Camp 103d Illinois Infantry, Jackson, Tenn., March 5, 1863. You certainly should not complain of my neglect, in writing no more than once in ten days while we are quartered at such an intolerably stupid place as this, for there really have not been two incidents ocurred worthy of notice, since we pitched our tents [...]

Camp 103d Illinois Infantry, Jackson, Tenn., February 25, 1863. I guess it’s full two weeks since I wrote you last, excepting a half sheet a few days ago. My reason is that it has been raining ever since, and my tent leaks so that (that’s rather a larger story than I think you’ll swallow, so [...]

Camp 103d Illinois Infantry, Jackson, Tenn., February 18, 1863. The prominent rumor to-day, and one in which there seems to be considerable stock taken, is that Governor Yates has obtained authority from the general government to have several regiments from Grant’s army returned to Illinois, as a kind of public police. That is, to repress [...]

Camp 103d Illinois Infantry, Jackson, Tenn., February 15, 1863. It’s 11 o’clock now, so I haven’t much time to write. We’ve been having some trouble in the regiment this week. The colonel appointed Lieutenant Mattison, captain of Company “I,” vice Medley, resigned, and Lieutenant Dorrance, captain of Company K, to fill the vacancy occasioned by [...]

Ninth.—Papers of the 6th give me much pleasure. The dashing move of the ram “Queen of the West,” the gallant fight of our soldiers at Corinth, are certainly enough good news for one day. At noon roll call to-day, I spoke to my men of the resolutions passed by the officers at Corinth and approved [...]

Camp 103d Illinois Infantry, Jackson, Tenn., February 7, ’63. There was a dose of medicine administered to the command in this district yesterday that will certainly be productive of good. I already feel that it has indued me with fresh vigor and really made me quite young again. “The sale or introduction of the Chicago [...]

Camp 103d Illinois Infantry, Jackson, Tenn., February 1, 1863. I’m on duty as “field officer of the day,” and have been temping around in the mud looking to policing, guards, etc., and just now a detail has come for me to go on picket to-morrow. I was only relieved from picket yesterday morning. We are [...]

Camp Reed, Jackson, Tenn., January 22, 1863. I received your four-volume letter of the 5th, 12th, 13th inst. last night, and return you my sincere thanks for the time and writing material you expended in my behalf. I suppose that you now understand why you did not receive my letters. You ask me how I [...]

The following material contains wording that is offensive to many in the world of today. However, the work is provided unedited for its historical content and context. Camp 103d Illinois Infantry, Jackson, Tenn., January 16, 1862. (1863) It commenced raining early the morning of the 14th and did not cease until about 2 a.m. the [...]

Camp 103d Illinois Infantry, Jackson, Tenn., January 12, 1863. Your letters are beginning to come through with more regularity and on decidedly better time. Have received your date of December 30, although the last was dated November 16th, and was the first you wrote after we left Peoria. You bewailed our being sent south of [...]

Holly Springs, Miss., January 7, 1862 1. The colonel and I were ordered to report here to give evidence before the “Court of Inquiry,” convened to inquire into the case of the 109th Illinois Infantry reported for disloyalty. I started from Jackson yesterday but had to lay over at Grand Junction last night waiting for [...]

January 4, 1863. There I quit, for we received orders to get ready at once to march to Jackson, Tenn. The colonel ordered me to take charge of the train (wagons) and with my company guard it through by the wagon road, while the other nine companies went through by railroad. The regiment got off [...]

Provost Marshal’s Office, Waterford, Miss., December 30, 1862. Fifteen days outside the world and still we live. No papers of later date than the 15th inst. have reached us, and ’twill be at least five days’ move before we can hope to see one. In that time there have been some six or eight fights [...]

Provost Marshal’s Office, Waterford, Miss., December 23, 1862. Suspect this will be my last from this country. Where the army is going I know not, but the divisions which have been in front are now filing past us, faces northward. The movement commencing at the time of the raid on Holly Springs, gives it the [...]

Provost Marshal’s Office, Waterford, Miss., December 12, ’62. From captain of the provost guard, I have been changed to provost marshal. I had charge of two companies, doing the guard duty for the provost of our division until yesterday; the division was ordered forward to Oxford, except our regiment, which was left to guard the [...]

Provost Marshal’s Office, 4th Division, Army of the Tennessee, near Tallahatchie, Miss., December 8, 1862. Still we tarry by the wayside anxiously awaiting the order to move forward. We did provide three days’ rations once, but devoured them without leaving camp. Two divisions, McKean’s and Ross’, have left here, while the remainder of the army [...]

Camp near the Tallahatchie, seven miles South of Holly Springs, Miss., December 3, 1862. We received marching orders at Lagrange, Tenn., at 9 o’clock p.m. on the 27th, and moved at 6 a.m. on the 28th, on the Holly Springs road. We marched some five miles and then waited four or five hours for the [...]

Camp 103d Illinois Infantry, La Grange, Tenn., November 21, 1862. Every one seems to think that we will start about day-after to-morrow, Monday. We have drawn eight days’ rations, and 200 rounds of ammunition has also been drawn for our corps. I don’t think we have more than 14,000 in our corps, Logan’s and McKean’s [...]

Camp at Lagrange, Tenn., November 17, 1862. Our whole regiment went on picket Saturday evening. Didn’t reach our posts until 9:30 p.m. Had plenty of fresh meat next day (notwithstanding stringent orders), and beautiful weather. Our going on picket saved us a tramp of 22 miles, for which I am duly grateful. They had a [...]

Camp at Lagrange, Tenn., November 15, 1862. We’re having more of a rest here than we anticipated when we arrived. Suppose that the organizing of the army into divisions and brigades delays us some; and, maybe, the change of commanders in the Potomac army has something to do with it. Or possibly we’re waiting for [...]

Camp at Lagrange, West Tennessee, November 7, 1862. To say that we have been crowded, jammed, put through, hustled, skited, etc., don’t half express the divil-of-a-hurry headquarters has shown and is showing us. We left Peoria one week ago last night, crossed the bridge at precisely 6 o’clock p.m. Since that we have traveled one [...]

Camp Peoria, October 3, 1862. I suppose this is the commencement of another series of letters from your army correspondent. You can’t imagine how kind of old-fashioned good it seems to be in camp again. You know, of course, that my lucky star still rules, and that I have been elected captain. I think I [...]

Tuscumbia, Ala., August 28, 1862. The order has been issued requiring battalion adjutants to be mustered out of the service, but Colonel Mizner insists on our remaining, and being either assigned to companies or made regimental adjutant commander and quartermaster, which offices this new law provides. General Oglesby wants me very much. I was down [...]

Note: This letter–a document written in 1862–includes terms and topics that may be offensive to many today.   No attempt will be made to censor or edit 19th century material to today’s standards. Tuscumbia, Ala., August 19, 1862. Tis the old, old, story, burning railroad bridges, skirmishing between our scouts and theirs, etc. They opened [...]