Joseph Spafford Correspondence
Collection Overview
Joseph Spafford served in the 4th and 16th Vermont Infantry Regiments. His letters are written to his mother and to his sister, M. Jane Spafford, in Upper Falls, Vt. (a village in Weathersfield), as well as to a friend, Homer White, in New York...
Show moreJoseph Spafford served in the 4th and 16th Vermont Infantry Regiments. His letters are written to his mother and to his sister, M. Jane Spafford, in Upper Falls, Vt. (a village in Weathersfield), as well as to a friend, Homer White, in New York City. In his letters, Joseph Spafford writes of camp life including information about men from Weathersfield and surrounding towns. In a letter dated January 2, 1862 and marked confidential, Spafford writes very frankly about officers and the politics of promotion. He also writes of an opium user with the initial C. In other letters he describes troop movements, and gives information on sickness in the Regiment. He also writes of having his picture taken and of receiving newspapers and other items from home. In one of his letters while in the 16th Regiment, he describes how some soldiers collect souvenirs from battlefields, including human remains.
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(1 - 9 of 9)
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- Joseph Spafford to Homer White
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Still writing from Carver Hospital in Washington D.C. topics include hoping to get his papers to go home to surprise his family, plans to meet Homer White in New York City and hopes that his friend Homer will come to Vermont with him.
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- Joseph Spafford to Marianne Spafford
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Writing to his mother from the Mansion House Hospital topics include being left behind by the Regiment due to his illness, impossibility of getting a furlough, number of men from the 4th Vermont in the hospital, Ellsworth’s house, and possibility of being sent to another hospital.
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- Joseph Spafford to Mary Jane Spafford
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Writing from Carver Hospital in Washington, D.C. topics include waiting for his military discharge papers and sightseeing in Washington.
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- Joseph Spafford to Mary Jane Spafford
- Description
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Spafford continues to write from the Mansion House Hospital on topics that include worrying about his mother’s health, difficulty of getting a furlough, commenting on his preference to be a 2nd lieutenant and not a captain, detailed description of a day in the hospital, rules posted in the...
Show moreSpafford continues to write from the Mansion House Hospital on topics that include worrying about his mother’s health, difficulty of getting a furlough, commenting on his preference to be a 2nd lieutenant and not a captain, detailed description of a day in the hospital, rules posted in the hospital, a dialogue he had with a drunken soldier from a California regiment, and description of a visit by a Vermonter from Windsor.
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- Title
- Joseph Spafford to Mary Jane Spafford
- Description
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Writing from Carver Hospital in Washington D.C. topics include his waiting for his military discharge papers and plans for getting home to Vermont.
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- Joseph Spafford to Mary Jane Spafford
- Description
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A brief writing from Mansion House Hospital include possibility of getting a furlough and an incident at Yorktown with one soldier from the 4th Vermont being wounded slightly and a rebel soldier being "keeled" over.
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- Joseph Spafford to Mary Jane Spafford
- Description
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Topics include waiting for his military discharge papers, his plans for returning to Vermont, and his plan to travel with Sergeant Peabody of the 2nd Vermont.
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- Joseph Spafford to Mary Jane Spafford
- Description
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Spafford writes from Camp Griffin, Virginia on topics including the difficulty in getting a furlough, mud and rain, arrival of a New York regiment and their drunkeness because of the mud, a woman living in camp that came with the New York regiment, camp life, and asking for news from home.
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- Joseph Spafford to Mary Jane Spafford
- Description
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Writing from the Mansion House Hospital in Alexandria VA, topics include difficulty in getting a furlough at the present time, illness among others at the hospital from the Regiment, and the keeping and responsibility of using the Company's money for needed purchases for the men.