Private from the 36th Illinois writes home to his father about a skirmish
Author
Recipient
Date Written
June 20, 1864
Franklin Allen Whitney was 18 years old when this was written.
The recipient, James Harvey Whitney, was 55 when it was received.
Franklin Allen Whitney died 69 years, 8 months, 9 days after writing this.
It was written 158 years, 9 months, 7 days ago.
It was a Monday.
June 20th 1864
Dear Father,
It is with pleasure that I set down to answer your letter of the 10th knowing that you was anxious to hear from me. Yesterday the 36th was on the skirmish line and we had a prity warm time of it but the rest of the reg suffered more than Co F that only had one man wounded and that was Victor a ball struck his belt buckle and brused him prity bad and he then started for the rear and stubed his toes and fell down and hurt his chin is as I hurd it the balls was flying so thick that I thought it wasnt best to go and see him and I saw 8 rebs no more than 10 paces from me that I wanted to punch, and you oughto of see one of them throw his gun clap his hand to his behind and run we drove them till we got to the other side of the crick then the brush was so thick that we couldn't see ten, 20 feet a head of us and first we know we was all mixed up with the rebs then a reble major jumped up and ordered his men to fix bayonets but didnt stop to see whether they didn't or not but steped right into our lines with a drawn saber and yells out whose command is this we replied by presenting our guns to his breast and asked him to give up his sword, he did so but it hurt his feelings very mutch. it wasnt more than 10 minutes after that when a whole brigade threw themselves on to us and we had to skedadle or be gobbled some of the boys was but escaped. We fell back to some breast works and held them. Now meby you would like to know whare we are well we are at lost mountain on the southwest side. The rebs are on and around the foot of it and we are so clost that we can see them on the side of the mountain yesterday I recived a letter from Mary & Mary Wake and Sanford and I was glad to hear that you was all well I recieved your letter with that picture in it it looks very natural -how does my strawberrys git a long this year you probly will have plenty of them by the 4th if they do well. Well the 4th is prity close I am in hopes that we will have plenty by the time it gets here. How all the little folks? They go to school do they? Does Martha go to school. Tell her that when she learns to count to 10 she can have that 75 cents-in Georgia money. It is some that f. c. gave me. It is not worth mutch only among the citizens.
Well I have got this sheet most filled up and I guess I shall have to stop, write soon, truly your son.
Franklin A. Whitney