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Letters, 1865

 File — Folder: 1

Scope and Contents

From the Collection:

This collection contains three letters from Emery Washburn Frost, a private in the 14th Battery, Massachusetts Light Artillery, at the end of the American Civil War. Two of the letters are addressed to Frost's brother Eli; the third, to his mother. Writing from camp between City Point and Petersburg, Virginia, on April 14, 1865, Frost describes in detail the military defenses of Petersburg and the conditions in the city following the Confederate evacuation. He also discusses the purchasing of Confederate currency by souvenir hunters. On April 27, Frost writes of refusing a furlough, because it would cost him a hundred dollars, the soldiers will soon be returning home, and in the meantime, he has a "soft job." Frost also mentions the killing of a wild boar and adds to his previous description of conditions in Petersburg. In a letter to his mother, written at Alexandria, Virginia, on May 28, Frost discusses the Grand Review of troops, describes Ulysses S. Grant's demeanor, and complains of the lack and quality of the soldiers' rations. ("They don't feed us half so well as they did at Petersburg[.] We thought then that the rations were small enough but here they don't even give us vinegar to kill the taste of their stinking meat.")

Dates

  • 1865

Language of Materials

From the Collection:

The materials in the collection are in English.

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open to 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