2025-01 Raynors Historical Collectible Auctions
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 1/25/2025
A Union soldier’s4pp. letter letter written by Edmund J. Gorgas of Philadelphia who began his service in May 1861 as a sergeant in Co. K, 19th Pennsylvania Infantry. He was mustered out of that 3-month’s regiment on 29 August 1861 and the following March was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in Co. A, 90th Pennsylvania Infantry. He was wounded in the Battle of Fredericksburg but returned to his regiment in time for the Battle of Gettysburg where he was taken prisoner and confined at Macon, Georgia. Following his exchange he was promoted to 1st Lieutenant of the company. The dateline Camp near Sharpsburg, October 7th 1862, written to Capt. Durang, in part, “ The company is in a deplorable condition for the want of clothing. They are ragged, lousy, and without shelter and nothing to cover them these cold nights. Captain, it is [a] hard case. But I suppose we will have all the clothing in a few days. ... This Division has lost twenty-seven hundred men since we started out in the campaign that is reported at headquarters. ... There is in our company some good men but they are very scarce. I have had a hard time with some of them such as Leslie. When there was to be a fight, they would be among the missing. ... The day of the Battle of South Mountain we started from Frederick with 30 odd men. In the battle, I had Sergeant Roodt, [Wm. L.] Thompson, [Thomas] Benner, [Isaac]Warren, [E. A.] Dunnecliff, [John] Ruhl, [George W.] Sutton, [Joseph] Bowers, [James H.] Gouldy, [David] Diehl, [Emile] Coblentz, [George] Land, [William] Revoudt. In this last fight we started with 21 men and went in with 16 ... Theiss was in the last battle which makes the 16 men, Out of them, there was six wounded—[George] Sutton, [John] Ruhl, [Augustus] Theiss, [Albert] Ozias, [James H.] Gouldy, [&] [Emile] Coblentz. Those sixteen men compose our fitting company. ... The reason, I think, that that the non-com officers ought to be filled up—for we have not got enough to fill their places—there is two detailed every six days for picket duty. [Henry] Schwartz—he has give up the corporalship and sent to the hospital and Revoudt is sent too ... E. J. Gorgas.
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