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.

Mansfield, Joseph K.F., 1803-1862 to Henry W. Halleck

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC05043 Author/Creator: Mansfield, Joseph K.F., 1803-1862 Place Written: Suffolk, Virginia Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 3 September 1862 Pagination: Order a Copy

Marked "Confidential." Advises Halleck "You want the best troops in the line of Washington" and not scattered over the Peninsula, since he expects Washington will be the focus of Confederate plans. Thinks the regiments in Washington should be sent to Norfolk to be trained, and battle-tested men from Norfolk should be sent to join the Army of the Potomac for the climactic campaign. Also offers his services, if wanted, in the Army of the Potomac. 1 black and white bust engraving of Mansfield included.

Mansfield, Joseph King Fenno, 1803-1862
Halleck, Henry Wager, 1815-1872

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