7th Massachusetts Infantry

Item LTR-8041

Description

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


Camp Scott, Virginia
Near Warwick Court House

May 3rd 1862

Dear Parents,

I received your letter of the 27th and am glad to hear that you are all well and that you have got someone to help you about your farming.

I received the news that Joseph’s remains had been taken up and buried in our yard and of the death of Stephen’s boy in letters from Charles Pitts and Almira. The diphtheria is a dreadful disease. I hope it won’t spread any farther. I should think Stephen and his wife would feel dreadful.

I am well and in about the same place that I was when I last wrote you. We have not been in any battle or skirmish and it may be some weeks before we shall open fire on the fortifications before Yorktown.

I am on picket with my company about 2 miles from camp and on the bank of Warwick Creek near the James River. The rebel’s pickets are on the opposite side of the creek. But we have not seen any of them today.

It is a beautiful country right here. The season is nearly a month earlier than at home. The trees are all leaved out and everything is green and growing, but the farming, there is none. There are many fine farms, but they are all deserted and everything is going to ruin as fast as it can. Many of the houses were burned by the rebels before they left.

Mother, what do you think I had for dinner today? Well, I know you can’t guess. I had some fried beef’s liver and coffee of my own cooking, hard bread and some stewed beans from camp. Wasn’t that a pretty good dinner. We live better than we did when we were on the march. Though we have moved several times since I last wrote you. The liver I bought myself. We have got a fine camp in a piece of heavy woods.

The tents are rubber blankets tents. We most all have two of them. There are 3 others in the tent with me. We pull our blankets all into a large tent. The streets you all laid out regular and are kept as clean as a house floor. It is a neat place, I can tell you. And we take comfort there, for it is just warm enough for comfort and we don’t have but very little to do compared with what we have had to do. But I expect we shall have something to do soon. And I don’t care how soon, providing they are ready.

I think McClellan knows what he is about and I think he will do the thing up right for those Yorktown rascals if the army will stand by him.

That was a glorious victory at New Orleans and it grinds them dreadfully and they begin to talk about guerrilla parties and try to keep up rebellion spirit among them. But if we get the army at Yorktown surrounded, which I think will be done. They will have something to do but form guerrilla parties.

I must close, hoping to hear from you soon.

From your Son,
Henry H. Jones