Our Collection

At the Institute’s core is the Gilder Lehrman Collection, one of the great archives in American history. More than 85,000 items cover five hundred years of American history, from Columbus’s 1493 letter describing the New World through the end of the twentieth century.

Hayes, Rutherford B., 1822-1893 to Eliakim P. Scammon

Order a pdf of this item here.

Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC03385 Author/Creator: Hayes, Rutherford B., 1822-1893 Place Written: Green Meadows, West Virginia Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 13 August 1862 Pagination: 1 p. : docket Height: 17 cm, Width: 20 cm Order a Copy

Hayes writes as Lieutenant Colonel of the 23rd Regiment of Ohio Volunteers to Scammon, his superior, as commander of the 1st Brigade. States that he cannot get enough information about mill privileges and navigation on the New River. "At Richmond there is a fall of 8 to 12 feet - at other points there are falls which have always been Supposed to prevent all navigation, but 'impossible' is a hard word. I wouldn't speak it on my meagre information. I can say very difficult and dangerous."

Hayes, Rutherford Birchard, 1822-1893
Scammon, Eliakim Parker, 1816-1894

Citation Guidelines for Online Resources