Beschreibung:

Two pocket diaries (3 x 4 in. and 3 x 6 in.), 1863-1864. On Sept. 20, 1862, George Van Duzee mustered into the federal service as a sergeant with the 13th New Hampshire Infantry, a regiment that saw action in both Virginia and North Carolina. Raised in Concord, the 13th left the state for duty in the defenses of Washington, and after brief duty with the Army of the Potomac, they were attached to the Department of Virginia and took part in the Siege of Suffolk in April and May 1863. In many ways, Van Duzee’s two surviving diaries from his time in the federal service are typical of the genre, laden with a mix of camp life and action, but they are entirely atypical in other ways, bearing an unusual provenance that tells as much of a story about the Civil War as words themselves. Van Duzee’s small pocket diary from 1863 provides a chronicle of the events that he lived through, sometimes barely so. According to the regimental history, he was nearly killed by a rebel sharpshooter at the Battle of Providence Church Road, and at Camp Bowers, he was nearly killed again, this time by rioting teamsters who were attacking contrabands with axes. As expected in a small diary like this, Van Duzee’s entries are brief, but they offer a regular accounting with a sergeant’s-eye detail on how his company fared. Van Duzee regularly records casualties by name from among the men he led. Our company have laid in rifle pits all day on the bank of the Nansemond, he wrote on Apr. 18, 1863. One of our Co C.F. Gerish, got shot in the lig...With bigger engagements, such as at the Battle of Providence Church Road, he adds additional detail: • May 3: We left camp to cross the river to meet the enemy. We went over, had a very hard fight. 2nd Lt H.A. Murry wounded in shoulder. Howard Mostain in leg, P. Southwick in arm, A.J. Gilman in head, J.H. Fay killed shot through boddy. Returned to camp at night was a very hot day. • May 4: Went into Suffolk to carry knapsacks to our wounded boys. Put Capt. Bussell, J.H. Fay, Batchelder in their coffins & had them brought to camp. Cleaned Fay, ready for embalming. Hot day. After Suffolk, the 13th was ordered to Portsmouth, and in July they took part in Butler’s operations on the south side of the James River. Van Duzee’s diary for 1864 begins in relative calm as the winter breaks into spring, but winds into a fearsome succession of battles during May, from Swift Creek to Fort Darling, Drewry’s Bluff, and Bermuda Hundred. • May 7: The forces here went out this morning to engage the enemy. We had 2 wounded in our regt. Has been an awful hot day, had a good many men sun struck. • May 9: All of the forces here went out to engage the enemy, had some hard fighting. Our Co. & B went out as skirmishers. A very hot day. Had to lay on our arms all night. Was attacked in the night, the 10 drove them back. We had seven wounded in our regt. • May 12: Marched this morning at 5 oclock with 2 days rations. Rained hard most all day and night, was fighting most all day. Had several killed in our regt. • May 13: We have been advancing slowly all day, had to fight our way. Rained by pills all day & night... • May 14: We advanced & occupied the enemy’s works. More or less fight all day. Been showering all day. • More fighting described on May 15-21 • May 21: Some fighting to day, the enemy attacked us about 11 PM we drove them back. they lost a good many. I was out on the works on watch to give the alarm at the time... After such sustained action, Van Duzee’s entry for May 27 seems innocuous enough: Broke camp at 8 AM, left 1/2 past 11 AM marched about 4 miles. Been very warm day. What follows, however, sheds a glancing light on an all too common occurrence during the Civil War. The next entry was added by Van Duzee’s brother: Van never wrote any more after this. The rest was written by the one that took this D[iary] and burried him. Van Duzee was killed in action at Cold Harbor and from what can be surmised, his diary was taken by another s