JULY 15th.—There was a rumor of another battle beyond the Potomac, this morning, but it has not been confirmed. From Charleston we have no news; but from Jackson there has been considerable fighting, without a general engagement. The Enquirer and Sentinel to-day squint at a military dictatorship; but President Davis would hardly attempt such a [...]
JULY 14th.—To-day we have tidings of the fall of Port Hudson, on the Mississippi River, our last stronghold there. I suppose some 10,000 or 12,000 of our men had to surrender, unconditionally. Thus the army of Gen. Pemberton, first and last, some 50,000 strong, has been completely destroyed. There is sadness and gloom throughout the [...]
July 14th. General Lee and the rebel army have crossed the Potomac River into Virginia. I saw a number of prisoners who were taken at the river. They informed us that we were too late, Lee was pushing up the valley. We are again on the march, going south, up and over the South Mountain. [...]
JULY 13th.—The Enquirer says the President has got a letter from Gen. Lee (why not give it to the people?) stating that his operations in Pennsylvania and Maryland have been successful and satisfactory, and that we have now some 15,000 to 18,000 prisoners, besides the 4000 or 5000 paroled. Nonsense! Lee and Meade have been [...]
JULY 12th.—There is nothing additional this morning from Charleston, Mississippi, or Maryland. Telegraphic communication is still open to Jackson, where all was quiet again at the last accounts; but battle, then, must occur immediately. From Charleston we learn that Beauregard had repulsed every assault of the enemy. It is rumored that Lee’s account of the [...]
July 10th. Shall I cry, faint, scream, or go off in hysterics? Tell me which, quickly; for to doubt this news is fine and imprisonment, and if I really believe it I would certainly give way to my feelings and commit some vagaries of the kind. My resolution is formed! I will do neither; I [...]
JULY 10th.—This is the day of fate—and, without a cloud in the sky, the red sun, dimly seen through the mist (at noonday), casts a baleful light on the earth. It has been so for several days. Early this morning a dispatch was received from Gen. Beauregard that the enemy attacked the forts in Charleston [...]
July 10th. Continual skirmishing going on with the rebs between Sharpsburg and Hagerstown, Maryland. Reported that General Lee is trying to cross the Potomac River into Virginia. We are either skirmishing or changing our position most of the time so that we are kept on the go about all the time and most of the [...]
JULY 9th.—The sad tidings from Vicksburg have been confirmed by subsequent accounts. The number of men fit for duty on the day of capitulation was only a little upwards of 7000. Flour was selling at $400 per barrel! This betrays the extremity to which they had been reduced. A dispatch to-day states that Grant, with [...]
WILLIAMSPORT, MD., July 8, 1863. My Dear Mother: As I think there will be an opportunity of sending off a letter in a day or two, I believe I will drop you a few lines to let you know of some of my adventures since I last wrote you (Winchester). We have had rain every [...]
JULY 8th.—I am glad to copy the following order of Gen. Lee : “HEADQUARTERS ARMY NORTHERN VIRGINIA, “CHAMBERSBURG, PA., June 27th, 1863. “GENERAL ORDERS No. 73. ………………….“The commanding general has observed with marked satisfaction the conduct of the troops on the march, and confidently anticipates results commensurate with the high spirit they have manifested. No [...]
Portland, Ala., July 8, 1863.–My mother ill at her home on the plantation near here–where I have come to see her. But to go back first to my trip home from Flat Rock to Camden. At the station, I saw men sitting on a row of coffins smoking, talking, and laughing, with their feet drawn [...]
JULY 7th.—It appears that the fighting near Gettysburg began on Wednesday, July 1st, continued until Sunday, the 5th, and perhaps longer. Up to Friday the Northern papers claim the advantage. This morning at 1 P.M. another dispatch was received from the same (unofficial) source, stating that on Sunday the enemy made a stand, and A. [...]
July 7th. Near where General Reno fell, during the battle of Antietam. Passed down the west side of the mountain into the Antietam country, becoming a part of the 3d Corps, Army of the Potomac, General French commanding, taking part in the battle of Boonsborough, and supporting the cavalry at the battle of Falling Waters. [...]
JULY 6th.—Yesterday evening we received Baltimore and New York papers with accounts (and loose ones) of the battle of Gettysburg. The Governor of Pennsylvania says it was “indecisive,” which means, as we read it, that Meade’s army was defeated. The forces (Federal) are withdrawing from the neighborhood of this city, another indication that Lee has [...]
July 5th. Left camp very early this morning. A heavy downpour of rain. Passed through Georgetown, on through Washington. The mud in Pennsylvania Avenue was ankle deep. Marching very hard and disagreeable, so much so that we were obliged to take off our leggins and throw them away. Our first time in Washington. Boarded a [...]
JULY 5th.—This morning the wires refused to work, being cut, no doubt, in Hanover County. The presence of the enemy in this vicinity, I think, since they refuse to fight, is designed to prevent us from sending more troops into Pennsylvania. I trust the President will think of this matter, if he is well enough; [...]
JULY 4th.—The Department Guard (my son with them) were marched last night back to the city, and out to Meadow Bridge, on the Chickahominy, some sixteen miles! The clerks, I understand, complain of bad meat (two or three ounces each) and mouldy bread ; and some of them curse the authorities for fraudulent deception, as [...]
From the diary of Osborn H. Oldroyd THE FOURTH OF JULY! The siege is at last ended. Behold the white flag now waving over the rebel ramparts. Vicksburg has at length surrendered. Speed the glad news to our loved ones at the North, who, during our long trial, have helped us with their prayers. [...]
From the diary of Osborn H. Oldroyd JULY 3D.–Uncle Sam’s cashier has arrived at last, and we have been paid for two months’ service. The married men are quite anxious to send their money home to their wives and little ones. It is risky sending money North from here, yet, to some, more dangerous [...]
JULY 3D.—My son Custis stayed out all night, sleeping on his arms in the farthest intrenchments. A little beyond, there was a skirmish with the enemy. We lost eight in killed and wounded. What the enemy suffered is not known, but he fell back, and ran toward the White House. This morning, Mr. Child, agent [...]
July 3, 1863, The New York Herald Two years have now passed since Semmes commenced his piratical cruise in the Sumter, since which time about one hundred and fifty of our vessels — valued, with their cargoes, at ten millions of dollars — have been captured by vessels under the Confederate flag, and still nothing [...]
JULY 2D.—The President is unwell again; to what extent I have not learned. But the Vice-President is ready, no doubt, to take his place in the event of a fatal result; and some would rejoice at it. Such is the mutability of political affairs! The Attorney-General Watts, being referred to, sends in a written opinion [...]
From the diary of Osborn H. Oldroyd JULY 2ND.–This is Camp Tiffin. Our regiment was favored to-day with a large mail, and nothing could have been more acceptable. Letters from home were looked into first, and next, of course, came sweethearts. One letter was read aloud, describing the capture of a butternut camp, in [...]
Lagrange, Tenn., July 1, 1863. Everything moves quietly here. No more alarms or anything else to “bust” the confounded monotony of garrison life. A guerrilla was brought in yesterday who has murdered at least one of our soldiers, and an unarmed one at that. He rests comfortably now with a nice lot of jewelry on [...]