2024-01 Raynors Americana Auction
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 1/20/2024
Union soldier's 2pp letter written by Samuel Welch who enlisted on October 3 1861 as a private in Co. E, 51st Ohio Volunteer Infantry (OVI), was promoted to corporal in April 1862, and mustered out of the regiment on 17 October 1864. Datelined, Camp of the 51st Ohio, Near Atlanta, Georgia, Wednesday morning, August 17th 1864. In part, "Stoneman's Expedition to the rear of Atlanta was a failure and Wheeler is now trying his hand on our rear. They captured a thousand head of cattle near Marietta a few days ago and the report come in last night that they were in the vicinity of Dalton & Tunnel Hill, I don't think they can do much damage as there are but two bridges between here and Dalton and it seems as though they have passed both of them. ... Stoneman's Expedition was a complete failure. His main object was to liberate our prisoners at Andersonville & Americus and a good many of his men left here with two sets of arms and accoutrements-one for their own use and one for the prisoners. The plan was a very good one but instead of putting arms into the hands of the prisoners, they got their arms taken from them and were taken prisoners themselves. ... It is hard to tell what the program is for taking Atlanta. The rebels are fortified along the Macon Railroad for several miles so that our lines will have to be very long to reach it. Our right wing is within shelling distance of the railroad and the cars have not come in for ten or twelve days. Our spies say that the women and children are all removed from the city and that every man that stays there carries a musket. ... There is no doubt that a corps is needed on the right if Sherman expects to cut the Macon road, but if our corps is withdrawn from its position, our railroad will be exposed to raids as there will be but few troops left on the east side of the road. .... There is also an older hand copy.
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