Charles H. Powell Letter
Scope and Contents
This collection consists of a single post-war letter written by Charles H. Powell, a Confederate veteran who had served in Company F, 4th Virginia Cavalry during the American Civil War. Written at "Soldiers Home" (Lee Camp Soldiers Home, Richmond, Virginia), the letter is addressed to "Miss Dorris." Powell briefly mentions his intention to visit Hanover Court House to see the presentation of twelve historical portraits, then writes of having a copy of "Goochland in War Times by Mrs Buchanan." Powell argues that Buchanan had under-represented the county's participation in the Confederate Army and provides information on the various Confederate units organized in the county, particularly focusing on John H. Guy and the Goochland Artillery.
Dates
- [1926]
Creator
- Powell, Charles H. (Person)
Language of Materials
The materials in the collection are in English.
Conditions Governing Access
The collection is open to research.
Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use
The copyright status of this collection is unknown. Copyright restrictions may apply. Contact Special Collections and University Archives for assistance in determining the use of these materials. Reproduction or digitization of materials for personal or research use can be requested using our reproduction/digitization form: http://bit.ly/scuareproduction. Reproduction or digitization of materials for publication or exhibit use can be requested using our publication/exhibition form: http://bit.ly/scuapublication. Please contact Special Collections and University Archives (specref@vt.edu or 540-231-6308) if you need assistance with forms or to submit a completed form.
Biographical / Historical
Charles Henry Powell, son of Thomas R. and Lucy Volney Carrington Powell, was born in Columbia (Fluvanna County), Virginia on January 21, 1843. By 1850, according to the federal census, the Powells were living in neighboring Goochland County. In 1860, the younger Powell was still attending school. On May 10, 1861, he enlisted as a private in Company F, 4th Virginia Cavalry and served throughout the American Civil War as a bugler. He was paroled in Richmond, Virginia, on April 28, 1865. Following the war, Powell returned to Goochland County. There, he married Willie S. Pace (1851-1919), on December 9, 1879; the couple would have two daughters. In the 1880 through 1910 federal censuses, Powell is listed as a merchant, living in Licking Hole (Goochland County). Charles H. Powell died at the Lee Camp Soldiers Home in Richmond on October 9, 1926, and was buried in Grace Episcopal Church Cemetery, Goochland (Goochland County), Virginia.
Extent
0.1 Cubic Feet (1 folder)
Abstract
Post-war letter from Charles H. Powell, who served as a bugler in Company F, 4th Virginia Cavalry during the American Civil War, providing information about the Confederate units organized in Goochland County, Virginia, during the war.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The Charles H. Powell Letter was donated to Special Collections and University Archives in 1997.
Existence and Location of Copies
A typed transcript accompanies the letter.
Rights Statement for Archival Description
The guide to the Charles H. Powell Letter by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 (https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc0/).
General
This letter bears a date of July 9th, 1861, but it is obviously a post-war letter. Faintly visible beneath the "1861" is another date that had obviously been erased. Information from the donor indicates that a family member later assumed that the letter had been written in 1861, and had written that year over the original year. Upon the letter's donation to Special Collections and University Archives in 1997, Professor James I. Robertson, Jr. surmised that the letter had been written in 1891. However, research in the course of processing the letter in 2023 revealed that the Hanover County portraits to which Powell refers were presented on August 10, 1926. As Powell indicates his intention to see the portraits' presentation on the following day (i.e., July 10), and the portraits were actually presented on August 10, 1926, the presumption is that he mistakenly dated his letter July 9, and that latter-day attempts to "fix" the letter's year of creation were in error.
Processing Information
The processing and description of the Charles H. Powell Letter commenced and was completed in November, 2023.
- Title
- Charles H. Powell Letter, [1926]
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- John M. Jackson
- Date
- 2023 (CC0 1.0)
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Revision Statements
- 2020-09-28: Finding aid notes updated to new department standards. juliags
Repository Details
Part of the Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech Repository
Special Collections and University Archives, University Libraries (0434)
560 Drillfield Drive
Newman Library, Virginia Tech
Blacksburg Virginia 24061 US
540-231-6308
specref@vt.edu