Wallen, Henry Davies (1819-1886) [Handwritten copies of documents pertaining to the Adjutant General Department's continued rejection of Wallen's requests]
High-resolution images are available to schools and libraries via subscription to American History, 1493-1943. Check to see if your school or library already has a subscription. Or click here for more information. You may also order a pdf of the image from us here.
Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC04742 Author/Creator: Wallen, Henry Davies (1819-1886) Place Written: s.l. Type: Autograph manuscript signed Date: circa November 1863 Pagination: 10 p. ; 32.3 x 20.3 cm. Order a Copy
Contains responses to Wallen's repeated requests to see action in the Army of the Potomac, and his belief that he was not promoted because he was a Southerner (he was born in Georgia, and served in Florida before the Civil War). The manuscript includes copies of letters and an inserted printed copy of General Order No. 28. Dates of letters span from 8 January 1862- November 1863. Includes Wallen's order to New Mexico, the decline of his appeal to be relieved from his assignment in New Mexico, the application of General John C. Fremont to assign Wallen to his department (and the rejection of this application by the Secretary of War), and other applications on Wallen's behalf. All were denied. General Orders No. 28 relieve Wallen of service in New Mexico, reassigning him to Fort Sumner. In closing, Wallen writes, "I have made no application to shirk from duty but simply to join my Regiment or be connected with Troops in the field- My applications are on file in the War Dept- I have never, in nearly twenty four years service, been repremanded, arrested, or censured in any manner; & I ask, from any unprejudiced mind, if I have been treated with proper consideration by the Adjutant General of the Army." Bound at the top with string.
Wallen served as acting assistant inspector-general of the Department of New Mexico June 1862- June 1864 and commanded a regiment at Fort Schuyler 1864-1865. He was brevetted Brigadier General 13 March 1865, commanded Governor's Island, New York, 1867-1869, and accompanied the Yellowstone expedition of 1872. Lorenzo Thomas was United States Adjutant General during the Civil War.
Citation Guidelines for Online Resources
The copyright law of the United States (title 17, United States Code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. Under certain conditions specified in the law, libraries and archives are authorized to furnish a photocopy or other reproduction. One of these specific conditions is that the photocopy or reproduction is not to be “used for any purpose other than private study, scholarship, or research.” If a user makes a request for, or later uses, a photocopy or reproduction for purposes in excess of “fair use,” that user may be liable for copyright infringement. This institution reserves the right to refuse to accept a copying order if, in its judgment, fulfillment of the order would involve violation of copyright law.