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.

Hanscom, Alfred A., fl. 1833-1865 Lizzie Wilkins and Annie

Order a pdf of this item here.

Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC08407 Author/Creator: Hanscom, Alfred A., fl. 1833-1865 Place Written: Fort Slocum, Washington, D.C. Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 8 June 1865 Pagination: 4 p. : envelope Height: 21 cm, Width: 13 cm Order a Copy

Written by Hanscom as a private in Company L, 1st Heavy Artillery Regiment New Hampshire. Writes to his friends informing that they are waiting to be discharged soon, hopefully by June 11 or 12. States that he heard many Massachusetts troops have already been mustered out and that Governor John Andrew is in Washington trying to get all the troops home. Comments on General William T. Sherman's army, "Sherman's Army has been Camped all around us and a ruffer set you never saw - steal all they could get their hands on rob Hen roosts, gardens cut & tramp down beautiful grain fields & grass. burn up fences, fill up their canteens full of powder and fire them as also their guns, - yell and cut up all manner ... their officers could do nothing with them ... " States that Sherman's army hates Union General Winfield S. Hancock's army which he calls a "sad state of affairs." Also feels that Sherman, "... has not been well-treated I think by some of our leading Generals ... " Addressed from Head Quarters Harden's Division, Fort Slocum, D.C.

Hanscom, Alfred A., fl. 1833-1865
Wilkins, Lizzie, fl. 1865
Sherman, William T. (William Tecumseh), 1820-1891
Hancock, Winfield Scott, 1824-1886
Andrew, John Albion, 1818-1867

Citation Guidelines for Online Resources