*** Marion Brimberry has entrusted me with a folder of Civil War letters by William A. Smith and has asked me to type one letter every day or so and post it to this newsgroup. I have typed the letter true to the spelling and grammar of the letters in my possession. If I add any errors of my own, please forgive me. David Thomson *** Camp near New Madrid, Missouri Monday eve. March 17th, 1862 My Dear Wife:- I fear you are anxiously looking for letters from me and receiving none. Not that I do not write, for I have wrote to you three letters since I have been here, but it is reported here that our letters are detained at Commerce, Cape Girardeau and Cairo, and if that is the case, I am sure you are very uneasy about me. I think one of our men by the name of Sidwall will be discharged tomorrow. If so I will send this letter by him and you will be sure to get it, as he will either take it to Patoka or mail it somewhere along the line. I have received one letter from John Foster since I have been here and sent him an answer, but if you do not get your letters, he will not get that. I have wrote several notes to the neighbors so that you might possibly by that means hear from me. I am now looking for a big letter from you by every mail, for I wrote you from Cape Girardeau by Mrs. R.F. Young and then again from Commerce, with the word not to write to me till you heard me telling you where to direct to. So I will expect an answer to all three at once and I suppose it will make quite a large letter which I hope to get soon. I see by the latest papers that we have, that our forces have gained a splendid victory in Arkansas, also that Manassas has been evacuated and burned, that our forces have been doing well upon the coast of Florida. Surely the war cannot last very much longer. The enemy may possibly collect at some inaccessible spot and give us a great deal of trouble. They will certainly make a grand stand at the much boasted stronghold of Memphis, which place I now think will be our next place of attack. There is yet some room for a flight in this neighborhood for when the rebels evacuated Columbus, the second Manassas as they proudly termed Columbus, they dropped down to Island No. 10 where they are making a stand and there is no telling how long they will be there before we can overcome them, as there can be nothing done except with heavy cannon and we can only come at them from the upper river. So they can make all their defence at that point. I do hope however to yet be able to announce in this letter the arrival of our gunboats at New Madrid. I have never yet been down in town. Jack Foster and Clay and John Hamilton have been there with General Stanley, they being part of his bodyguard. There was not any person at all left in the place, neither citizen or soldier. They destroyed an immense amount of their property before they left and they threw a great many of their cannon in the river, which our men are busy getting out. They have succeeded in raising enough to make the whole number now in our possession from capture, 64. Major Applington yesterday evening joined our Regiment with the Third Battalion of our Regiment. They have been at Birds Point till now. There is still one company of our Regiment at Cape Girardeau. If they was here now our whole Regiment would be together once more. Captain Ghalegar lost two of his men killed at Charleston, Missouri while they was scouting as they came here. There is accidents happening here every day. There has been one man killed and several wounded by the explosion of the bomb shells that have been picked up after they was thrown at us. Then there is occasionally one gets shot by the accidental discharge of guns and pistols and it is a matter of wonder to me that there is not more shot than there is, there being so many that are careless in the handling of their arms. It is now night and there has been a heavy cannonading going on for some time up at Island no. 10 and still continues. The firing is certainly the heaviest that I have ever heard. It is about twelve miles from here and the shocks are quite heavy. I do hope that the morning the Rebels may be completely whipped out and give it up there. As it was your request some time ago, for me to be vaccinated, I will have it done in a day or two. I applied to the Surgeon at the hospital a few days ago to get it done and he had no vaccine but said he would have some in a few days and would do it for me. I should have had it done during the winter, but it would have been troublesome for me to bundle myself up on our scouts. There is none of our Company now in the hospital and but few of the Regiment. I rather think that gunpowder and exercise makes healthy soldiers. Foster Moon is improving in health. The rest of the boys are all well. F.W. Arnold is till driving a team. The rest of the boys are lamming around at their regular duties. We are again drilling every day, two or three hours, then we have Dress Parade almost every day. I wrote to you and to John Foster to have the Salem Advocate stopped unless they would direct it to the Regiment as well as the Company, so that I can get it, which I hope you will get him to see to at once. I think we will be paid off again in a few days, but I do not know how we will manage about sending our money home. If I can do no better I think I will risk sending you a few dollars in a letter, if we should be paid off soon. I would be very glad to be at home but do not now expect to very soon, unless there should be a great change in the military affairs of this world very soon. I hope however that you will make the best of your situation and try to be of a good cheer as you possibly can in the hope that Peace may soon be restored to our once happy country, and that we may soon all be able to return to our families to enjoy the Peace that will be the better enjoyed in consequence of having assisted in a very small degree to establish it. Oh! My God, with what shame ought the faces of our quasi Union neighbors to burn, but shame is no part of their natures, or they would have died of shame years ago. My sentiments towards such is well known to all the neighborhood, so that there is a very little use for me to withhold my opinion of them, even if I desire to do so. My prayer is that all traitors at home and abroad may soon see the error of their ways and repent, lest the proper judgement overtake them before they are aware that they are spotted by the authorities of this, the United States. Such are to be pitied. How is it now there with these that thought that the Northern men would not fight. Are they still of the same opinion, and can one Southern man still whip five Northern men. They are certainly bound to acknowledge in all truth and candor that they was mistaken for once. What do they think of the Southern men that abandon their forts without even the show of a fight. I hope you will send the children to school all the time that you can and try to encourage them to obey you. There is a great deal depends upon their minding you. Tell Diora that I want her to try to see how soon she can learn to write me a letter. Tell Byron that he must learn to read so that I can get him a paper with pictures in it, and while I think of it I want you to have the Circuit Preacher continue Diora’s paper and I will send you the money to pay him. Tell M. Hester that when “Pa” comes home he will bring her a nice little book. Tell W. Scott and Rollin what you think best. Tell Delila that she must come to see me this summer. And tell Mrs. Mray Smith for me that I will come to see her as soon as circumstances will permit and this one, without omitting anything, and the next and all the rest and if there is anything that I neglect to write about, if she will just tell me what it is, I will try to do better. Tell her to direct till further ordered, to New Madrid, Missouri. And tell her further, that the bugles are now sounding tattoo, which is a hint to go to bed and further tell her that this sheet of paper is ruined and that I know she is sleepy, so I had better not bother her any more tonight. Wishing you all a good nights sleep and pleasant dreams, I bid you good bye. William A. Smith

Thanks for the wonderful Civil War letter. I would hope that these would be posted on a permanent website for posterity. *** Marion Brimberry has entrusted me with a folder of Civil War letters by William A. Smith and has asked me to type one letter every day or so and post it to this newsgroup. I have typed the letter true to the spelling and grammar of the letters in my possession. If I add any errors of my own, please forgive me. David Thomson ***

*** Marion Brimberry has entrusted me with a folder of Civil War letters by William A. Smith and has asked me to type one letter every day or so and post it to this newsgroup. I have typed the letter true to the spelling and grammar of the letters in my possession. If I add any errors of my own, please forgive me. David Thomson *** Tuesday morning, 18th March 1862 The firing continued at intervals during the night and this morning about sunrise the whole atmosphere seemed to vibrate with the regular shocks of each gun which was fired very fast for considerable time, but it has nearly ceased now, there being only about one gun in five minutes. But it is a little like you was when you first heard a drum, it is like making thunder. I have just learned there is a regular mail established to this place that will bring our mail three times each week. I think you can now hear from me regular again until we are ordered to march. I have again this morning been over to the 22nd Regiment and saw those boys there that I am acquainted with. We are encamped about a mile and a half apart and the whole distance is a solid encampment in two rows about half a mile apart. I see this morning that five Regiments have been removed and I hear that they are going to Point Pleasant. Yesterday there came a Rebel boat down the river bearing a flag of truce and having on board 450 (or 50 ???) sick and wounded soldiers asking General Pope to allow them to pass down to be taken care of, but the General told them that we had some sick and wounded, but that he had no disposition to send them up the river home. That if they would land their sick here, he would have them provided for, as ours are provided for, but that the boat would not be allowed to proceed farther into Dixie. At this the boat returned up the river to take the chance of being captured or whip us out. The fire at the Island is increasing very fast. They are certainly having a tolerably hot time up there. I suppose that your Thursday’s paper will tell you all about it as well as the run from New Madrid. It may seem strange to you but you are all better posted upon how the war progresses than we are, who are actually engaged in it. I wish you would send me the Commercial, occasionally. Direct them just as you direct the letters. Lest you get tire of my scribbling, I thin I had better stop this time, but will soon write to you again. Hoping that you are well and enjoying yourselves. I bid you for the present, good bye. William A. Smith 5 o’clock P.M. We have just had orders to march to Point Pleasant tonight. We will be off at dark which will be in about two hours. The firing continues at Island No. 10. You will direct to New Madrid. W.A.S.

*** Marion Brimberry has entrusted me with a folder of Civil War letters by William A. Smith and has asked me to type one letter every day or so and post it to this newsgroup. I have typed the letter true to the spelling and grammar of the letters in my possession. If I add any errors of my own, please forgive me. David Thomson *** Camp near Point Pleasant, Missouri Monday morning March 24th, 1862 My Dear Wife:- I have been anxiously expecting a letter from you for four or five days, but am still disappointed. I mailed my last one to you on last Wednesday. We was then ordered to strike our tents and march for this place at 7 o’ clock P.M. We accordingly packed everything, took down our tents and just as we got everything loaded, the order was for our Company to stop till morning to guard the train of waggons. We soon had our horses unsaddled and went to roost without tents and slept very well till about two o’clock when there came a shower and rather made us bustle to get up our tents before everything got wet. We then got a good nap before morning. At about nine in the morning we started and about three in the evening we got to our camp ground about one and half miles back from the village. On Friday morning Sergeant R.L. Buy and me got into one of the waggons that was going for forage and rode down to town to get to see the place. There is a few good houses here but they have been nearly destroyed by the cannon balls passing through them. We have about half dozen small cannon along the bank of the river and our men have rifle pits dug along the bank for about half a mile. A rifle pit is a narrow hole dug in the ground about five or six feet long and as deep as a mans breast. Two men get in each of these pits with good Sharps rifles and when a boat attempts to land, the pick off those that try to run out the planks. When a cannon is fired, they just haul in their heads like terrapins and load their guns all ready for the next man that shows himself. The Rebels have two guns on the other bank in Tennessee. They fire at our men about three or four times each day. The distance is one and three quarters miles. While we was in one large store house looking how the balls had knocked things around, Bang went the gun across the river and whew, whiz came the ball. I was in the back room and stood listening, expecting the ball to strike the building we was in, for it is the one nearest the flag pole and it is cut up the worst. But the ball came whistling on and Crash. It went through the next house to us in which there was several men, but it did not hurt anyone. Our men picked up the ball. It was around a twelve pound ball and was fired at a team that was passing, but it was a little too high and rather ahead of the team. The gunners there said it was a good shot for the distance. Our flag is up on the pole that the secesh flag was on when our men took possession of the town. I did intend to write to you yesterday but at half past three yesterday morning our officers had notice to march at 7 o’clock with two days rations. Accordingly we was ordered and your humble servant packed his haversack with the dainties of a soldiers life, namely six crackers and a hunk of beef, and at 7 o’clock we was in the saddle. Just exactly six months from the time, even to the hour, if you recollect. We started southwest towards where the report says Thompson, Kitchens, and Bowles are said to be encamped with eight hundred men and four pieces of artillery. We went about twelve mile and came to a kind of a running lake called Little river, over which there is a bridge and one of the stringers was nearly chopped in two. While some of our men was examining the bridge to see whether we could cross, there was four men jumped out of a house on the opposite side and run for the woods like the old boy was after them. We crossed over and soon captured them. Here begins hat is called a plank road, it crosses a swamp and goes on toward Bloomfield. It is twelve miles from this and to where there is a ridge of high ground and on this ridge is where the Rebels are encamped. We started on the Plank road. It is only eight or ten feet wide and the grade is no wider than the planks are. There is about every half mile a place made with dirt for a waggon to switch off on while another passes. At first the swamp is only wet land but gradually getting wetter, till it is all water. Then the water gets deeper till it is a lake and the whole country as far as the eye can see is one vast lake. The only ground visible is the road which is about three feet high and nearly the whole country is covered with cypress saplings about the size of telegraph poles and where the water is not too deep, the small bushes are covered with a kind of small vine that mats all over them like hop vines. Along the road there is bridges to let the water pass and in some places it runs with considerable force. We had left one company to guard the bridge and prisoners and gone about seven miles when firing commenced at the front. The order was given for the first part to dismount and pass forward. I gave my horse to Haley and went to the front with the rest and found that our advance guard had come upon the rebel pickets and exchanged shots with them. The pickets had torn up a bridge and when they fired they started towards camp. We put more planks on the bridge and passed to where they had stood. There was here a Toll gate and house, the front end standing on the edge of the road and the back end on blocks. There was here some canoes and great many steel traps, two bed steads and beds, a few cocking tools and a small wagon without any bed, but nary body. The picket guard as they retreated, shoved the planks off of the bridges which we replaced with planks off of the road. After awhile we came to a place where they had left the bridges whole. We then let down to the work of overtaking them, but when they heard us coming they again commenced to destroy bridges, but we was there before they could finish their work and they scattered into the swamp, leaving three of their horses, blankets, overcoats, etc and one gun. They fired at us from their cover of brush and the fire was returned by us. They wounded four of our men, two of whom died, one died last night on the road, the other this morning just after he was brought in, after the firing was over. Our wounded men was placed on blankets and carried by hand back to the Toll gate where they took down a door and placed it on the hind wheels of the waggon that we found there and put the worst wounded prisoners on it and pulled it by hand till we met the doctor and the ambulance. Then the wounded men was taken into a house and their wounds dressed, but one of them died during the night and this morning the other one died in a few minutes after they was brought here. The doctor saw that he was dying and told them to not move him till he died, so he died in the ambulance. They was both shot in the body, the others, one was shot through the arm and the other slightly wounded in the feet. The one that was shot in the arm was a brother to one that died. They stood close together when they was shot. Their names were Cockerell of Company “K”. We got into camp exactly at midnight. I cannot tell what will be done about them out there in the swamp. Perhaps we will give them a fight in a few days, but I will if permitted, give you an account of them at some future time. There was one man of this Regiment wounded in the foot while on picket duty by the accidental discharge of his carbine. I have known several such cases and the wonder with me is that there is so few wounded or killed so. It is two o’clock P.M. and there is a squad of soldiers starting to take those prisoners that we captured yesterday to General Popes Headquarters at New Madrid. I am notified that I am on guard tonight so I will have to wind up this letter rather soon as I want it to go in the morning mail and I will not be in till after it is gone. We have no news from Island No. 10. I hope that you will be able to tell me of its capture in your next letter. Say, what must I do if I do not get any more letters from you, or do you get any from me. The boys are taking their turn at the mumps, Will Knight and some of the rest have already had them and William A. Arnold has them now. I suppose it will be my turn after they are all well, if there is any left after going the rounds. My health is as good as you could ask for me. I hope that you are all well. For the present you will have to excuse me. Yours truly, William A. Smith

*** Marion Brimberry has entrusted me with a folder of Civil War letters by William A. Smith and has asked me to type one letter every day or so and post it to this newsgroup. I have typed the letter true to the spelling and grammar of the letters in my possession. If I add any errors of my own, please forgive me. David Thomson *** Point Pleasant, Missouri Sunday night, March 30th, 1862 My Dear Wife:- Yours of the 7th and 8th inst. was handed to me this evening. I was glad to receive a letter for it had been a month since I even heard from you. I am sorry that you are afflicted with the sun pain again this spring. Why don’t you try the garlic on your big toe. I did intend to write a note to you yesterday but was detailed to take a squad of nine men and go with thirty others under the charge of Capt. Nelson, down into the swamp to hunt beef cattle and we did not get back till late this evening and when I got into camp your letter was here. The 26th had quite a little battle last night with a flat boat that dropped in close to the shore, with the evident intention of either attacking our picket on the bank or capturing some of our small cannons, but the firing from our boys was rather too warm to suit them and they steered into the current and floated by, no damage done to any one so far as is known. Island no. 10 is still in the seceshers hands and may possibly be so for some time to come. We are now enjoying real soldiers life, plenty of hard and dangerous word and some days, pretty hard fare, something like some of our friends are no doubt enjoying at home. Corn bread, mush and corn coffee for breakfast, corn coffee mush and corn bread for dinner, and then for the sake of variety we take the same for supper. Then maybe the next day we get plenty of crackers and meat, sugar coffee, etc. Sergeant Breeze says for me to tell you that he has gone to bed and is well. Sergeant Bebe has been sick a few days but is better. Corporal Young was rather under the weather a few days but is now well. John M. Hamilton has a severe cough for a few days. Foster Moon is better. He was out with me yesterday and today. I think he will soon be stout. I have lately received a letter from Lucy and Nancy and have answered Lucy’s and will answer Nancy’s in a few days. Tell her that she will have to pay the postage on it for I am almost out of stamps and there is none to be bought here. However I think she will be glad to pay the postage on a letter from me. I have quite a lot of stamped envelopes, etc papers, in my trunk at Commerce, but I don’t know when I will get it. Lieut. Charlie Lee is still there and I don’t know when he will rejoin us. I wish he was here now. Nancy says she heard that our Regiment was to be disbanded. Such a thing seems quite probable but I am not expecting such a thing. You will excuse me for not writing more, for the camp is in a perfect uproar. Bob Guy is just like Eli. W. Boring, he will argue anything he pleases and he is bothering me so that I can hardly write. I hope to get another letter from you in a day or two. We are about to have a Grand Review tomorrow. In my next I may tell something about it. For the present, Good bye, William A. Smith

*** Marion Brimberry has entrusted me with a folder of Civil War letters by William A. Smith and has asked me to type one letter every day or so and post it to this newsgroup. I have typed the letter true to the spelling and grammar of the letters in my possession. If I add any errors of my own, please forgive me. David Thomson *** New Madrid, Missouri Saturday night, April 12th, 1862 My Dear Wife:- I again have the privilege of addressing you. My health is good. I have been a little unwell for a few days in consequence of my vaccination, but have kept going all the time and am now about well. We moved up to this place yesterday evening and the rain wet all of our things, the rain lasted all night and till about ten o’clock today and even now there is an occasional shower and we are under marching orders with four days cooked rations. We go down the river I think our destination is Fort Pillow, but we can only conjecture. I think we will have something to do about Fort Pillow or Memphis. You remember that Memphis was the first place talked about as being so strong that it could never be taken by the Union forces. I think there will now be a chance to test that matter. I hope however that it may be taken without much bloodshed. Oh!! Was not that a dreadful battle at Corinth. Colonel Hall that was our first Major was killed there and Colonel Hainie. You will see the particulars in the papers by the time you get this note (for I cant write a letter). Our sick will go to St. Louis by the first boat, among them are Eldridge Jones and John M. Hamilton and our Q.M. Sergeant Treibel who was wounded by the tree. I am now acting for him. He will go home from there. If we don’t go tomorrow, I will see John and Eldridge and write Lucy and tell how they are. I received two papers from here enclosing a letter and postage stamp and I will answer it the first opportunity. I this evening received yours dated April 6th to 9th. I wrote you one last Sunday which you ought to have got Thursday, but you don’t get letters from the office as soon as if I was at home. I think I will send my overcoat home tomorrow if we do not move. We will send a box of them directed to Dave. He will get them and you can get mine from there if they ever get through. If I send them I will send a letter in the box with them. I am acquainted with Sam Williams and I thought you were. I am sorry t hear of the worms on the apples and glad that you are trying to keep them off. I hope you will get George to tend them good and also those grafts. Colonel Kellogg has not resigned out I heard today that he has been promoted to Brigadier General. Cant say as to the truth of that but I believe it is so. You have seen the accounts of the evacuation of Island No. 10 and the large number of prisoners that we took. There has been today about twenty five gun boats and transports gone down from here. There is not now enough transports here to take off all the troops that are here, but will no doubt be here before morning. If I am not mistaken, on year ago today, this war was begun by the bombing of Fort Sumpter and what a legacy has it entailed on the whole people, both north and south. I will close by subscribing myself. Your Husband William A. Smith