8th New Jersey Infantry

Item LTR-10594

Description

Original Civil War soldier's letter. 4 pages, written in period ink.


Camp Johnson
On Lower Potomac

Thursday, March 20th 1862

Dear Sister Mary,

I am well and in good health and hope these few lines will find you enjoying the same. I received your very welcome letter last night at nine o’clock and was pleased to hear that you are well. We have had very nice and warm weather until last night when it commenced raining and rained all night. And it is raining yet.

It is now ten o’clock in the morning. The officers are putting on a new guard. It makes no difference how hard it is storming, there always has to be a guard on. I do not know how it came to be. It was not today. I always have the good luck to be on when it rains but this time I escaped.

I guess something will happen soon. Things are quite lively around here. The river is all the time filled with boats going up and down the stream. Last Monday, there were sixteen steamboats filled with soldiers passing along here. They came form Washington. I do not know where they went to for certain. But think they went to join Burnside. We thought we would get with Burnside. But last night I saw in the paper that we were to join Heintzelman’s Division, which is in Virginia. I was hoping they would send us back to Washington to stay. But we are not to get off so easy at that. I think they intend for us to attack Richmond but they will have to start us soon or they will leave that place the same as they have left the others.

Kennedy Riddle is well. He received his box and the things in it were all very nice. Mercy if I was taken sick. I could not get home for General McClellan has issued orders that no more furloughs would be given to anybody on any conditions. Mr. Berry has been trying to get a furlough to go home but can’t get any. I believe his wife is very sick.

Our troops have possession of Manassas but there has been no one killed. I don’t think there is any truth in what you heard about our troops being blown up or I would have heard about it.

Aaron Henderson’s box came through very nice. I don’t think there was anything taken out of it. There was a fine chicken in it. He gave me a piece of it. It was very good. There was a nice cake in it. I also had a piece of that. It was first rate. He gave me two of his apples. He said I should take them for they came from our place.

No more from your affectionate brother,

John M. Britton