Blakeslee, Amos C., 1826-? [Diary of Civil War surgeon]

Medical diary by U. S. Army contract surgeon covering the Union hospitals in and around Philadelphia. The bulk of the entries appear between 14 September 1862 and 23 November 1862. Comments on his hospital work, in which he treated wounded soldiers, and records news received from the frontlines. On 14 September he notes a flood in Philadelphia in which "some lives were lost." On 15 September he indicates that General George McClellan "reported a glorious victory" and two days later records hearing about Colonel Miles's death and surrender to the Confederates at Harper's Ferry. On 7 October, he heard about "some 1800 prisoners at Corinth." Discusses a Philadelphia election on 14 October. On 4 November, he writes: "I will have to take the oath of Alegiance." The next day he "had a strange case of a men being shot in the neck." On 17 November, he notes that "we are fattening up the men to join their regiments." There are additional enties on 21 March, when in Baltimore he noted "the fore part of the night - I spent at the Theatre." On 4 September, a man named Daniel Kessel was discovered dead in Washington, D.C. There are also entries on 4-5 December. There is one other entry on 25 February that internally is dated 15 July 1892. Written mostly in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Signed by Blakeslee.