Our Collection

At the Institute’s core is the Gilder Lehrman Collection, one of the great archives in American history. More than 85,000 items cover five hundred years of American history, from Columbus’s 1493 letter describing the New World through the end of the twentieth century.

Ewing, Philemon (1820-1896) to William T. Sherman

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC03601.06 Author/Creator: Ewing, Philemon (1820-1896) Place Written: Lancaster, Ohio Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 9 October 1863 Pagination: 3 p. ; 20.5 x 25.4 cm. Order a Copy

This letter is the final copy of Philomen Ewing's letter to Sherman consoling him on the death of his son William. GLC03601.05 is a draft copy of the letter. The text differs slightly. Sherman's son, William T. Sherman, died in Memphis on 3 October 1863 of yellow fever.

Sherman was adopted by Thomas Ewing, an Ohio Senator and U. S. Secretary of the Treasury, after Sherman's father died in 1829. Philemon, Charles, Thomas, and Hugh Ewing were Thomas Ewing's sons and grew up as Sherman's adoptive brothers.

Ewing, Philemon, 1820-1896
Sherman, William T. (William Tecumseh), 1820-1891

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