Letters to the Matthews Family

							Oct. ?
							St. Louis, MO
Dear Mother:

I set down to right a few lines to let you know how I am getting along
it raind last night and is mudy this morning we and a good prare
meating last night in our quarters.  I think it was as good a meting
as I ever was at.

We have got our gunes but we have not got our uniforms yet but I think
we will get it before long.  I escspect we lill leve here frida as we
have Marchin orders we will go to Jeferson City the fifth regiment is
there I am willian to go eny plase for I beleave that I am in a god
cose and if I diy here in the feald I hope we will meat in the feald
and if am spared I escspect to meat you all at home one of these days

the water is very pore here it is not as god as we had at Devenport we
have to do our one washing or pay five cents apise I do my own I wold
like to have some bred and buter agin I have got tired of beaf and
bakers bred we have plenty of rise but it hant cooked ver well and
hant god I roat a leter to Elisha Sunday I have rote several home
since I have got eny

We have a very nise camp ground here the fore ground here is the
nicest base?  that I ever sene as fur as ware house nuse is concerned
I escspect you no as much as I do I want Pap to rite me a leter and
Iwant them all to rite top me and tell me abot every body My paper is
scarse you must kiss ely for me and all the rest of the We have our
company ful now we have a hundred an to I sene in the paper that
President sed that he woldn't draft in the west eny more till the
east has furnished it fule number and was glad that there note a going
to be any drafting there I must quit this ----- as my sheet is nerly
ful and I dont no whether you can read this or not

						Harriet Matthews
						A. S. Matthews

Alvin Stone Matthews enlisted to fight in the Civil war.  According to
the Keokuk County, IA, War Records, he was captured at Shiloh and died
October 15, 1862 at Petersburg, Virginia while a prisoner.  Written
family records say he was in Libby prison at Richmond, VA, exchanged
but never made it back.  Probably buried in the Mississippi River.


						December th ?
T. Q. Matthews

Dear Father

I thought that I wold like to rite and tell you about our mony We go
our mony today we got sixtene dolers and ninty cents and I thought I
wold like to Send ten dolers home as I dont have eny yuse for it here
and I want to save as much of it as I cold you may do as you think
best with it if you nede it you may yuse it and if you dont you may do
as you think best with it but I exspect you nede it and had beter yuse
it William Hardon is a going to put twenty dolers in with it and you
can give it to her we exspect to send this by express to Sigourney and
you had beter send or it as soon as you can I must quit for to nite I
am well I will rite a gin son.

				So good by

							T Q Matthews
							A S Matthews





T. Q.   Dear One

Alvin and I will send some money home we are going to Express it
through to Sigourney to Wm Jackson I expect we will put it in one
envelop and direct to T. Q. Matthews and you will get the money and
give 20 dollars to Mary Ann Harding and keep 10 dollars for Alvin I
will send M. A. Harding seven postage stamps some more but remain you
Friend until death

							Wm T Harding
							To T. Q. Matthews

(These letters were transcribed by Shirley Anderson Reed from photo
copies of the original letters.  There are smudges and ink blots on
them and they are very hard to read.  A S Matthews was a fair penman
but a very poor speller.)  The text in the brackets are by Lyman
Morrison who retyped these pages March of 1996.