The diary of William J. Pittenger, a soldier serving in the 93rd Illinois Infantry and the U. S. Army Signal Corps during the Civil War. The diary's entries span the first half of 1863 through 1864 and touch on such matters as camp life, the U. S. Army's advance down the Mississippi River, and the siege of Vicksburg. (Pittenger made no entries for most of March 1863, as he was bedridden with smallpox). The diary also contains names and addresses of Pittenger's comrades, records of financial transactions, and a list of soldiers from Co. D, 93rd Illinois Infantry killed at Champion Hill.

William J. Pittenger, son of Abraham and Elizabeth Gladfelter Pittenger, was born in Ohio in 1838. While working as a Missouri schoolteacher in 1862, Pittenger enlisted in Company D of the 93rd Illinois Infantry. In February 1863, he was assigned to the U. S. Army Signal Corps. Pittenger contracted small pox one month later but resumed duties in April and participated in the siege of Vicksburg and, later, in Sherman's march to the sea. He mustered out with his regiment in June, 1865. In 1867, Pittenger married Ella Shafer (1850-1899); the couple would have five children. In 1879, the Pittengers moved from Illinois to Wichita, Kansas, where William Pittenger became a prominent farmer. A member of the I. O. O. F., Pittenger served as a member of the local school board and as a township trustee. He died in 1896, and is buried in Pleasant Ridge Cemetery, Sedgwick County, Kansas.

Sources:

History of the State of Kansas(Chicago: A. T. Andreas, 1883).

"Civil War Diary Bares Vivid Story" - Wichita Eagle Magazine,January 6, 1957.