Franklin Sept 21st 1862
My Dear Husband,
This is sabbath evening. I have seated myself to while away a few lonesome moments writing to you. Mr. Baldwin our circuit preacher gave us his farewell sermon today. I left the children with your Pa and went to church, Liza being gone over the river. I left as soon as church was dismissed fearing the babe would be crying, did not wait to speak to any person and Matt has not made her appearance yet, so you see I am by myself and can imagine how pleasant it would be to have my dear husband with me. It would afford me more pleasure than I ever expect to experience. When I get to studying about it, it seems to me that I am foolish to ever expect so much pleasure. I have heard of persons dying with grief. I think if you ever do get home and it were possible I should die with joy. If you were to come riding up this evening and I could present you with my babe and know of a truth that my husband was actually home I know that I would not know how to behave myself. You must write and tell me when you are coming so that I may be looking for you, for if you were to come unexpectedly I might not be able to bear it.
I received your long kind and much welcome letter of the 9th yesterday evening, which I do assure you was to me, "as a refreshing shower to a withering plant". Your last ones were so short that it seemed to me that I had scarcely begun reading when I was through. You say that you love to get such letters as the one I wrote by Young. I guess you have got the one I wrote by Mr. Reid, one that I imagine you will think too long. I have two others on the road if they have not reached you, one by mail directed to Taswell and one by Wash Southards. You cannot grumble at me for not writing often neither can you grumble at me for not writing long letters, I beat you all the time. I shall send this letter by Lieut. Anderson as he told Matt to tell me yesterday that he was going to start Tuesday and it will go quicker than by mail and you will be certain to get it. Your little Minnie gal is pestering me so that I can scarcely write. I wish you would stop over and nurse her.
I am glad to hear that you are getting well. I heard through a letter that Lieut. Anderson got from his brother by last Tuesdays mail that you were sick and I was so uneasy. If I had not got a letter from you by last mail, I should have been for starting to hunt you up.
Fannie has been quite sick since I wrote you. I called in Dr. Woodfin and he gave her medicine that relived her speedily. I think it was worms and cold. Dr. thought at first that perhaps she was taking pneumonia. I have a time with her with coughs once in a while.
Well this is Monday evening and I have just got the babe to sleep and have seated myself to write a few more lines, she is just like her daddy, is a great deal of trouble to me. Dee and Henrietta have been here today and just started home. I told Dee about your gun, he says he will sell it to Hanibal if he don’t buy it himself. The gun that Gibs had is at Hyatts. He never told me anything about it before he started. I did not know where it was until I happened to be talking about it to Bob Cuningham and he said that Hanibal had it and wanted to buy it, but he told him that I would not sell it, your big gun is here.
Well as to your buying the Joe Welch farm, your Pa says you could not buy that without buying a lawsuit as it is in dispute or part of it at least as Squire Welch willed part of it to his son Wilburn and Joe Welch is going to try to hold it, his will is established and Nub Allen has to give it up at last, you Pa says.
Baty has been in this evening and I read him what you said about the brandy, he says he has some at the still house he intends for you, but I am afraid that it will be so tempting to him that he will forget to bring me any for you. He is very anxious for you to come home if you can only stay a day or two so that he can tell you all his plans. He says with all his hard working he will not make much this summer as the worms eat the corn so that he could not get it to stand, but he says he has you a good meadow and is going to make more he says he is not able to improve the place as he ought to but if you will hire a hand and part it out there with him next year that he will make it work and do all he can himself. Auter, Barbaras husband wants you and your Pa to hire him. He says he can tend your Pa’s ten acre field and as much more over at the farm and Baty wants you to hire him. He says he can get along with him and they both together can make something. I think myself it would be a good plan and would be cheaper in the long run than to get negroes for the interest of money and their vitals and clothes when they want half work and harass the life out of a body. I have concluded to send Liza home before long, she has got to be so careless and impudent and always on the pad. She has got so that I hardly dare to speak to her anyways cross. She got to cutting up the other day and I give her a good talk and told her to go home then, but she hates to leave town so bad that she got out of the notion. She goes when she pleases and comes when she pleases. I though I would not write to you about it and wait until you come home but I am getting tired out. She asked for a pass to go over the river last Saturday night, we gave her one until yesterday evening, but she did not make her appearance until this morning about ten o’clock. I thought I would send her back when she came but your Pa told me to send her over to the farm to help cut tops. Her and Henrietta footed off up to Tom Angels yesterday to see young Tom. I would not own her as a precious gift. I used to think I would like to buy her, but I have changed my notion. I have found out that Martha is a long ways ahead of her and if I ever was to buy any of them, I would buy her. Your Pa says for me to come and stay with him and send her home. He says Barbara has no person to cook for but him and he wants to break up housekeeping and go to see Sallie and to Georgia and to Rutherford, he has quit boarding the Allmans and they are doing their own cooking. They settled and Mr. Allman paid him $150.00 and owes him three or four hundred yet. Your Pa told him as long as he would not pay him all, he would not board him any longer. Matt is talking about going to the chilhouse factory to work this winter. Mr. Nolen and Bob Slagle have gone there now to see about going there, they are going to move their familys there and Mrs. Nolen wants Matt to go. Nolen says he will give her good wages. I have encouraged her to go and she says if you are willing she will go and try it this winter. I shall stay here until I hear from you or at least until Matt has to go, if she goes, they think they will go in two or three weeks. Henrietta also wants me to go and stay with her when Dee leaves. I wish you could come home when Lt. Anderson gets to camps if it is only to stay a few days. You could then see how everything is and I could tell you many things that I cannot write. I think I shall send a message by Lt. Anderson to Col. Coleman if you wont ask him for a furlough I will. I do hope you will get to come it will soon be six months since you left and I think it is time for you to come home and see about your family and you have a sweet little babe that will soon be five months old that you have never seen, but I will not blame you for I think you would come if you could. I hope so at least.
You say you dream of me often, not oftener than I dream about you, Oh I will be so happy when you come home. I can hardly sit still when I think of the happiness that is perhaps in store for me. I know that it will not afford as much happiness to see me as it will me to see you. I will know that in your absence I have been a true wife and perhaps you cannot say that you have been a true husband and tell the truth, to know that you could not would I fear mar all my happiness in future years, God grant that you can say of a truth that you have ever been to me a true virtuous husband.
Tuesday morning, all well this morning except Liza, she is grunting about but that is no new thing for her to do after her tramps she always grunts about for two or three days. I think she runs herself to death and looses sleep. I think it will be a good thing if I do go to your Pa’s to stay, to send her home and hire Auter and then the Love negroes will have no excuse to run there so much. I tell you it will be a hard bargin for me to keep Liza in clothes now for all the work she will do now that everything is so high and scarce.
Mr. Nolen has sold his machine to Leon and he has commenced making molasses today, they are making them in Nolens lot where he made last year, he is going to make mine this evening and tomorrow, that is all the cane that is ripe. I have two kinds, one is not ripe. I understand that Bill Parish has come home wounded, one of his fingers is shot off. He says that Sam and Joe are both wounded, Joe in the hand and I cannot find out where Sam is wounded. One of the Cordons also was wounded. I learn that he has got home too. Joe says that he will have to get a worse wound than he has before he will come home. I am in hopes that Sam will get to come home. I received a letter from Sallie the other day, they were all well and doing tolerably well. She said she had been pulling fodder the week she wrote. She says she will have nothing to buy but bread and there is no wheat there to buy, she wrote to your Pa to get her some here but it is going to be a hard matter, to buy wheat here. They are now asking $3.00 a bushel here and not much can be bought at that. I do not know what I am to do when mine gives out, I would like to have some sowed if I had it to spare although it is not worth while unless it does better than it did this year. Baty says we ought to sow rye if we could get it, but I do not know where we can get it, he says he sent to Cherokee for two bushels. My corn is out, I would have had plenty but had to let your Pa have several times. I think providence will provide and that I will not starve. New corn will soon come in but I do not like to have to use my wheat so fast as it will soon give out and then I will have to do without cakes. How are you making out for clothes? You do not write me anything about making any not even knitting socks. I think I see an easy time all the other women seem to be busy making clothes for their husbands and mine makes out with out troubling me. I am either lazier than they are or my husband is smarter than theirs, one of the two which do you say it is? I cannot tell myself which it is, but I guess it is because I have a smart husband. I dreamed last night that your regiment was camped near here and that you came home about dark and staid until bedtime and then left. I tried very hard to get you to stay all night but you said you could not. I did not like it and thought to myself never mind, I will ask Jinnie Crawford how long Jim staid. I thought I asked her and she said he staid until bedtime. I had to give it up with out a quarrel as bad as I hated it. I know that dream will never come to pass for if you was to come I would make you stay all night if I had to tie you not because I would be so anxious to sleep with you, you know I would not care about that don’t you? I imagine I can hear you thinking that I would give a thousand dollars to sleep with you one night, well all I have to say is just come home and try me and see if I will sleep with you, how would I feel crawling to bed to a man after doing without one six months. I know that I should blush. Dee had just brought your gun home he says that he asked Mr. Peak about your lumber the other day he said it was not sawed but he would do that the first sawing after the water got up so that he could saw. I guess Hyatt will bring your gun home before he starts off. They have received orders to start tomorrow week. I do not know when they will start. Bill Westall sent me a large yankee towel by Will Siler he also sent his flute home. The towel is a very nice one, large enough for a small table cloth. I would not care to receive a few more such presents. I will close as I am looking Anderson any minute and perhaps you would like for me to stop for this time although I could write you as much more such as it is if I had time. Allmans Ike asked me to send you howdy for him. Matt sends her love and says to tell you she knows that if you knew what a good pot of soup we had for dinner you would have stopped over and taken dinner with us, we sent John Allman a bowl full and he sent back and said if we hand anymore we was going to throw away to send it to him, he thought it was excellent.
The children send howdy, they will not forget you. They want to see you very much. Come soon if you can possibly. Your true devoted…..Mary
Franklin Sept 23rd 1862, Tuesday Night
My Dear Husband,
I wrote you by Lieut. Anderson or rather by Alex Berry as Mr. Berry came in this evening and got my letter before Anderson came, but since that I have received your letter of the 10th and 15th and I cannot rest, they are not coming by here and I am going to send this letter to Lieut. Anderson soon in the morning. I will not attempt to describe my feelings for I cannot do it, suffice it to say that I have eaten no supper and unusual thing for me and I do not expect to sleep any tonight nor not much until I hear from you and know that I am forgiven. I beg ten thousand pardons and had I wings I would never rest until I was with you and knew that I was forgiven, sorry sorry am I that I have caused you so much pain. I must confess that I had no idea you would pay much attention to it and was sorry after I sent the letter that I did so for after reflecting on it a few days. I was convinced that it was not so but still when I first heard it, it hurt me although it was not told to me as the truth and I did not pretend to them that told it to believe it, but I thought I would write you about it and if it was not so you would convince me. I was convinced that you never had been guilty of such things at home, but being away from me so long I did not know what you might be tempted to do. I am now convinced and satisfied that you are what you ought to be and my Dear Husband be you assured if you ever do get home that I will prove to you that I am by being a loving true and trusting wife may God in his mercy grant that I may have an opportunity of proving to you that I am such. I will endeavor as far as lays in my power to make amends for all this distress I have caused you, I must confess that your letter was cutting and hurting, not more so I reckon than I deserve, at least I reckon you thought so at the time, but I hope after reflection that you will think you might have been more mild, but I do not blame you and forgive you for all you have said as I hope to be forgiven for all that I have said. I said something in the letter I gave to Mr. Berry about you being virtuous, please take no exception to that my dearest husband, but if you are ever permitted to return home meet me as you were wont to do and love me as you used to do. The first I heard was what one of those men who was sent after the deserters said to Sallie. I do not know who he was but that does not matter. I heard him ask her if she did not wish that she could see her Pa sitting in his tent drinking whiskey and playing cards and the other was said to Liza by one of your men. She told him that she did not believe it that you never done such things at home. He told her he did not care whether she believed it or not, it was so. When she told Matt and me about it she said she knew it was a lie and that he was blowing. Matt said she knew it was to, for she believed if there ever was a virtuous man you was one and I agreed with them, but still I could not see at the time why he should tell such a lie. I will not tell you who it was unless you will promise not to say anything to him about it. I am afraid if I tell now you will be so mad that you will tell him of it and you know that should not do. I do hope when Lieut. Anderson get to camps and your other lieutenants get well that you will get to come home and then I can tell you who it was without writing it and satisfy you so that you will not feel like telling him of it. I sent your note to Mr. Love by Mr. Berry this evening. Sam is not wounded as we heard, Joe is wounded in the arm not in the battle but by one of our own men the next day I understand but could not find out how it happened. If I had of had time I would have gone up to Jules this evening and heard the letter read. Westall was wounded in the thigh and a Cordon had both arms shot one has since been amputated so I guess it is a mistake about one of them coming home. They are in Maryland and are going on to Baltimore, I reckon Leon will publish the letter in his next paper. I will close hoping that when you get this you will forgive all and feel as you once did as it is quite late and everybody else is in bed. I hope you feel better than you did when you wrote if I did not think so I would be miserable beyond description. I am almost that now, God grant that you may have a good night sleep and pleasant dreams of home and friends that may ere long be realized. I will go to bed and try to sleep although I do not think I can please answer me as soon as you get this and tell me you are reconciled and believe me as ever your true devoted wife….Mary
Hanibal Hyatt came in this evening and told me that he would bring your gun to me next Monday. He says Gibs left the gun with McClure and told him to be certain and bring it to me but he went there and saw the gun and told McClure to let him take it to his house as the wanted to write you about buying the gun so Gibs is not to blame about not bringing it home.
C. L. Engineer Office
Charleston 24th Sept 1862
Paid to Mr. P.O. Donnell the sum of Fourteen 25/100 dollars for payment of wages of Jenkins as follows:
3 ½ days from 2nd to 15 Aug. 1862
9 ½ days @ $ 1.50 per day $ 14.25
G. Moodie, Clerk C. S. E. Office
Franklin Nov 17th 1862
My Dear Husband,
I have seated myself once more to resume my pleasant task of writing to you but I do assure you it would be much more pleasant to have the privilege of conversing with you verbally, but alas that cannot be and I reckon we will have to submit although it is hard to do. Mr. Rhodes got here Saturday night all safe. I am much obliged to you for the thread and also the snuff although I had learned to make out very well on homemade. I took one pair of the cards you sent Leon as Mr. Rhodes did not get any others. I had borrowed a pair of cards and hired Martha and we had spun 17 yards since you left so you see I was making out very well, but I though perhaps I could not borrow every time I would need them and I would have a pair of my own.
Our community was shocked on last Saturday night by the arrival of another body of one of our brave boys who died in defense of his country, poor Jessee Siler is dead, he was killed in a skirmish and was brought home before his friends knew anything about it. He never spoke after he was shot, poor fellow not a moments warning not even time enough to say Lord have mercy on me. Oh how dreadful the thought my dear husband let me entreat you to think of these things and prepare yourself for death, you know not how soon you may meet with a similar fate, you have a sweet little child who is now an angel in heaven. Oh let us meet her there. I know you think that the army is a bad place to prepare for death but that is the place where all should be ready how many souls are hurried into eternity without a moments warning. May God in his mercy protect and save your life and if you should die, Oh may you be prepared. It is four weeks today since we buried little Sallie. I visited her grave while they were covering up Jessee, it was about the time sweet Sallie was covered up and you were standing by my side. I was then sitting on a rock with my little Minnie in my arms and Fannie standing by me, but my dear husband was not near me. Oh how can I bear it, how can I do without you? When will this wicked war cease and my dearest and best earthly friend be restored to me. God grant that it may not be long. It is useless for me to urge you to use your utmost endeavors to get to come home. I know you will do all you can. You know better than I do your chances, do anything that is honorable to get to come home.
Tom Roane got here Thursday evening, he is an object of pity nothing but skin and bones, he could scarcely walk or talk he was only here a few minutes, he met up with a carriage going up his way and only stopped to tell me howdy. I have not heard from him since he got home. I will close as it is after eleven all are in bed. Minnie has been so fretful that I could scarcely write.
Pa and Clrinda Cansler are staying with us tonight. I feel so lonesome since you left that I am glad to have company. The first night you left we staid by ourselves, I was so lonesome and felt so bad that I thought several times of going somewhere to stay all night when I concluded that I had to get used to it and I might as well one time as another. I will send you a letter I got from Emilus in this, I will write you again by Capt. Crawford as he will start the last of this week. I was sorry to hear that you had lost your bedding and intended to send you a blanket but you say not to. Tom Roane says he left a blanket at your cousins, you can get if you need it until he returns. The children are all well. Fannie wants you to come back. She is quite lonely. It makes me so sorry to see her playing by herself. She talks about her sister a great deal. Good night may you have pleasant dreams is the wish of your devoted wife.…..Mary
Did you get my letters there is three due you, that I wrote before you came home.
Well Capt., as Minnie is so bad tonight & Mollie cant write you a very long letter I thought I would write you a few lines, although I have nothing of interest to write. We have got along very well since you left. If it was not for wood I think we could get along very well house keeping this winter. Matt