United States Colored Troops officer letters

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This collection contains eight letters from four different authors, primarily white officers in USCT regiments. Five of the letters have accompanying typed transcripts.

The earliest letter is dated September 25, 1863, written by Joseph H. Prime while in Washington, D.C., prior to his transfer to the USCT. He writes two further letters while in the 7th USCT, the first dated December 1, 1863 from Camp Stanton. Camp Stanton was a Union encampment in Charles County established in October 1863 for the training of Black soldiers. Prime writes again to his friend Lem, noting that the camp is "one of the prettiest camping grounds that I ever saw." He mentions that the 7th and 9th USCT are currently there, and the 19th "is going into camp about a quarter of a mile back from here and on a little higher ground." In a letter to Lem a few days later, Prime notes that a mutal friend is well and has command of Company A, 7th USCT.

Also writing from Camp Stanton was Lieutenant George R. Sherman. In a letter to his mother and sister dated December 20, 1863, he describes preparing for the Sunday morning inspection, noting that the punishment in extreme cases is to "stand upon a barrel for a few hours or drill with a knapsack on the back." He says that they have been engaged in reconstructing the camp, "which I think adds much to its appearance, as well as to the comfort of the men."

The next three letters were penned by Lieutenant Henry R. Dunham to his aunt, whom he refers to as "Aunt Auge." In the first letter, dated June 22-23, 1865, Dunham writes from Fort Macon, North Carolina, where he is acting Post Quartermaster and Commissary of Subsistence. He writes that he is the only one of the 30th Regiment that is there, noting that the fort "is garrisoned by 4 Companies of the 14th U.S. Colored Heavy Artillery and commanded by Lieutenant Col. Walter S. Poor of Maine..." Dunham states that he doesn't know when he will be able to come home. "I don't like to resign evenn if I wanted to. I feel that it is very probable that all the Colored Troops in this Department will be mustered out of service by the 1st of January at furtherest and I guess I can stand it that long."

A month later on July 22, 1865, Dunham again writes to his aunt from Fort Macon. He notes that "soldiering now is nothing but fun unless a fellow's conscience troubles him about drawing pay and doing nothing to earn it." He reiterates that he won't resign and has come to the conclusion that "it is always well enough to let good enough alone." Dunham sends his final letter to his aunt on October 2, 1865 from Roanoke Island, North Carolina. He again writes that he thinks they will be mustered out by January, and that if they haven't been mustered out by the first of May he will resign and come home. He says he thinks that all of the colored troops except some regiments of heavy artillery will be discharged because the officers want them discharged and "there is not a General Officer in the U.S. (that I ever heard of) that would prefer them to white troops...there is no one that is going to work to keep them in the army providing they can get white troops to replace them and I do not think that there will be any trouble in raising the Regular Army to the required number..."

The final letter in this collection is from Lieutenant Sydney I. Wailes to Captain William Royal, dated December 26, 1868. Writing from Salisbury, Maryland, Wailes requests that Captain Royal, commander of Company F, 9th USCT, send a $50 bond to Charlotte Wailes for the death of her son Isaac Wales. Wales, a sergeant in Captain Royal's regiment, was shot by a Confederate prisoner in Brownsville Texas, and Wailes writes that his mother "is in destitute circumstances and this amount at this time would help her through the Winter." Sydney Wailes was the former enslaver of Isaac, and likely felt a degree of responsibility towards his mother.