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Correspondence, 1862 - 1863

 File — Folder: 1

Scope and Content

From the Collection:

This collection contains eight wartime letters written by Lee Hendrix, a private in Company B, 1st North Carolina Sharpshooter Battalion during the American Civil War. Written from various points in Virginia, the letters are all addressed to members of the Beeson family, all but one specifically to Noah Beeson.

In the first letter, written November 2, 1862, Hendrix briefly describes the recent movements of his battalion. He notes his proximity to the enemy, then comments on the lice in camp and the high prices of assorted goods. In a pair of letters written on January 18, 1863, from a camp near Port Royal, Hendrix notes that they are in winter camp: "We get plenty to eat and nothing to do we liv like rats in the Barnd." Writing again from the Port Royal camp on February 17, describes his rations and easy life. "All I dread her is Lincuns pills for tha will pass thru a man in less than no time" ("Lincoln's pills" being slang for various forms of ammunition). Hendrix then engages in a little bawdy doggerel that incorporates a line from Oliver Goldsmith and another from an anonymous source. On May 23, Hendrix writes from an unidentified hospital, recounting the wound that he recently received, presumably at the Battle of Chancellorsville. In Hendrix's letter of June 3, written from Lynchburg Hospital, the private describes his meager rations and his belief that "a solder is the least thout of of any class of peeple in the wirld" before concluding with a brief poem: "The rose is new / The stem is green / All the good times is past / That I have seen / Or ever will se enymore."

Dates

  • 1862 - 1863

Creator

Language of Materials

From the Collection:

The materials in the collection are in English.

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

Extent

From the Collection: 0.1 Cubic Feet (1 folder)

Repository Details

Part of the Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech Repository

Contact:
Special Collections and University Archives, University Libraries (0434)
560 Drillfield Drive
Newman Library, Virginia Tech
Blacksburg Virginia 24061 US
540-231-6308