[from the diary of Jesse Calvin Spaulding, Co. F., 25th Massachusetts]
Saturday
Dec 6
Had a company drill this forenoon by
Sergeant Hall. This afternoon a big
mail came, and I got two letters from home
and good news too, for which God be thanked
Have had a very good day.
MSS 11293
[from the diary of Wesley A. Hammond, Co., E., 42nd Virginia “Dixie Greys”
Saturday 6th
Attend Centenary Church. Had
the pleasure of seeing Rev. P. A. Peter-
son & hear him preach. Saw my
friend Miss Amminta Price of Bed-
ford. Was introduced to Dr. Lee.
[transcript by Mary Roy Dawson Edwards]
MSS 5526
Dec. 6th/62
Near Aquia Creek, Va.
Dearest Birdie,
I have just mailed
a letter to you, but I can’t spend this
evening more pleasantly than to write
another. I must also write when I have
an opportunity. Th
The weather is very pleasant to day
& to night, & we have a blazing fire that
affords sufficient light to write by.
I want to correct my statement that men
of the 27th Connecticut killed that horse.
It was men of the Pennsylvania 127th. The
man who actually killed the horse
has been put in the guard house.
Three of the horses, taken were taken from a
boy whose father was killed int he
first three month’s service. another case
I have just learned of from Lieut.
Smith. He was with the wagons, & one
or two hundred yards behind them, when
a a man came in haste after him, & told
him several soldiers were ransacking his
beauro & taking things, & killing his poultry
the Lieut. went back, & one of the men saidso he was “nothing but a damned officer
& shoot him” the Lieut drew his
pistol & told him to stop immediately, orThay he would shoot him. He then left.
The Lieut. said they had taken a number
[page 2]
of silver relics, a little money, & some other
valuables. A little girl 4 or 5 years old had
two pet ducks in a coop. She run to them
& said “dont take my ducks, dont take
my ducks.” One of the northern saints
stepped up & kicked the coop over &
caught & killed them. the little girl was
heart broken & cried piteously.
Some other fellows met a negro who
had $30.00. they took 25.00 of it from him.
Now I cant of course say that every
brigade in our armies would be so bad:
but I have seen & heard enough to know
that there has been a great deal of it
generally. I was told by numbers of men
& negroes near chain bridge that the
soldiers there, including our Brigade were
gentlemen compared with the first who
came there. Our Brigade did not do
there as they did in Maryland, for the
reason that they had not the opportunity
& the country had been spripped[sic] already
of nearly every thing in it.
Now Birdie these are the improved
breed of men in the north, where they have
not been contaminated by the polluting
influence of “the sum of all evils,” slavery.
Dont you think it is time for the army to
pull off gloves & show th all rebels the evils
of the war? Dont you think it is time for
H. Ward Beecher to prove his assertion that
those entering the army will be in every way
benefitted? & improved? Alas! alas! for my count
try. There is no one so blind as those who
dont see, & the north wont see. Every thing
is misrepresented as you & I have always
said it was. There is wickedness & vandalism
in the southern army, but that it can be
much worse than the the northern army is
not possible. The two raids made into
Pa. & Md., they did not do so according to
the northern papers.
You know every thing quoted from the
Southern papers about the vandalism of the
northern army is denounced as infamously
untrue, & secession lies & misrepresentation.
That there are misrepresentations & lies told
by southern papers is undoubtedly true, but
[page 3]
as I now know it is true of the north. But
it is an undeniable fact that there has
been too much grounds given for the
south to say what they do.
The Capt. & Lieutenants & I had a talk
this afternoon, about it & I can tell you there
is no mistakes, that if they & many others
were out of the army they would never
enter it again under existing circumstan
ces. The Capt. volunteered a rather ultra
opposer of the south & of slavery, but his
eyes are considerably opened with regard
to both sections. He told me a few
days ago that he would cheerfully sacrifice
himself if it would restore his country
but he has felt ever since he left Phila
that he was going to throw away his life
without benefiting his country. Now Birdie
for reasons your own good sense will
teach you say but little about these things
at present. It may be he would not care, but
confidential talk should be regarded.
Some would say I ought not to
write such things to you, but it is
better to know the truth than to be
deceived.
[letter of Captain Henry S. Spaulding of the 38th New Jersey will continue on the 7th]
MSS 38-156
[from the diary of the Rev. Francis Butler, chaplain of the 25th New Jersey]
Dec 6. Sat. Fine bright day, passed very comfortable night tho.
tent floor is still covered with Snow. Roasted two turkies
during night. We march to & then cross river this morng.
I sd. to act as Burnside’s reserve – The march thro. the
low thick pine woods, covered with Snow – in a forest by road on
the bright morng. was very picturesque – tho ice half ice[inch?] thick.
Crossed river – with G. Cos. very cold – about 1 oclk – marched
a mile or so up river rail road. from Aquia Creek to
Fredericksburg – encamped on low hills left of R. R. I staid
at Wharf waiting for baggage rear guard till dark – hungry
& cold. It did not come – found poor Maryland boy whose horse
was stolen – by Brigade before us. He was shivering without an
overcoat in cold eveg. air – biting & keen – He had nothing to eat –
not a cent – no friends & no way to cross over to his home.
I asked Capt. of a St. Bt. to take him in – give him supper – lodging & passage over in Mary.[Maryland] Capt. promised to do it –
The boy was very grateful, he had not found his horse –
Col. Wisewell lost horse fell in river in crossg. Col Brown
12th R.I. came over abt. dark – I led him & regt. up to camp
ground – & then went back to dock with Col. D. to wharf –
& slept on table of St. Bt. haversack for pillow – Mr Budan
gave me part of his shawl for cover but very cold.
One officer sprang up in night. Sd. cannonading was going
on at Fredericksburg (abt. 15 miles distant). it was [?]
unloadg. Army Supplies – Saw 1st. Conn. & heavy guns on
wharf loaded up to go to Burnside. We are now under
him. Rebel Army under Lee is at F. & B. this side river
So we are not over 14 miles fr. the two largest Armies ever
massed on this Cont, I suppose & we a part of it one of them.
[word lined out] We marched only abt. 3 miles today. Sailed 6 miles
diagonally across Potomac, which is abt. 4 miles broad here.
[transcript by Mary Roy Dawson Edwards]
Col. Moses N. Wisewell, 28th New Jersey
Col. George H. Browne, 12th Rhode Island
MSS 12935
[from the diary of Captain William F. Hunter, Co. B., 97th Ohio]
Dec. 6th, ’62.
Clear & quite cold
this morning.
Up & eat breakfast
before daylight.
Ground covered with
snow.
Marched at 8 A.M.,
8 or 10 miles from
camp, in direction of
Franklin; got into
a skirmish, – near-
ly surrounded, & com-
pelled to return
without filling
all our wagons, –
one man of Co. I
killed, & one of Co.
C. wounded slight-
ly. Very hard trav-
elling on account
of the snow melt-
ing.
[transcript by Mary Roy Dawson Edwards]
MSS 10547-bm
[from the diary of John Ward of the 102nd Pennsylvania]
Dec 6th Satarday
Whe Stade in
Camp to Day
[The following entry dated Dec. 4th is lined out.
Thureday
Genl Rawley
Commend a disveshon
Of ten Regt of
infanty and fore
of Caveldry and
2 Battery and
from the Rear
Gard
[from the diary of James Dinsmore Templeton, former musician and private in the 23rd Ohio]
Saturday, Dec. 6, 1862
Remained at
Mathews all night-
had breakfast then
started for Washington
stopped at Maths &
changed my shirt
Math & Em went to
Washington. Arrived at
Town about noon
Had dinner with Math
& John Patterson
Went to Youngs Rooms
got Picture of Wills Temp
got negative of mine
taken Watring did
not appear
Left for
Dinsmores about
dusk had to enquire the
way very cold got there late
Got pair of Drawers
Cloudy Cold high wind
MSS 10317
[from the diary of George W. Dabney, clerk in Campbell County, Va.]
6 Saturday
Clear & cold–finished hgs
39 hogs wd 5029 av 130
Joe’s 226 Liars 130
Flems not killed having
lately pigged.
Servants clothes cut out &
distributed where urgently
needed, and money given in
lieu except to Joe & Fleming
Lias to have Flour
tho’ Flemg got fine coat in
town when up last week, and
Joe’s hogs salted down for him.
Spencer recd $20 and the rest
$10 each–new arrangement
about raising hogs by servants
–each one to have a pig to be
raised on share–
–also, servants clothes to be next
year made on the farm.
MSS 3315
[from the diary of Anne Madison Willis Ambler]
Saturday, December 6, 1862
I endeavor always to spend Saturday
in some kind of preparation for Sunday-
but it is sad to record how far I fall short
of my endeavours It was impossible to get
a quiet place to read this morning & when
the usual hour came for my quiet enjoyment
Jack would not go to sleep=however I had
at last the pleasure of a little peace & I
made an effort to profit by it=
I have seen the remark that we should
spend each day, as though it were our last-
How impossible it seems for me to realize that
this may be my last=I often think of it
but in the whole course of my life I am
sure I have never spent an hour just as I
should have spent it=so many vain, foolish
& unprofitable thoughts come hopping
skipping & jumpping through my brain
Oh, At the last day, what will be
my account. I commit myself humbly
to thy care O, Lord Jesus, & beg that thou
wilt have mercy upon my many infirmities
& cleans me with thy blood. O receive
me, just as I am without one plea,
But that thy blood was shed for me.
MSS 15406
[from the diary of William M. Blackford, former diplomat of Lynchburg, Va., with five sons in the Confederate Army]
Saturday 6 Colder than any mor
ning this season. Ice in abundance
on the streets. Weather clear & bright
with some wind–No news except
an abstract of Lincoln’s extraordinary
message–could any decent Amer-
ican read it without blushing
It would disgrace a school boy
so far as compositions concerned
–very laborious days work–Lt
Col. Payne, the former commander
of the famous Black Horse troop
presents a letter of introduction
from Garlick Kean. He was desper-
ately wounded at Williamsburg
through the face, but has recovered
though not fit for field duty. He
is Lt.Col. of the 4thh (Wickham’s) Regt
of Va Cavalry and has been appointed
commandant of the post. He is a
gentleman A fine intelligence and
interesting character. He told me
many curious things while a pri
-soner in [?], in Fauquier. he
saw a good deal of Gen McDowell
and had frequent talks with him
In one of them McD asked him how
many men Johnson had at Centreville
last winter. Payne did not know
exactly, & McD asked if he had more
than 100,000-to which P. replied he
could safely say he had not. . The Gen
then said that on 8th Jany McClellan
reviewed his army, stretched from
Lemonville to Woodlawn to the num
ber ot 230,000 men, well equipped
& that he, McD. had urged him to
advance–that he was strong enough
to sweep all before him–Payne
related this to Gen Johnston in Richd
who said that on the 8th Jan he had
less than 25,000 men under his command
and they dispirited and demoralized
by the Regulation of the State and
Confederate Government–I saw at
station at the time-that the review
of that number had been held on 8th
Jan. [And?] believed it a gross exag-
geration–What an escape we made
all accounts agree that the
Federal forces are greatly demoralized
–parties exist in the army–The
soldiers have no confidence in their
Generals And the Generals no confidence
in them–McClellan’s friends & admirers
among them officers & men, and he had many,
are not disposed to hazard their lives
to protect the fame of his [?]
Burnside has made already a clear
failure-and I doubt not will have
to give over to some new commander.
Payne also told me of the accounts
which Jas Witcher the Irish patient
give of the admiration of the South
entertained by the people of France &
England–They think us the most gal-
-lant people in the world, and that
our generals are unsurpassed–That
the names of Lee & Jackson & Stuart
and others are as well known across
the water & excite as much enthusiasm
as the here—
At night, unabled to read, worked
on a Leyden jar and succeeded in coat
ing an a 12 oz bottle with a small
[hole?] with zinc on the inside–quite
a feat–Dr. Minor & Chas. Trueheart
called about 8. Later, D. B. Payne
came with a package containing two
hundred thousand dollars Confederate Bills
which he brought for me from Richmd
He brought a letter from Charles
to me, which was given to him at
the Junction.
MSS 4763
