107th Infantry CIVIL WAR LETTER Written from Camp near Woodsonville, Kentucky

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107th Infantry CIVIL WAR LETTER Written from Camp near Woodsonville, Kentucky :
$62.00

Civil War Letter

George Messer, ca. 1860. Enlistment records say he had dark hair and blue eyes.

About George Messer - 107th Infantry - Letter Written in 1862 from a Camp near Woodsonville, Kentucky.

Research & Full Transcript follows.

George Messer of the 107th Illinois Infantry was “a good man and a man that I thought a heap of. He was liked in his company and regiment but he is now gone where there is no trouble, no war, nor no fighting. Tell his wife that he is buried nice and was well cared for whilst sick.” So wrote a fellow soldier following the discovery of George’s death from chronic diarrhea late in December 1863 at the Lamar House Hospital in Knoxville, Tennessee.

There is nothing remarkable about George Messer to distinguish him from the thousandsof men who answered their country’s call for volunteers to put down the rebellion. He was a simple carpenter from rural Illinois who sought toacquirehis share of the American dream — a home to call his own and a loving family to love and support. Buthis sense of patriotic duty caused him toput those dreams on hold until the rebellion was ended. Unfortunately for George — and the family he left in Illinois — that day did not come before he succumbed to the disease that plagued him throughout most of his term of service. Though he never fired a gun at the enemy, he did not desert nor shirk his duty when he was capable of fulfilling it like several others in his regiment. Though he saw others less qualified than himself rise to positions of leadership in the regiment, he maintained his spirit and did his best to comfort and give hope to those he left behind in Illinois.

TRANSCRIPTION

Letter No. 7

Camp of the 107th [Illinois Regiment] near Woodsonville, Kentucky
February 13th A.D. 1863

Dear Wife,

I seat myself today to write you a few lines to let you know that I am well and hearty again and able to knock around as usual and I hope that this will find you and Eddy well too. I have not received any letter from you since the 7th which was No. 2. I have been looking for a letter from you for the last three days. The mail has not yet come in today. I am looking for it now every minute and I feel in hopes that I will hear from you today.

Wesley [McNulty] has got well again and was detailed on the Color Guard this morning. We have been waiting for our pay all week. We expect the Pay Master will commence to pay us this afternoon. He says that he will pay us up to the 31st of December which will be nearly four months pay. I may possibly get to come home in a week or so but I don’t much expect it. Colonel Hobson, the commander of this post, is going to try and get leave to let two go home from each company at a time. I will see and if I don’t get to come, I will send you what money I can spare by old George Clifton. He is here now and is going to start home next Monday. I will have him to bring it to you or leave it in the care of John J. McGraw for you. I would like to come home to see you but it will cost me so much to go home and back — it won’t cost less than $28.00 for the trip — and I am hardly able to spend so much. I would like to keep some money by me and I want you to have all I can spare.

I was rather lucky about a week ago. I was tramping around and picked up a pocketbook with twelve dollars in it. I have not found any owner for it yet and I may possibly get to keep it. There is no one in our camp that has lost it — or at least no one claims it yet. When you get what money I can spare, I want you to keep a good part of it for to buy things for you and Eddy or keep it all if you need it. And if you don’t need it, do as you think best with it. I want to send you at least thirty dollars and perhaps more.

I will stop writing for a little while and see if I will get any letter from you today. I will have time enough to finish my letter as the mail won’t go out until tomorrow at 9 o’clock. Then for a little while, darling, goodbye hoping that I may hear from you today.

I have just received letters No. 3 & 4 from you. I am very glad to hear from you too. Am glad to hear that you are well. I was so afraid that your eyes was getting so bad. You did not say anything about them. I would be so glad to get yours and Eddies likeness. I will send you mine the first of next week if I can get it taken. I have only 55 cts. left now besides that I found.

Reuben Robbins died night before last and I loaned all I had and give together to send him home. I will give as long as I have a dollar to send any of our boys [bodies] home. I will get part of it back again. The Pay Master is here now and is now paying Company C. Our company will be paid tomorrow. And then the boys will have plenty of money. You need not be uneasy about me. I am faring very well. We don’t see one half the hardships here that some of the other regiments have seen. We have never had to wade through mud and water nor lay out of doors and have always had enough to live on although it was little enough sometimes. We have plenty to eat now although it is not of as good quality as the most of us sometimes had at home but we have no reason to complain for fear of worse. Don’t send me any money unless I call for it for be assured I will let you know whenever I get out and there is danger of its being lost and I will save enough to do me for awhile.

I have almost rued that I sent that order to Thomas Kelley to prevent the Old Man from getting wood of my timber and if he will do what is right with the other things, I will let him have firewood there yet. And if T. Kelley has not give him that notice yet, tell him that he may omit that for the present. He has tried to use us wrong and has wronged us, I think, but he may have that much yet. And if he has been notified that he must not take anymore timber, I want you or T. Kelley — if he is there yet — to drop him a few lines for me through the Post Office or hand it to him giving him the privilege of getting firewood. I will say no more about that for the present. You need not be afraid of offending me by telling me anything about things there for it is a favor that I highly prize for I am always glad to hear from you about anything that should be alike interesting to us. Do always as you think best with everything and you may may be assured that I will always be satisfied with what you may do.

I have not very much to write at this time and you may not get as long letter from me as I received today, but I will write about something although it may not amount to very much. We have a very nice day today but for the last four or five days it has been rather stormy — raining nearly all the time — and it is very muddy. But it is never so deep as it sometimes gets in Illinois. And when it stops raining, the mud soon dries up.

You spoke about me getting the second lieutenant’s place. There will not be any chance for me to get that place until Captain Wismer is mustered out of the service and perhaps not then. Wismer will be put out certain — at least it won’t do for him to come here and undertake to take command of the company. He would be arrested so quick that it would make his head swim for he has not used the company anyways near right nor the officers either.

I will close for this evening and will finish in the morning and by that time I will have more to write about. I can’t think of much more to write so goodbye for one night more hoping that you are yet well and enjoying yourself.

Yours ever– George Messer

Dear Wife — I thought that I would write a few more lines tonight as I have nothing else to do. The boys are in good spirits on account of getting their money so soon. My pay will amount to about forty-nine dollars and a little over. There was three companies paid this evening and the others will be paid tomorrow if it is a favorable day. If tomorrow is a nice day, I will try and get my likeness taken so that I can send it to you by Mr. Clifton. There is such a rush for pictures that there won’t be a very good chance I am afraid for a few days yet. Henry Graham is here yet and is getting as fat as a hog. He has got a certificate for a discharge but I don’t know whether he will accept it or not. He tried some time ago to go to his regiment but the surgeon would not let him go. His legs were swelled then very bad.

Our sutler here is having some trouble about getting his money from the boys. Some of them have refused to pay him anything. For my part, I don’t owe him anything and don’t care how he comes out. He has sold things for two prices and I don’t blame the boys very much and the truth is, he never had the appointment as sutler.

We have pretty strict orders here now. We are not allowed to go very far from camp without a pass and our pass has to be signed by the Provost Marshal to go outside of the picket lines. It don’t make any difference with me for I seldom leave camp unless I am on duty which has not been very often for the last three weeks. We have had no fatigue duty to do for some time as it has been rather stormy to work on the fortifications.

We are fixed up pretty well in our tent now. We have raised our tent up about three feet and have set in puncheons all around and plastered up the cracks and have stretched our tent over the top of it. There is eight of us staying in this tent now. We have bunks put up and live at home and board at the same place and tomorrow we will all have a half dollar in our pockets.

I will now close for tonight. I would write more but I can’t send but two of these sheets at a time for three cents so I will fill two more about day after tomorrow and send them by Mr. Clifton and I have a notion to send most all of your letters home to you again and I want you to keep them for me till I come home. I want them taken care of and I will have them to read when I come home again.

But for tonight, I must close and will finish in the morning. Then for the night, goodbye, and may I have sweet dreams of thee, my wife, that is far away yet ever near to me and fondly shall I ever cherish thee as a loving wife and true friend. Goodbye again for tonight. — George

February 14th

Dear Wife — I this morning will try and finish my letter. I am defeated for Third Sergeant. John Graham wanted to have an election but the Lieutenant-Colonel took the case in his hands and appointed A. J. Blackford and gave him a warrant of office. The boys are very much dissatisfied about it.

I feel well and hearty this morning. Some of the boys are unwell yet. Tillman Martin is the worst of any of them and he is getting some better & William Despaine is getting up again. Brook Roberts, I think, will get a discharge. He is getting better but will never be able for the service again. Reuben Robbins will be buried at the soldier’s graveyard in Clinton. He was started yesterday and sent to J. J. McGraw.

I must now close for this time and I will write aain tomorrow and let you know how much money I get and tell you how much I will send to you. Then for the present, goodbye. Kiss Eddy for me and keep some for yourself. I ever remain your faithful husband, — George Messer

To Lottie Messer

TERMS

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