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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.

Sam, fl. 1861-1865 to cousin [Lydia A. Bishoff]

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC03523.40.04 Author/Creator: Sam, fl. 1861-1865 Place Written: Oakland, Virginia Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 14 August 1861 Pagination: 3 p. : Height: 20.7 cm, Width: 25.4 cm Order a Copy

Sam is still in Oakland, and does not know how soon he will be called to take the line of march, although he is going to get his arms this week. He describes the health of a few members of his company, and asks how his mother is doing back home. He has heard from the "north Branch" that there are 5000 "sesechers" within 5 or 6 miles of Oakland. Sam suspects that this is true, and is worried since "there is no company but ours and whe have no arms whe would play hell afighting without arms," he says.

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