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20 October 1864
Kellog, James H. (fl. 1862-1864)
to Mary
It iis difficult to see what he is referring to exactly, but he says a Fletcher has not made a payment. But when he does, to add interest. Barton is in a bragging move.
GLC02415.052
5 November 1864
She acquired a five year old cow as a result of trading. If the cow yields a hundred punds of beef then the trade was a good one. He tells her to let the farm to Mr. Graw. His advice is not to let them know she has money or she will have to pay a tax...
GLC02415.053
7 November 1864
He talks about the importancce of Chattanugh and how they need to keep the Rebels contained. They do not want them to get into Eastern Tennessee so they will try to cut off their supplies.
GLC02415.054
12 November 1864
Money goes very fast these days he says. Even after receiving two months pay some of the boys have no money left. But he is very careful about how he spends his money. Other soldiers waste their money on drinking and gambling.
GLC02415.055
23 November 1864
He changed jobs from working in the dining room to giving medicine. The size of the company has diminished greatly in the past year. He asks how her provisions are.
GLC02415.056
30 November 1864
He wants to know how living in Mr. Sterans house is for her. Apparently their corn crop did not do well this year. He asks what Mr. Graw wants to do with their farm.
GLC02415.057
3 December 1864
He is working in the dining room again. She told him a Mr. Holland wants to build a wood house on the end of their house and he discusses the cost of such a project. He wants Mr. Holland to write to him.
GLC02415.058
10 December 1864
He received a letter from his father who is well. His father told him that William H. Pratt is in the hospital. James assures Mary that he is safer now than if he had stayed in the brigade.
GLC02415.059
16 December 1864
He has no wish to rejoin his regiment and march around in the cold. He would like to have a taste of her mince pies. He says to tell Mr. Roland he can work on the improved land.
GLC02415.060
25 December 1863
He is now in Chattanooga, after having spent some time at the Convalescent Camp. He has now rejoined his regiment.
GLC02415.061
3 January 1864
They are near Lookout Mountain, in the heart of the enemy's country. He describes the country they passed through on the way from Lousiville to Chattanooga which he says is unlike anything she's ever seen before.
GLC02415.062
24 January 1864
He writes again how education is so important for their children. If she does not have money for the taxes, he insists she let him know and he will send her some money.Their pay is late.
GLC02415.063
1 February 1864
There are many deserting the rebel ranks. There are reports that these deserters may join the Union but he does not see much truth in these reports. One of the shirts she made him has shrunk terribly.
GLC02415.064
18 February 1864
He saw the boys from Boston the other day and it made him nostalgic. He will send some more money.
GLC02415.065
21 February 1864
He refers to the spirit of the war and says it has grown into an animal... He got 2 months pay recently and he will send her fifty dollars.
GLC02415.066
27 February 1864
He talks about the music they practice playing in camp to keep busy during down times. Some of the boys play cards, while he prefers to read.
GLC02415.067
5 March 1864
He saw his old friend General Wood and they had a grand time. He has been practicing on the bugle lately. He has to learn 25 different calls.
GLC02415.068
14 March 1864
He has never been healthier. There is some talk of going to Cincinnati but he thinks they will most likely go to Georgia or Alabama.
GLC02415.069
23 March 1864
He responds to the news from his wife. She has said William and Jane Nickerson might move back to Calhoun. Mary has not decided if she will go to Dester this summer.
GLC02415.070
28 March 1864
He would like William to work the farm so that he could live there with Mary and the children and then she wouldn't have to worry about the milling.
GLC02415.071
1 April 1864
He is sending her a book he thinks she will enjoy.
GLC02415.072
8 April 1864
Benjamin Vasper will bring the book and money to her. He thinks back to 1862 when the Cumberland army left Louisville and who has died.
GLC02415.073
13 April 1864
There is sickness and death lately, mostly among the new recruits. He asks her to tell him the price of produce, so that he can allocate funds appropriately. He warns her that he has become a hard drinker and that is why he has gained weight.
GLC02415.074
18 April 1864
He describes a funeral he attended of a new recruit who died of a heart disease. He will send her more money soon.
GLC02415.075
29 April 1864
He will not be able to get a furlough because all the men were wanted in the field. There has been some bad fighting and the Rebels have captured a cavalry unit. There is heavy cannoning at the foot of Racoon Mountain.
GLC02415.076
1 May 1864
He talks about the current prices of different articles of clothing. He says he is getting lazy and doesn't know how long he will remain in Chattanooga. He still owes his uncle money.
GLC02415.077
6 May 1864
He predicts that Virginia will see a bloody time. The Rebels think they can get Chattanooga again, but he doesn't think so. He describes the landscape surrounding the camp.
GLC02415.078
9 May 1864
He talks about the inevitability of death and the many vices of the army. It takes a very stable mind to reject all the vices of the army. He mentions a friend who wants to enlist because his wife died, but he thinks it would be better if he stayed...
GLC02415.079
12 May 1864
He is anxious for the time to come, when the Rebel capital will fall. It will not be easy becasue there will be many widows and fatherless children.He thinks the Rebels made their own bed and now they must lie in it.
GLC02415.080
25 May 1864
He talks of money matters. Still he owes his uncle money. He goes over his monthly expenses.
GLC02415.081
14 May 1864
Their regiment has not had a chaplain for some time They are thinking of starting a bible class and he is all for it.
GLC02415.082
23 May 1864
He promises to get his picture taken soon. Since he joined the army he has lost 2 back teeth eating hard tack. He says he has become a very rough looking fellow
GLC02415.083
31 May 1864
He tells her to some of the money he gave her to uncle, whom he is still in debt to. He has been prospecting. The regiment is divided into small groups in Tennessee and Georgia. He describes his travels which included mountain climbing.
GLC02415.084
6 June 1864
He responds to the news that Mr. Benson has taken to drinking. He asks how his father and Jerome are doing. He thinks the army was never better than now and they will whip the Rebels.
GLC02415.085
30 May 1864
A View on the Hillside
Dedicated to his wife. A description of his surroundings.
GLC02415.086
10 June 1864
He tell her to take good care of herself and the children. Lately the rations are very good. They have all the food they need. It has been very rainy.
GLC02415.087
13 June 1864
Mr Rollin has been working on their place but he says not to pay him right away. The man is hard to get along with and he may take advantage of women. He talks about the diameter of a cannon ball.
GLC02415.088
He asks what Fletcher is doing on their farm. He doesn't have anything very positive to say about him. They will leave Tennessee tomorrow and go to Georgia. They are going to a healthier place.
GLC02415.089
20 June 1864
They didn't actually go to Georgia, but they are close enough, on Lookout Mountain. He describes the peaks and vallies along with the incredible views. He mentions Abraham Lincoln and hopes he can end the war soon.
GLC02415.090
21 June 1864
Small pox has been going around.They have been picketing in Georgia. One night he was ordered to dine with the Captain and the Lieutenant. They had a big meal.
GLC02415.091
13 July 1864
They bought some potatoes and onions at what he thinks are unfair prices.He warns her to have someone get the wheat as soon as possible or else they will ahve to see what rights the man who worked their farm has.
GLC02415.092
17 July 1864
He thought the people of the South "were the most humain in the world" when he saw their barns. For he thought they ahd no houses, but they in fact had no barns. Their barns did not hold stock, only negroes and mules.
GLC02415.093
23 July 1864
Every time the Rebels make a raid, they are helping the Union. Lee was "badly whipped," and driven back. He mentions Grant, who had a position, but realized it wouldn't work. He predicts the Rebels will soon have to abandon Petersburg and Richmond...
GLC02415.094
24 July 1864
He tells her not to worry about the farm as long as it is worked by men who care more the produce it yields than the government that protects them. Perhaps she will think him a different man when he returns.
GLC02415.095
29 July 1864
He has become very cynical, for he's been a soldier too long to think that anyone would get discharged before the end of the war. They've been having pickets on one side of the mountain but there has been no fight. Some of the boys say the new...
GLC02415.096
2 August 1864
He went down to Georgia to sign the pay rolls recently and draw 2 months pay. He is very positive of the Union's success. Soon the army will have 500,000 men.
GLC02415.097
6 August 1864
He is getting tired of having to write as it is a poor substitute for communication. He prides himself on how well he budgets. If the other boys thought of their families as much as he does they'd have more money.
GLC02415.098
8 August 1864
He talks of money matters. His uncle has been paid off for the most part. He mentions getting clothes for the children and for her.
GLC02415.099
11 August 1864
They wanted to have their pictures taken by Lookout Mountain but there were too many people ahead of them. He describes the scenery of Chattanooga and concludes with a poem.
GLC02415.100
16 August 1864
He says as soldiers they expected to endure hardships and he will face them without fear. To be a coward is worse than anything so he tells her not to worry so much because he is ready for whatever may come his way.
GLC02415.101
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