circa 1862

Currier & Ives

Print

Title: Battle of Williamsburg Va. May 5th 1862

Hand colored lithograph published by Currier & Ives at 152 Nassau Street, New York. Print is mounted. Caption under the title reads: "Victorious charge of the gallant Soldiers of the North and East, under Genl. McClellan, the invincible leader of the Army of the Potomac." While the caption says this was a "Victorious charge," the Battle of Williamsburg was an inconclusive victory for the Army of the Potomac. Rows of Federal and Confederate troops are shown clashing in close combat, with a magenta hue dominating their depiction. The foreground shows several Union troops in blue uniforms, a…

GLC02881.03

circa 1862

Currier & Ives

Print

Title: Battle of Williamsburg, Va. May 5th 1862

Hand colored lithograph published by Currier & Ives at 152 Nassau Street, New York. Caption under title says: "Victorious charge of the gallant Soldiers of the North and East, under Genl. McClellan, the invincible leader of the Army of the Potomac." While the caption says this was a "Victorious charge," the Battle of Williamsburg was an inconclusive victory for the Army of the Potomac. Rows of Federal and Confederate troops are shown clashing in close combat. The foreground shows several Union troops in blue uniforms, a solider carrying an American flag, an officer on horseback urging his…

GLC02881.25

9 May 1862

Broadside

Title: Jamestown journal extra

Announces the deaths of Capt. Willard, Lieut. Bailey of Co. B and Capt. Barrett of Dunkirk at Williamsburg battle. Also includes a partial list of killed and wounded in Hooker's division and a call to a citizens public meeting.

GLC06107.49

5 May 1862

Smith, Henry W., 1836-1869

Map

Title: [Manuscript Civil War map of the Battle of Williamsburg]

Shows the troop positions of forces under Union generals Philip Kearney and Joseph Hooker, as well as the Confederate line. Also shows the open field where the combatants met, Fort Magruder, and other structures. Smith is identified on the docket as "Bvt. Col. Henry W. Smith." He joined the 66th Pennsylvania Volunteers in March 1862. The Battle of Williamsburg took place on 5 May 1862. Major Henry W. Smith (1836-1869) gained notoriety in 1865 for helping to capture Lewis Payne and Mrs. Surratt, who were tried and hanged for involvement in the Lincoln assassination.

GLC06161

29 July 1862

Kearny, Philip, 1815-1862

Autograph endorsement signed

Title: [Recommendation for the promotion of Lieutenant Col. Nelson A. Gesner]

Brigadier Generals David Bell Birney and Samuel P. Heintzelman, and Major General Kearny recommend Gesner for promotion to Colonel of the 101st Regiment, New York Volunteers. Major General Kearny supports Gesner's promotion, commending his service in the battles of Williamsburg and Fair Oaks and his ability as a drill officer. All recommendations appear to have been written as dockets. Missing the page with the full recommendation. Prepared by Thomas W. Egan, Colonel, 40th Regiment, New York State Volunteers.

GLC06459

May 12, 1862

Hooker, Joseph, 1814-1879

Autograph letter signed

Title: to Ira Harris

Joseph Hooker circumvents the normal military practice of waiting to send out copies of battle reports until after their release through proper channels in order to scathingly criticize General George McClellan's leadership in the battle of Williamsburg. He writes to Senator Harris because many of the men lost in battle came from New York, the state Harris represented.

GLC00072

1862

Tucker, John S., fl. 1862-1865

Diary

Title: [Diary of John S. Tucker, D company, 5th regiment, Alabama, infantry]

Tucker's 1862 autograph manuscript diary contains his account of day-to-day life in D company and discussions of battles such as Seven Pines, Williamsburg, Mechanicsville, and the Seven Days battles. Also mentions the evacuation of Yorktown.

GLC00653.19.01

ca. 1860-1870

Alberger, William C., 1837-1925

Scrapbook

Title: [Loose Page from Scrapbook of William C. Alberger]

Page contains: Unknown. Map: s. l., Topographical map of Virginia between Washington and Manassas Junction. No date. 1 p. Includes an image of Washington, D. C., with the capital building in the foreground. Depicts Virginia and the western corner of Maryland, including United States encampments, roads, rail lines, rivers, and other topographical features. A smaller image consists of a military map of Virginia and parts of Maryland, Ohio, Kentucky, and Delaware. The military map includes some topographical features and notes where battles took place. (27.5 x 20 cm.) Kenyon, D.…

GLC06628.03

1862

Autograph letter signed

Title: to Brother Pling

includes envelope that reads 11th Regiment Mass. Volunteers describes a battle in which 2,000 soldiers are taken prisoners. warns him not to show the letter to anyone.

GLC08502.1

7 May 1862

Porter, Charles B., fl. 1861-1863

Autograph letter signed

Title: to Brother Henry

He describes a battle in which 139 were wounded and a few reported missing. There was a swamp in the equation and descriptions of being six inches deep.

GLC02172.46

1862

Chappel, Alonzo, 1828-1887

Engraving

Title: Battle of Williamsburg

One engraving entitled "Battle of Williamsburg" dated 1862. Depicts a distant view of the Battle of Williamsburg, May 5, 1862. In the foreground a stray cannonball narrowly misses a solider and a officer on horseback. On the left a group of Union soliders carry two wounded men to saftey. Engraved from an original painting by Alonzo Chappel in possession of publishers at time of engraving. Engraver unknown.

GLC08878.0154

14 May 1862

Hooker, Joseph, 1814-1879

Autograph letter signed

Title: to Thomas Brainerd

Re: Battle of Williamsburg. "I fought a great battle, probably the most sever one that has been fought during the war. . . My loss was 1575, officers and men - that of the rebels more than double that number. . ." (total U. S. casualties were in fact 2239 vs. 1603 for the Confederates.) McClellan "is no more of a General than McDowell. They are both boys among soldiers."

GLC08373.01

12 May 1862

Epperly, Christian M., 1837-1904

Autograph letter signed

Title: to Mary Epperly

Describes the Battle of Williamsburg, Virginia.

GLC02715.010

May 11, 1862

Morris, Wilmor W., fl. 1861-1862

Autograph letter signed

Title: to: John Morris.

Wilmor's regiment lost many men at Williamsburg, but the Confederates lost twice as many and "left in a hurry." The road between Yorktown and Williamsburg is strewn with "guns, wagons, knives, clothing of all kinds." He is using "secesh paper" and the "envelope is secesh" as well. A note to George promises a letter soon.

GLC06451.048

14 April 1862

Hale, E.J., 1802-1880

Newspaper

Title: Fayetteville observer. [Vol. 43, no. 2341 (April 14, 1862)]

Great Battle at Corinth, Mississippi, From Richmond - Fighting in the Peninsula, Dispatch from General Beauregard - Battle of Shiloh, Mutiny Among Federal Troops at Nashville, Victory in New Mexico - Battle at Valverde Confirmed, The Surrender of Fort Craig, Reported Battle Between General Johnston - Magruder, Hill - Great Victory in Tennessee , Dispatches from General Beauregard, Dispatches from Corinth, Bombardment of Fort Pulaski, The Enemy Reinforced by 7,000 men, Evacuation of Island Ten From Atlanta, Loss at Corinth, 5,000 Killed or Wounded, Surrender of Fort Pulaski, Capt. John Morgan'…

GLC05959.34.02

12 May 1862

Hale, E.J., 1802-1880

Newspaper

Title: Fayetteville observer. [Vol. 43, no. 2345 (May 12, 1862)]

Proclamation by President Davis, Fall of New Orleans, Impending Battle at Corinth, Great Battle at Williamsburg, Jubal Early Badly Wounded, The Battle Begun at Corinth, Jackson Reports Victory at Staunton.

GLC05959.34.04

24 September 1862

Cushing, Edward H., 1829-1879

Newspaper

Title: The Tri-weekly telegraph. [Vol. 28, no. 82, whole no. 3577 (September 24, 1862)]

Williamsburg recaptured. Army correspondence with Mobile Tribune. News from Mississippi coast. Request for clothes and horses for the Rangers. Battle of Richmond, KY.

GLC05959.51.053

1862 ca.

Autograph letter signed

Title: Letter from union soldier including 11th Massachusetts Regt. Patriotic cover with battle of Williamsburg, Va

GLC08502