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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.

Kessler, Thomas J., fl. 1843-1868 to A. P Kessler

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC03523.52.73 Author/Creator: Kessler, Thomas J., fl. 1843-1868 Place Written: Petersburg, Virginia Type: Autograph letter Date: 16 October 1864 Pagination: 4 p. : envelope Height: 20.1 cm, Width: 25.4 cm Order a Copy

Writes to his father from camp. Complains about enlisting in the army and what a mistake it was. Writes, "I will loose the Best part of my life By staying in this Hellish place of Discontent…" Discusses the war and how he does not believe it will be over in a few months. Requests some stamps. The letter has a watermark on the top left hand corner. The letter has an image of an anchor printed in red.

Kessler, Thomas J., fl. 1843-1868
Kessler, A. P., fl. 1863

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