Beschreibung:

Four Letters by Joseph E. Kimball, MA 1st Infantry, 31 May 1862, twelve-page letter that details orders to prepare for an encounter with the enemy, gives a vivid description of marching through the field a few days after the battle and the ever present sight and smell of decomposing bodies, and speaks to the ill-conceived notion of the romance of warfare and that the army of the South is made up of honorable and brave men, not the devils they are made out to be, 8 x 10 in.; 6 July 1862, City Point, four-page letter explains the regiment has lost a great deal of soldiers to both battle and fatigue, reassures his brother that his arrangements are in order should he die in battle, and asks to be sent a box with tea, sugar, coffee, preserves, and tobacco, 7 3/4 x 5 in.; 9 July 1862, Camp Lincoln, three-page letter, writes to his brother saying that he is ill and will likely be unfit for duty for a few days, 6 1/2 x 9 3/4 in.; 11 July 1862, Camp Lincoln, six-page letter informs his parents he is getting over his sickness, expresses his confidence that the war will be over by winter, describes soldiers in front and on either side of him being shot during the Battle of Seven Pines, 7 3/4 x 10 1/4 in.; the letters are accompanied by related material including an original envelope, biographical information of Joseph Kimball, a modern map of McClellan's Peninsula Campaign, and a reproduced image of hooker's Headquarters at Chancellorsville. Note: Transcriptions of letters are available.