Contributed by Patten Free Library
Description
This two-page letter from George Pepper of the 7th Maine Regiment in May of 1862 to his mother Sophia attempted to reassure his parent that all was well and the Civil War would be over soon. Her high level of anxiety was prompted by the death of his older brother, Joseph, the month before this letter was written, on April 15, 1862.
As the 1865 publication "Maine in the War" noted, "the first man of the Union Army killed in McClellan's advance to Richmond, was private Joseph Pepper of Bath, a member of Company B, who was nearly cut in two by a piece of shell which also injured several others."
The 7th suffered heavy losses and the surviving members of the regiment were sent home in October of 1862 to both recover and recruit additional members. So Sophia Pepper did see her son again, but lost him to disease at the age of 22, in November of 1862.
George also left a young widow Ann Barstow Pepper whom he had married in the summer of 1861.
Transcription
About This Item
- Title: Civil War letter, George Pepper, 1862
- Creator: George Pepper
- Creation Date: 1862-05-23
- Subject Date: 1862-05-23
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Locations:
- Bath, Sagadahoc County, ME
- Camp Winfield Scott, York, PA
- Media: Ink on paper
- Dimensions: 19.7 cm x 12.4 cm
- Local Code: PFL 2006.4.2-9
- Collection: Sally Ann Hart Collection
- Object Type: Text
Cross Reference Searches
Standardized Subject Headings
- Pepper, George--Correspondence
- United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865--Personal narratives
- United States. Army. Maine Infantry Regiment, 7th (1861-1864)
People
Other Keywords
For more information about this item, contact:
Patten Free Library33 Summer Street, Bath, ME 04530
(207) 443-5141
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