Vermonters in the Civil War
Collection Overview
Vermont soldiers in the Civil War wrote an enormous quantity of letters and diaries, of which many thousands have survived in libraries, historical societies, and in private hands. This collection represents a selection of letters and diaries from the University of Vermont and the Vermont Historical Society.
The collection includes materials dating from 1861 at the start of the Civil War, and will grow with additional materials throughout the years of the sesquicentennial commemoration, from 2011 through 2015. Materials were selected for digitization to provide a variety of perspectives on events and issues. The voices represented in the collection include private soldiers and officers, as well as a few civilians. All of the extant Civil War-era letters or diaries of each of the selected individuals (at least, all that are to be found in the participating institutions’ collections) will eventually be included; each adds a certain experience and point of view to the whole.
1861
In 1861, Vermont produced a three-month volunteer infantry regiment (the First Vermont Infantry) that served in Virginia from May through July. Five additional volunteer infantry regiments, mustered for three-year terms and numbered consecutively, were put in the field in the summer and fall, camping first in Washington and at Camp Griffin through the fall and winter. The First Vermont Cavalry regiment was also mustered and sent south in the fall of 1861.
Subject content for the 1861 letters and diaries covers a great deal of ground. The many logistical issues involved in launching the war effort come to light in the letters of General John W. Phelps, while officers such as Lieutenant Roswell Farnham often made thoughtful observations on the events and personalities in the camps and in the field. The enlisted men occasionally described important events in detail, but more often wrote about everyday life and concerns. Eyewitness accounts of engagements at Big Bethel (June 9-10), Bull Run (July 21), and Lewinsville (September 11) reveal the motivations and expectations of the men in arms, while descriptions of living conditions, drilling, sickness, and political intrigue provide insight on the soldiers’ experiences.
Officers in the photo above are (from left to right): Lieutenant Colonel Charles B. Stoughton, Colonel Edwin H. Stoughton, Major Harry N. Worthen. All are from the Fourth Vermont Infantry Regiment.
Time Period Covered: 1861
Sub-collections
Charles F. Bancroft Correspondence
Horace Barlow Diary
Valentine G. Barney Correspondence
John Lester Barstow Correspondence
Barton Family Correspondence
John W. Campbell Correspondence
Roswell Farnham Correspondence
Justus F. Gale Correspondence
Solomon G. Heaton Correspondence
William Wirt Henry Correspondence
William C. Holbrook Correspondence
Albert A. May Correspondence
Benjamin F. Parmenter Correspondence
Joseph L. Perkins Correspondence
John Wolcott Phelps Correspondence
George W. Quimby Correspondence
Joseph Chase Rutherford Correspondence
Henry A. Smith Correspondence
Joseph Spafford Correspondence
Edward and John Stone Correspondence
Ransom W. Towle Correspondence
Orlando S. Turner Correspondence
Wheelock Graves Veazey Correspondence
Daniel S. White Correspondence
Henry Harrison Wilder Correspondence
Lyman Williams Correspondence
Published: April 11, 2011, University of Vermont, Bailey/Howe Library, Center for Digital Initiatives
Rights: Requests to reproduce this item should be sent to the UVM Libraries' Center for Digital Initiatives at cdi@uvm.edu. For more information, see http://cdi.uvm.edu/about/rights. More information.
Browse Options
Creator(s)
- Farnham, Roswell, 1827-1903 [76]
- Blunt, Asa P. [2]
- Leffnis, N. S. [2]
- Mason, E. P. [2]
- Farnham, Mary E. [1]
- Holbrook, Frederick [1]
- Prichard, George; Baldwin, C. C. P.; and Johnson [1]
Recipient(s)
- Farnham, Mary [56]
- Harding, C. H. [6]
- Farnham, Roswell, 1827-1903 [4]
- Blunt, Asa P. [2]
- Mason, E. [1]
Place(s)
- Military camps -- Virginia [38]
- United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 [27]
- Vermont -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 [18]
- Fort Monroe (Va.) [10]
- Military camps -- Washington (D.C.) [7]
- United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Campaigns [5]
- Military camps -- Vermont [4]
- United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Casualties [4]
- United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Social aspects [3]
- United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Destruction and pillage [2]
Format(s)
- text [88]
Genre(s)
- correspondence [88]
Topic(s)
- Farnham, Roswell1827-1903 [88]
- United StatesArmy Military life [29]
- Families of military personnel [19]
- United StatesArmy.Vermont Infantry Regiment, 1st (1861) [15]
- Morale [10]
- Armed Forces Officers [4]
- Big Bethel, Battle of, Va., 1861 [4]
- Postal service [3]
- Prisoners of war [3]
- Battle casualties [2]
- Diseases [2]
- Freedmen [2]
- Friendly fire (Military science) [2]
- Fugitive slaves [2]
- Intrenchments [2]
- Operational rations (Military supplies) [2]
- Patriotism [2]
- Pillage [2]
- Soldiers Alcohol use [2]
- War casualties [2]
- Women in war [2]
- African Americans Social conditions [1]
- Bull Run, 1st Battle of, Va., 1861 [1]
- Desertion, Military [1]
- Homesickness [1]
- Love-letters [1]
- Military discipline [1]
- Military leaves and furloughs [1]
- Picketing [1]
- Recruiting and enlistment [1]
- Shooters of firearms [1]
- Slavery [1]
- Sutlers [1]
- United StatesArmy.Vermont Brigade, 2nd (1862-1863) [1]
- VermontAdjutant and Inspector General's Office [1]
- War Psychological aspects [1]
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Topic: ("Farnham, Roswell1827-1903")
![Thumbnail: Roswell Farnham to [Mary Farnham]](http://cdi.uvm.edu/archives/civilwar/cwuvmfarnham74_01-thumb.jpg)
Title: Roswell Farnham to [Mary Farnham]
Creator: Farnham, Roswell, 1827-1903
Date: 1862-10-20
Resource type: correspondence
Topics include Roswell Farnham having a difficult time controlling his horse and an injury sustained as a result.
![Thumbnail: Roswell Farnham to [Mary Farnham]](http://cdi.uvm.edu/archives/civilwar/cwuvmfarnham79_01-thumb.jpg)
Title: Roswell Farnham to [Mary Farnham]
Creator: Farnham, Roswell, 1827-1903
Date: 1862-10-29
Resource type: correspondence
Topics include the continued improvement of Roswell Farnham’s foot injury and orders to march the next day.
![Thumbnail: Roswell Farnham to [Mary Farnham]](http://cdi.uvm.edu/archives/civilwar/cwuvmfarnham80_01-thumb.jpg)
Title: Roswell Farnham to [Mary Farnham]
Creator: Farnham, Roswell, 1827-1903
Date: 1862-11-02
Resource type: correspondence
Topics include the movement of the regiment from Capitol Hill to Camp Seward and down across Hunting Creek and finally setting up camp on the Potomac near Mount Vernon.
![Thumbnail: Roswell Farnham to [Mary Farnham]](http://cdi.uvm.edu/archives/civilwar/cwuvmfarnham88_01-thumb.jpg)
Title: Roswell Farnham to [Mary Farnham]
Creator: Farnham, Roswell, 1827-1903
Date: 1862-11-06
Resource type: correspondence
Topics include the possibility of Roswell Farnham being promoted to Colonel if Colonel Blunt is promoted, the potential for the regiment to move, and business from home.
![Thumbnail: Roswell Farnham to [Mary Farnham]](http://cdi.uvm.edu/archives/civilwar/cwuvmfarnham78_01-thumb.jpg)
Title: Roswell Farnham to [Mary Farnham]
Creator: Farnham, Roswell, 1827-1903
Date: 1862-10-26
Resource type: correspondence
Topics include the improvement of Roswell Farnham’s foot injury and money issues at home.
![Thumbnail: Roswell Farnham to [Mary Farnham]](http://cdi.uvm.edu/archives/civilwar/cwuvmfarnham92_01-thumb.jpg)
Title: Roswell Farnham to [Mary Farnham]
Creator: Farnham, Roswell, 1827-1903
Date: 1862-11-14
Resource type: correspondence
Writes from Camp Vermont, 12th Regiment Vermont Volunteers headquarters to his wife, Mary, of officers' huts being built, of his visit to Washington's estate Mt. Vernon, description of the grounds and tombs of George and Martha, arrangements for when Mary comes to visit, and of a battalion drill.
![Thumbnail: Roswell Farnham to [Mary Farnham]](http://cdi.uvm.edu/archives/civilwar/cwuvmfarnham91_01-thumb.jpg)
Title: Roswell Farnham to [Mary Farnham]
Creator: Farnham, Roswell, 1827-1903
Date: 1862-11-12
Resource type: correspondence
Farnham writes from Camp Vermont headquarters of the 12th Regiment Vermont Volunteers to his wife, Mary, about her preparing for a visit to camp, what needed items she might bring and what discomforts she might expect living in a small hut he is building. He mentions other wives visiting their spouses, Mrs. Blunt and Mrs. Vaughn. Writes of anticipation of homesickness.
Title: Unidentified Map
Creator: Farnham, Roswell, 1827-1903
Resource type: correspondence
Map that shows major landmarks such as Fortress Monroe, Hampton, and Camp Butler on the James River; and sites having to do with the Battle of Big Bethel, e.g. Big & Little Bethel (meeting houses), "Battlefield," and "Collision between U.S. forces," just south of Little Bethel.
![Thumbnail: [Roswell Farnham] to [Mary Farnham]](http://cdi.uvm.edu/archives/civilwar/cwuvmfarnham96_01-thumb.jpg)
Title: [Roswell Farnham] to [Mary Farnham]
Creator: Farnham, Roswell, 1827-1903
Date: 1862-11-28
Resource type: correspondence
Farnham writes from within his new house in Camp Vermont, near Alexandria Va., of three regiments moving to Fairfax Station, a description of the men’s quarters and mentions Mary's dental issues.
![Thumbnail: [Roswell Farnham] to [Mary Farnham]](http://cdi.uvm.edu/archives/civilwar/cwuvmfarnham97_01-thumb.jpg)
Title: [Roswell Farnham] to [Mary Farnham]
Creator: Farnham, Roswell, 1827-1903
Date: 1862-11-30
Resource type: correspondence
Farnham writes from Camp Vermont, Alexandria, Va. 12th Vt. Regiment Volunteers Militia and writes of his wife Mary's visit camp, of meeting with Mr. Morrill and Senator Foote, of his house being finished with 2 bedrooms and a fireplace.
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