Lt. Col. A. P. Porter Copybook
Scope and Content
This collection consists of a copybook containing about 280 letters written by Lieutenant Colonel A. P. Porter of the Union Army's Commissary of Subsistence during the American Civil War. The letters include documentation about the shipping, maintenance, and distribution of large quantities of food and supply rations among the Union Army. Along with the transport and distribution of supplies, Porter also documented inventories of many resources including cattle, livestock, and other food supplies. Many of these letters are written to other Union officers including Col. A. Beckwith and Col. H. Clarke while Lieutenant Colonel Porter was stationed at General McClellan's Headquarters.
Dates
- 1862 - 1863
Creator
- Porter, A. P. (Person)
Language of Materials
The materials in the collection are in English.
Conditions Governing Access
The collection is open for 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 Note
Lieutenant Colonel A. P. Porter was the chief commissary of subsistence of the Fifth Army Corps, a member of the Army of the Potomac, during the American Civil War. He was promoted from Captain to Lieutenant Colonel sometime between the 18th and 21st of August, 1862. Acting with Captain George Bell and other prominent figures in the Union Army, Porter aided in the rationing of goods, establishment of depot sites, discharge of vessels, and construction of temporary wharves. He communicated via letters with other commissaries and army divisions in the region to send rations to such areas as Yorktown, Rockville, and other stations across the states of Virginia and Maryland.
Sources:
United States War Department. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. Series I, Volume XI, in Three Parts: Part I. Reports, Chapter XXIII: The Peninsular Campaign, Virginia, p. 176. Washington, D. C.: U. S. Government Printing Ofice, 1884. http://books.google.com/books?id=IvEUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA176&lpg=PA176&dq=a.+p.+porter+union+army+commissary+of+subsistence&source=bl&ots=kYnt8JahLJ&sig=BlbfQscIPTBrKA5KMDkdB3Sa7jY&hl=en&sa=X&ei=5e6DUoqYBKzE4APdkoHIDw&ved=0CCkQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=a.%20p.%20porter%20union%20army%20commissary%20of%20subsistence&f=false
http://ehistory.osu.edu/osu/sources/recordView.cfm?Content=103/0718
Extent
0.2 Cubic Feet (1 box)
Abstract
The collection includes a copybook and letters written by Union Lieutenant Colonel A. P. Porter in 1862 and 1863 that document the transportation, inventory, and distribution of supply rations during the American Civil War. The letters are written in chronological order within the copybook with about 22 outstanding letters that have been torn from the book, also arranged in chronological order.
Arrangement
Copybook contains letters written in chronological order from 1862-1863.
The succeeding folders contain outstanding letters that have been torn from the copybook, also in chronological order.
Source of Acquisition
The Lt. Col. A. P. Porter Copybook was acquired by Special Collections in 2001.
Rights Statement for Archival Description
The guide to the Lt. Col. A. P. Porter Copybook by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 (https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc0/).
Processing Information
Minimal initial description was completed in 2011. Additional processing, arrangement, and description of the Lt. Col. A. P. Porter Copybook was completed in November 2013.
- Title
- Lt. Col. A. P. Porter Copybook, 1862-1863
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Cort Rushton, Student Assistant, and Kira A. Dietz, Archivist
- Date
- 2013 (CC0 1.0)
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
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