Vermonters in the Civil War
Vermont soldiers in the Civil War wrote an enormous quantity of letters and diaries, of which many thousands have survived in libraries, historical societies, and in private hands. This collection represents a selection of letters and diaries from the University of Vermont and the Vermont Historical Society.
The collection includes materials dating from 1861-1865. Materials were selected for digitization to provide a variety of perspectives on events and issues. The voices represented in the collection include private soldiers and officers, as well as a few civilians. All of the extant Civil War-era letters or diaries of each of the selected individuals (at least, all that are to be found in the participating institutions’ collections) are included; each adds a certain experience and point of view to the whole.
Officers in the photo above are (from left to right): Lieutenant Colonel Charles B. Stoughton, Colonel Edwin H. Stoughton, Major Harry N. Worthen. All are from the Fourth Vermont Infantry Regiment.
Showing 11 - 20 of 141 Records
Lyman S. Williams to Warren Williams
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- Creator: Williams, Lyman S., 1839-1905.
- Date Created: 1862-04-20
- Description: Topics include Lyman Williams coming down with a fever, an encounter with the rebels that left four men wounded, and the rebels' description of the Vermont regiment as dare devils. Stationery has an illustration of a "Vermont Boy," plus two verses of a song with the title "Vermont Soldier." The refrain, "Away down in Dixie," suggests an attempt to compete with the immortal southern song "Dixie."
- Parent Collections: Vermonters in the Civil War, Lyman S. Williams Correspondence
Lyman S. Williams to Lois L. Williams
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- Creator: Williams, Lyman S., 1839-1905.
- Date Created: 1864-02-14
- Description: Writes of returning to the regiment after a visit home, the warm welcome of his fellow soldiers and the visits he received, how lonesome he feels for his family, and how grateful he is to the kindness shown by his family to Mary Gorton, now Mary Williams. He also writes of a case of measles in the regiment.
- Parent Collections: Vermonters in the Civil War, Lyman S. Williams Correspondence
Roswell Farnham to Mary [Farnham]
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- Creator: Farnham, Roswell, 1827-1903.
- Date Created: 1861-05-24
- Description: Topics include being quartered with the Northfield Company and how the troops were greeted at Bellows Falls. One company member, the fifer, had the measles.
- Parent Collections: Vermonters in the Civil War, Roswell Farnham Correspondence
Joseph Rutherford to [Hannah Rutherford]
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- Creator: Rutherford, Joseph Chase, 1818-1902.
- Date Created: 1862-08-27
- Description: The surgeon writes from Camp Washburn about being infected with dysentery, the regiment being mustered on Thursday, and a visit from the Governor and the Governor's son.
- Parent Collections: Vermonters in the Civil War, Joseph Chase Rutherford Correspondence
Joseph Rutherford to [Hannah Rutherford]
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- Creator: Rutherford, Joseph Chase, 1818-1902.
- Date Created: 1862-11-25
- Description: Topics include the possibility of action, ammunition and the mini ball, of high morale among the soldiers, of John Piper being described as the best marksman and now being Rutherford's body guard, an order from the War Department for Surgeons to remove themselves from action as much as possible, a case of Typhoid and the improbability of Rutherford taking a leave of absence at this time.
- Parent Collections: Vermonters in the Civil War, Joseph Chase Rutherford Correspondence
Joseph Rutherford to [Hannah Rutherford]
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- Creator: Rutherford, Joseph Chase, 1818-1902.
- Date Created: 1863-04-20
- Description: Writing from a different camp, Heintzelman some 2 miles from Poolesville, topics include being put upon and over burdened with duties that put him in a bad mood that he had an unpleasant interaction with the Quartermaster, being put in charge of the Brigade Hospital, and recommended treatment for scarlet fever requested by his wife in case the children come down with the disease.
- Parent Collections: Vermonters in the Civil War, Joseph Chase Rutherford Correspondence
Joseph Rutherford to [Hannah Rutherford]
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- Creator: Rutherford, Joseph Chase, 1818-1902.
- Date Created: 1865-02-25
- Description: Rutherford suffering from the mumps, Rebel deserters including officers arriving in his camp, guns captured from Willmington and fall of Charleston, conjecture of how Gen. Grant plans to deal with attack by General Lee, his child Jacob being ill, reference to Gen. Grierson & photo of Grierson to be sent to Rutherford and being offered $300 dollars for his horse (Lady Lightfoot)
- Parent Collections: Vermonters in the Civil War, Joseph Chase Rutherford Correspondence
Charles F. Bancroft to Clarissa Bancroft
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- Creator: Bancroft, Charles F., 1835-1862.
- Date Created: 1862-01-11
- Description: Topics include the illness of Ephraim D. Dutton and the treatment he is getting from Bancroft, who is watching over Dutton. Bancroft thinks he'll recover when taken to a hospital. Fever, dysentery, lung ailments are compounded by homesickness, according to Bancroft. B. asks for sausage, cayenne pepper, and brandy from home. Mentions daguerreotype of "that little schoolmarm" and the problem of blue eyes. Final request: burn this letter after you read it! "Chain Bridge" refers to a site near Washington, D.C.
- Parent Collections: Vermonters in the Civil War, Charles F. Bancroft Correspondence
Valentine G. Barney to Maria Barney
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- Creator: Barney, Valentine G., 1834-1889.
- Date Created: 1862-08-13
- Description: Topics include the death of two men from the Burlington company, news of the Battle at Culpeper, Capt BeBee of Burlington ill and sent home, and the death of Captain Brooks by the Rebels, confiscating doors from a building inside one of Johnson's abandoned forts to be used as a floor in Barney's tent and a drawing of Barney's encampment.
- Parent Collections: Vermonters in the Civil War, Valentine G. Barney Correspondence
Valentine G. Barney to Maria Barney
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- Creator: Barney, Valentine G., 1834-1889.
- Date Created: 1862-08-28
- Description: Topics include the capturing of some Rebels at Newtown who stated Rebels do not go hungry as long a Union troops are around from which to steal food, issues with the postal mail service, the difficulty of getting rest in camp, and the sickness of the regiment.
- Parent Collections: Vermonters in the Civil War, Valentine G. Barney Correspondence