Continue reading →

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23 Febrary 1865: “There is one thing sertain this war cannot last many months longer”

Posted on 23 Feb ’15 by

Item Description: A letter from Theodore W. Skinner to his family regarding his thoughts on Wilmington, Jefferson Davis, the War, and the moral of his fellow soldiers in the aftermath of the Battle of Wilmington. Item Citation: Unit 45, in the Federal Soldiers’ … Continue reading →

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