Timothy S. Walker was born on March 5, 1834. In the 1860 federal census, a 25-year-old mariner named Timothy S. Walker is listed among the residents in the Freeport (Cumberland County), Maine, home of William and Lois Walker, presumably his parents. On September 29, 1862, Walker enlisted as a private in Company G, 25th Maine Infantry, a nine-month regiment. During its service, the 25th Maine initially constructed defenses near Washington, D. C., and guarded the Long Bridge over the Potomac. On March 24, 1863, the regiment moved a few miles west of the capital, performing picket duty at Chantilly, Virginia, for three months before returning to Arlington Heights and being mustered out on July 10. The contents of the letter in this collection suggest that Walker did not reenlist in the army and that by early 1864 had resumed work as a mariner. The 1870 census lists a 34-year-old farmer named Timothy "J." Walker, living in the Freeport home of William and "Louis" Walker. Living in the home next to the Walkers is the family of Orrin W. "Bracket," 29. On February 16, 1877, Walker married Nellie F. Staples (1859-1925); the 1880 census shows the couple living and farming in Yarmouth (Cumberland County) with a young daughter. Timothy S. Walker died June 29, 1886, and was buried in Riverside Cemetery, Yarmouth.