63rd Pennsylvania Infantry

Item LTR-10598

Description

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


Arlington Heights
Camp Shields (2 miles from Alexandria on the Leesburg Pike)

October 12th 1861

Dear Father and Mother,

It is with great pleasure that I now sit down to write you a few lines to let you know how we are getting along by this time. We are still at Camp Shields. We did not leave here as we expected but we are going to leave soon and get to Fort Lyons, which is about two miles up the river from where we are now encamped. As we do the most of our traveling on Sunday, I think we will leave here tomorrow. But I think I shall not travel much as I have been very sick for a few days. But am getting better fast. I will be able, if I take good care of myself, to train in two or three days. The rest of the boys are all well at present and have been pretty much ever since they left home. Some of them have been a little sick once in a while but it has never lasted long.

I see it stated in the Pittsburgh papers that Colonel Hays’ regiment has all been killed and taken prisoners. We knew nothing of it until yesterday when we happened to see the Pittsburgh papers with an account of it. The paper stated that on the 5th we went down to the river to take a wash and the Rebels came on us and killed and took us all prisoners. What they did not kill, they took prisoners. That is a great story and no doubt many will believe it. But it is too big a story to be true. On last Saturday, the Colonel marched us all down to the river to take a wash but we saw no rebels. If we did, they were disguised. For we did not know anything of the great defeat until we heard of it in the paper. You need not be scared about any such reports. As that because we will not be killed without making some effort to save your lives. If the rebels get that close to us, we will know something about it and if they come in force, you may expect to hear of a battle.

We all boxed our old clothes up and started them for home this morning. We directed them to Mr. Charles Hoge of West Greenville. Which we though the friends would have about as good a chance to get them as any other place. My clothes consist of 1 coat, 1 pair shoes, 1 pair stockings and 1 vest and 1 white shirt and 1 blue woolen shirt and my shawl and I also sent a piece of a sea biscuit to you to let you see what we live on about one third of the time. They are hard but we get all we can eat of them with good hot and strong coffee. They are enclosed in an oil cloth sack and is directed to Mr. S. B. Beatty. And if the directions get torn off, the key is tied to the handle and you can open the sack and you will find a small note which I wrote to you and put in it. And you will know my shawl. You can call in at Mr. Hoge’s and get it and when you get it, write and let me know that they arrived there safe.

Daniel Young and Jacob Keith put their clothes in one sack and directed it to Jacob Young. It is an old carpet sack and there is no key for it. But any key will open it. You can tell Mr. Young that it is sent home. We would not have sent the clothes home but we have more now than we can carry. And we have not got near all our clothes yet. We have not got our pants nor any of our dress suit and still have all we want to carry.

Father, I hear that Uncle William Eberman is in Washington and Henry is an awful sweat to know. Whether it is so or not, if it is, write and tell us all about it. But father, if you have any notion of coming down here, give it up. I would advise you to stay at home and take care of the family. But get all the young men to come down that you can. As there is a great many more needed on the Potomac and in the Western Division. They are needed worse than her. But a great many more are needed here. I do not want to see you come. But I must close by asking you to excuse mistakes and bad writing. As we have no very good accommodations here for writing. I will now ask you to write often as we are all so glad to hear from home.

Farwell an d perhaps forever, as we move soon. And what will come next, we do not know. Write soon and write often.

From you son.

Direct as usual to:

D. W Beatty
Company K
63rd Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteers
Washington, DC

To S. B. Beatty