HDQTS. SPECIAL BRIGADE, NEAR RAPIDAN STATION, VA., March 23rd, 1862. My Dear Mother: We received your letter last night dated the 6th of March. ‘Tis the first time any of us have heard from home within the last two weeks. We have had considerable excitement since you last heard from us. To-day, two weeks ago, [...]

March 14, 1862. Dear Mother: We are all well as can be expected from the situation that we are now in. We have retreated from Manassas on account of not being able to hold our position. We are now 25 miles from Manassas, across the Rappahannock, and camped upon a high hill that commands a [...]

MANASSAS JUNCTION, VA., March 5, 1862. Dear Mother: As I have nothing to do to-day, I thought I would let you all know how we are getting along. The weather is still very bad, ground muddy and miry as it can be. We all have had orders to have our heavy baggage ready to send [...]

MANASSAS JUNCTION, February 22, 1862. Dear Mother: I did not intend to write before the Captain came back, but as one of our men is going home on a sick furlough I though I would write a few lines to let you know how we are. I expect the Captain is at Richmond at the [...]

MANASSAS JUNCTION, VA., January 16, 1862. Dear Sister: I received your letter some days since and was very much rejoiced to hear from you, but I thought that you were a very long time in answering my last. It came at last and eagerly did I devour the contents and with what pleasure I lingered [...]

MANASSAS JUNCTION, VA., December 9, 1861. Dear Mother: I received your letter some days since and was very glad to hear from you and would have answered immediately but Walter has gone to Richmond and I thought I would wait until he came back. He went with a detail of men to carry prisoners who [...]

MANASSAS JUNCTION, VA., November 2, 1861. Dear Father: I received your letter this morning through Captain Barnes and I never was more surprised in my life, to hear that you had applied for my dismissal for, although I should like very much to go home, I do not like the idea of being discharged from [...]

CAMP PICKINS, MANASSAS, VA., NOV. 2, 1861. Dear Sir: Yours of the 29th ult. was received to-day, contents duly noted, and I hasten to reply. I must confess to a feeling of surprise that you desire the discharge of your son, Mr. G. B. Lee Battle1, 2, 3, 4, 5, from service, as I was [...]

MANASSAS JUNCTION, VA., October 24, 1861. Dear Mother: I received your letter this morning and was very glad to hear from you all, but was very sorry to hear that sister was sick. There were 544 prisoners brought in here yesterday morning from Leesburg, an account of which you have seen in the paper ere [...]

MANASSAS JUNCTION, October 11, 1861 Dear Mother: I would have written as soon as I received your letter if the box had come with it, but as the captain could not bring them with him, he had to get them transported on freight, which did not arrive until yesterday. You never saw such a mess [...]

MANASSAS JUNCTION, August 23, 1861. My Dear Mother: We received your letter this morning when John Clark came. George wrote a day or two ago, which you had hardly received when you last wrote. There is no news of any kind worth writing. George and myself are both well at present. It has been raining [...]

COMPANY F., FOURTH REGIMENT, N. C. STATE TROOPS. NEAR MANASSAS JUNCTION, VA., July 31, 1861. Dear Mother: This is the first opportunity I have had of writing to you since I’ve been here. We do not live as well here as we have, but we make out very well. We have to walk about a [...]

RICHMOND, VA., July 22, 1861. My Dear Mother: As George wrote two or three times since I have, I told him I would write when we got to Richmond. The first thing I knew this morning was that he was writing home, so I told him to leave some room for me and I would [...]

RICHMOND, VA., July 22, 1861. Dear Mother: We arrived here yesterday, and had to walk about four miles to our camps, with our knapsacks on our backs, and everything necessary to soldiers. Before we left Camp Hill, we got our state uniform, blankets and all the accouterments. We were nearly worn out after having walked [...]

CAMP HILL, N. C., July 9, 1861. Dear Mother: We arrived here about night, the day we left Wilson, and having raised our tents prepared to get supper, which we got about 9 o’clock. We are encamped in an old pine field, which is very hot, but the other companies that were here before have [...]

FORT MACON, N. C., April 28, ’61. Dear Mother: As there is a man going by Clayton tomorrow I thought I would write you a few lines, to let you know how we are getting along. We are enjoying ourselves as well as can be expected. We had prayers and singing this morning by Mr. [...]

FORT MACON, N. C., April 19, 1861. Dear Mother: Our company arrived here this morning at 8 o’clock. We had to stay at Beaufort last night, the water being too rough to carry us over last night. I intended to have written last night while at Beaufort, but we were so completely worn out with [...]