1861 letter from James W. Phillips at Harpers Ferry

Name/Title

1861 letter from James W. Phillips at Harpers Ferry

Entry/Object ID

ARC101

Scope and Content

Four-page letter dated May 24, 1861, written in ink by James W. Phillips, Company I, 4th Virginia Infantry, from Harpers Ferry, Virginia, to his nephew G. D. Phillips. Author mentions his health and 12-month enlistment, the buildup of troops and armaments at Harpers Ferry, the incidence of disease and death in the camp, and his longing for letters from home, especially from Bettie. With the letter are a typed and annotated transcription by JCM historian Doug Perks and a copy of three documents accompanying the letter at purchase: transcription, note on Phillips's service, and note from sale catalog of another auction. Context: On April 17, 1861, a Virginia convention, called to consider secession from the United States, voted to secede, ordered a state referendum in mid-May for voters (white men) to decide the secession question, and further ordered that all federal property in the state be seized on April 18, 1861, including the armory and arsenal at Harpers Ferry. By the date this letter was written, the arsenal was destroyed, the armory and rifle works machinery was being dismantled to send to southern armories, Harpers Ferry was a garrison that served as an intake and training site for Virginia volunteers, Colonel Thomas (later Stonewall) Jackson commanded the garrison, and Virginia voters had voted to secede.

Acquisition

Accession

62

Source or Donor

Jefferson County Museum

Acquisition Method

Purchase

Archive Details

Date(s) of Creation

May 1861

Archive Notes

Date(s): 1861 May 24