Wheeler, Lysander (fl. 1837-1903) to his parents, [brother-in-law], and sister
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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC07460.039 Author/Creator: Wheeler, Lysander (fl. 1837-1903) Place Written: Murfreesboro, Tennessee Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 12 July 1863 Pagination: 4 p. : envelope ; 25 x 20 cm. Order a Copy
Thanks his family for sending him the trunk of food and writes that it came at a good time because rations have been meager. Jokes that he will take his trunk with him now that he knows it can be carried and will give it furlough when it needs to return home. Writes that he wishes General John Hunt Morgan would massacre all the Copperheads in Indiana and "get massacred himself and all his crew". Also writes that the war would end more quickly if the Rebels "penetrated all the way up to Chicago" as the Northern Copperheads would "get sacked up". Praises Rosecrans and the fall of Vicksburg. Reports that a soldier was fined $13 or one month's pay for negligence of duty while on guard. Addresses his family's query about rumors heard in Sycamore, Ill regarding local soldiers. Wheeler writes that one of the men in the company has been accused of writing these rumors. He warns his family to be careful about what they say to others regarding what he writes home. Discusses falling asleep on guard and reporting others who do so. Expresses interest in running a canal boat for income instead of farming.
Lysander Wheeler, a farmer from Sycamore, Illinois, enlisted in the Union Army on August 7, 1862 as a private. He was mustered into Company C of the 105th Illinois infantry and later promoted to sergeant. Wheeler was mustered out on June 7, 1865.
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