Monthly Archives: February 2015

28 February 1865: “SALISBURY* you’ve left behind you, and the dead line and stockade! You have suffered great privations–they can never be repaid!”

Item Description: A poem written by George G. B. DeWolfe, known as “The Wandering Poet of New Hampshire,” for Union soldiers recently paroled from the Confederate prison at Salisbury, North Carolina. Item Citation: DeWolfe, George G. B. “Lines for the … 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.”

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”

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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25 February 1865: “…as will hereafter prevent consequences so unjust and injurious to said farming interests.”

Item Description: Resolution passed by the General Assembly of the state of Virginia, in relation to the Confederate States impressment laws. [Scans courtesy of Internet Archive and Duke University Library. This item can also be found via the Rare Book Collection, University … Continue reading

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

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”

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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22 February 1865: “I have seen the “Abomination of Desolation”. It is even worse than I thought. The place is literally in ruins.””

Item description: Entry, dated 22 February 1865, from the diary of Emma Florence LeConte, the daughter of scientist Joseph LeConte of Columbia, S.C. Item citation: From the Emma LeConte Diary, #420-z, Southern Historical Collection, The Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at … Continue reading

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21 February 1865: “There is not a house I believe in Columbia that has not been pillaged”

Item Description: Entry, dated 21 February 1865, from the diary of Emma Florence LeConte, the daughter of scientist Joseph LeConte of Columbia, S.C. She writes with anger about the destruction that has taken place in Columbia. Item Citation: From the Emma LeConte … Continue reading

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20 February 1865: “the last of the army is leaving the city”

Item Description: Entry, dated 17 February 1865, from the diary of Emma Florence LeConte, the daughter of scientist Joseph LeConte of Columbia, S.C. She continues to describe the aftermath of the burning of Columbia. Item Citation: From the Emma LeConte Diary, #420-z, … Continue reading

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19 February 1865: ” if only the whole army could have been roasted alive!”

Item Description: Entry, dated 17 February 1865, from the diary of Emma Florence LeConte, the daughter of scientist Joseph LeConte of Columbia, S.C. Item Citation: From the Emma LeConte Diary, #420-z, Southern Historical Collection, The Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at … Continue reading

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