28th & 147th Pennsylvania Infantry - Wounded at Antietam

Item LTR-9332

Description

Original Civil War soldier's letter. 3 pages, written in period ink.


Camp Coleman

August 12th 1861

I now seat myself to write you a line to see if you will think enough of me to answer it. I have written six letters and have never received one single scratch yet. Now I will try a female friend and see if I can get the news.

Our boys are all well except one. And he is not very sick. This is a very good report. Only one sick man in 101.

Our company is nearly equipped in full now. We have our tents, uniforms and canteens. I was at Trinity Church las Sunday and also on yesterday. It is James Buchanan’s brother that preaches there. He gave me a very nice prayer book yesterday.

I was invited out to the country yesterday with the rest of the officers we went and had a splendid dinner and were invited back again.

The people around here are very good to me. They brought us a very nice dinner one day and served it up in the camp. Also brought a basket of nice pin cushion full of pins and distributed among the soldiers. They do everything in their power to make us comfortable. We have visitors every day to see us drill both male and female and some of the latter are very good looking to. we only drill 4 hours every day and the rest of the time we do what we please. But we cannot go outside the camp. I suppose you know that John Leopold deserted. He is a very brave boy he is. I expect if he ever gets back there, he will tell some awful tales about things generally. I had the extreme pleasure of arresting 4 men on yesterday (Sunday and all). Just about the time you were going to church. They belonged to another company and came out here and got our uniforms and loafed around and did not drill at the time. So, it was my duty to take a guard and arrest them and make them take off their uniforms and give them a discharge. We had preaching in camp yesterday by our chaplain in the forenoon. As it is nearly relief guard time I must close and attend duty.

Yours most truly,

L. A. Robb