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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.

Fontaine, Lamar, 1829-1921 to Mary C. Day

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC06640.01 Author/Creator: Fontaine, Lamar, 1829-1921 Place Written: Lyon, Mississippi Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 1892/04 Pagination: 3 p. : envelope Height: 23.5 cm, Width: 14.6 cm Order a Copy

"Lines suggested, while standing over the dead body of a loved comrade, killed by a bullet fired from across the Potomac, by a treacherous hireling foe, Leisburg Va. Augt 9th 1861." A fair copy of his ballad "All Quiet along the Potomac tonight." Fontaine underlines words throughout the song which emphasize the unimportance of a private's death. Gives his unit as Co. I, 2nd Va. Cavalry, C.S.A. Written on letterhead for Lamas Fountaine & Sons, Surveyers and Civil Engineers.

Fontaine, Lamar, 1829-1921
Day, Mary C., fl. 1899

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