A new letter from Floyd Ruscoe has been posted this afternoon. This letter, written to his father, is from April 1863 and covers the regiment’s participation in the XI Corps review for new commanding General O.O. Howard as well as references to Lincoln’s visit to the Army of the Potomac.
Thanks again to Paul Keroack for sending it along!
Thanks to Paul Keroack and the Norwalk History Room at the Norwalk Public Library, 17thcvi.org is able to add a variety of letters written home by Floyd T. Ruscoe of Company H for our readers. Ruscoe, originally from Lewisboro, NY, enlisted in Company H out of New Canaan at the age of 19 and served throughout the war. A big thank you to Paul for bringing these to light and taking the time to transcribe them for the site!
As most visitors know, this site is a compilation blog. Simply put, this site has existed since 1997 (wow) to locate information on the 17th CVI and put it here, in one place, where anyone interested (and willing to spend some time with it) can find it. How effective it may be depends a great deal upon the friends of the site who find, transcribe, scan and otherwise provide the material you see here.
That said, I’m always looking to add more! I still have dozens of letters in my own collection that need to be transcribed and added (19th century handwriting runs the gamut from fancy to look at and easy to read to practically indecipherable – such as Colonel Noble’s letters!).
The missing 10th part to J. Montgomery Bailey’s account of his capture, captivity, and subsequent parole following Gettysburg is no longer missing in action. The November 19, 1863 edition is not microfilmed and this portion was unavailable. Thanks to Keith Miller, the entire account is now online for your perusal. Keith, who presents on the 17th CVI as well, relates that the entire series was reprinted by Bailey in 1866 after he purchased the Danbury Times. This part was publsihed in the May 17, 1866 edition.
Bailey’s account is one of the very few published accounts from a member of the 17th that recounts the POW experience following Gettysburg.
A big thank you to Keith for finding it, transcribing it and sending it along to the site!
Lieutenant Wilson French – Co. G
On Tuesday, March 25, 2014 Carolyn Ivanoff (a long time contributor and friend to this site) will be presenting her program “One Family’s Civil War – the military career of Capt. Wilson French, CT 17th Volunteers, and his wife Martha Bouton of Old Mill Hill on Boston Avenue”.
The program begins at 6:30 pm at the North Branch Library, 3455 Madison Avenue, Bridgeport, CT.
Here’s a little more information from Carolyn’s website:
“This program, One Family’s Civil War, is based on almost 600 letters of Captain Wilson French, Company G, 17th Connecticut Volunteers, his beloved wife Martha Bouton French, and the remarkable journey of those letters through the generations. Captain French was wounded at Gettysburg, captured, and paroled. With the 17th Connecticut in service in Florida, he served as the Provost Marshal of St. Augustine. On February 5, 1865 he was captured at Dunn’s Lake and sent to Andersonville where he was incarcerated at the officers’ stockade in Castle Reed. In the summer of 1865 he was subsequently summoned to testify at the Wirz Trial in Washington D.C. Through his letters to his beloved wife, and hers to him, his strong character as a good officer and a good man shine through all his trials and hard service. An amazing story of the Civil War and a family that lived through and survived those difficult and extraordinary years.”
Carolyn’s presentation “A Hard Road to Travel – From Connecticut to Gettysburg” can be found on this site.
The remaining installments of J. Montgomery Bailey’s (aka “High Private Manton”) Under Guard or Sunny South in Slices have been posted under the Gettysburg category. Actually, part 10 is still missing – but the remaining parts are now online. Thanks to Bridget Carroll, gr. gr. granddaughter of Pvt. John Augustus Lowden, 17th Connecticut Volunteer Infantry, Company I, for taking the time to transcribe these articles!
The articles offer a glimpse into the experience of the soldiers who did not accept the Confederate parole offer shortly after the end of the battle – their initial captivity, march south to Richmond and imprisonment there, and their eventual parole and release the following month.
And…if anyone has “Slice Tenth” handy, please feel free to send it along!
