Raynors 2020-05 Putnal
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 5/30/2020
War-date Union soldier Autograph Letter Signed "William H. Goff Sergt. of the guard at Libby Prison, Va." 2pp. large folio, Libby Prison, Richmond, Virginia, April 24, 1865, and reads in part: "...I am on guard tonight...I am writing at a desk in the Officers and Sergeants of the guard room at the famous Libby Prison where no doubt a great many Rebel Officers have sat heitherto-fore when the prison was filled with our poor suffering men that were almost starving by inches. There are not but a very few in here now as there was 1,100 sent North yesterday. Today they have been engaged in cleaning and washing it out. It was a horrible looking place before they commenced. The dirt and the filth had been laying so long that it was almost two or three inches deep in some places while in others it was more. There have been a great many people from the Norther here today to look at the place. Among them was Gov. Morton of Indiana and a horde of others that wished to take a look at the place. I took a good many around myself, among them was a Lieutenant that was here for five months and two weeks. He was in here at the time that so many of our officers tunneled out, and he told me all about it and took me round and showed me where they commenced the tunnel and where they put the dirt. It was a great piece of work [with lengthy description of how they carried that feat out] I am writing this letter on a leaf that I took out of the book that they keep the account of the work that was done by our men in the work department so that you can say that you had a letter that was written in Libby prison and also on the leaf of a book that was used by the Rebs in Libby when they had charge of things. Dick Turner, the one that was turnkey here then and one of those who abused our men so badly is a prisoner here now and is confined in a cell and has nothing to eat but bread and water and one too much of that.... Part of our Corps arrived in town today and the rest will be in tomorrow. They have marched all the way from where Lee's Army went under..." More. Fine condition.
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