Fred (fl. 1863) to his father
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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC08658 Author/Creator: Fred (fl. 1863) Place Written: s.l. Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 23 May 1863 Pagination: 4 p. ; 20.3 x 12.7 cm. Order a Copy
Written by a Union sailor aboard the USS "Morse". References his father's letter. Says that last Saturday "the mail boat was coming up and the rebels fired into her with field pieces and struck twice, and we got under way and went down and by the time we got there they had gone under[.] the captain was so mad he order us to shell all the houses on the bank of the river and we did to I tell you we fired all that afternoon ... then we went ashore and set all the buildings afire. I tell you we had some fun we burnt one house full of splendid furniture." Says he burned down 3 barns full of ham, grain, carts, and hay. Says in total they destroyed 500 bushels of grain and 10 houses, all belonging to one man. Says they have to convoy with the mail boat "for a while." Says that they recently captured 300 bushels of corn from a "secesh woman." In answer to a question in a previous letter says their captain does order them to kill pigs and cows. The name of the river where this pillaging occurred is given as Mattapony in seller's description.
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