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.

Epperly, Mary M., fl. 1859-1865 to C. M. Epperly

Order a pdf of this item here.

Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC02715.069 Author/Creator: Epperly, Mary M., fl. 1859-1865 Place Written: Floyd City, Virginia Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 16 August 1863 Pagination: 2 p. : Order a Copy

Discusses desertion: "I think [if] the head men dont soon end this war that the soldiers will for they are runing from down east by hundreds ther[e] was five hundred went through hear last weak well armed and they say they wont go back any more and I don't blame them for it. I wish they would all runaway and these head men would be obliged to fight it out but as long as they can stay at home and speculate [inserted: off] of the poor soulders they dont care how long the war lasts."

Epperly, Christian M., 1837-1904

Citation Guidelines for Online Resources