Wood, Matthew (fl. 1862-1865) to Sarah Wood
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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC02176.24 Author/Creator: Wood, Matthew (fl. 1862-1865) Place Written: Savannah, Georgia Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 23 December 1864 Pagination: 4 p. ; 20.1 x 25.1 cm. Order a Copy
Written from Savannah, Georgia to his wife. Describes the march through Georgia from Atlanta to Savannah, after receiving orders from General Judson Kilpatrick, and being harassed by guerrilla fighters. Describes the destruction in good detail: "All the main wealth of the country was consumed by fire as we marched along the country was filled with smoke." Joins with General Judson Kilpatrick's division, who had a fight with Joseph Wheeler's cavalry, and they are then pursued by Wheeler's men. Moves on to Macon and Waynesboro. Describes being driven from camp by shelling as "the most trying scene of my life" I could hear the jagged pieces of iron a whizzing and cutting the limbs."
Matthew Wood served in the Ohio Ninth Cavalry with Burnside's army in Tennessee, and William T. Sherman's army at the burning of Atlanta and capture of Savannah.
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