Guarding The First Rebel Prisoners To Arrive At Fort Delaware

This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 10/31/2005

A nice war-date Union soldier's, 3pp. 8vo., letter written in pencil by Pvt. James H. McCabe, Battery G, Pennsylvania Light Artillery, Fort Delaware, [Baltimore, Md.,] Aug. 25, 1862 to his father concerning guarding the first Confederate prisoners confined to Fort Delaware, reading, in part: "…we left Camp Curtain on…the 23rd and marched down to the station…took the cars and came to Philadelphia…got to Fort Delaware about five o'clock in the evening…we had 30 rebels prisoners on board the boat coming down to the fort. Some with one leg & some with one arm…a more…by gone set of men I never saw. Some of them hardly had clothes to cover their nakedness…to their credit…they were very polite to the guards that was placed over them. There are now about 60 prisoners in the fort and the major expects 3000 or 4000…inside of 3 weeks. The island on which the fort is situated contains about ninety acres…there is about five hundred soldiers stationed at the fort. We are going to stay in tents on the outside of the fort…there is no Sabbath [here] we have no chaplain…the soldiers do as they please. Some fish and some play cards…our company refrains from everything but duty on the Sabbath…". Light spotting and soiling, else very good.

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