One of Thomas W. Stephenson's letters to his wife, Elizabeth

Letter written by Thomas W. Stephenson to his wife, Elizabeth

Petersburg June 22 1864

Dear Respected Wife

        I take the pleasure to inform you that I am well and hope you are the same _________________ Petersburgh ______________ charges on the reb but they are defeated _________________�just in front of us there is about 50 or 60 union men laying dead in front of us but we can not get to buring them for rebs unless we throw a flag of truce to bury the dead which I expect we will to day I hope they will for the smell is verry offensive it will make us all sick if we lay hear ___________________________________ _____________________ ____________________________ to do something ___________________ well Elizabeth we are living better now we drawed orders ________ and hard tack ____________ I feel a great deal better than I did a weak ago we are not fighting we are just laying hear I can not tell _____________ we will have to fight we are out of danger unless we make a charge if we do it will be after night if you have not sold eny _____ yet now is the best time to sell it I do not expect to want it again you may have all you can get for it if you can sell my mowing _______ it _____ or enny thing else that is of no use to you _____ for I can not draw enny money untill this campaign is over so the officers says their is three ___________________ I will send it as soon as I get it I expect that will be soon as Richmond is taken and that will not be verry long... we are with in twenty miles of Richmond Burnsides told us the other day that the hard marching is over Richmond will be taken with heavy artilery cannons and gun boats they are at work at it now we can see the smoke of the cannon on the gun boats after night our captain says that we will get home when Richmond is taken I have not much hope of that their has some gon home that was wounded Thomas Vanhorn [Note: He enlisted on March 24, 1864 at age 18. He was wounded May 9, 1864 in the battle of Mary's Bridge, Nye River, Virginia. He mustered out July 28, 1865, by order of War Dept.] is gon home he was in our company he lives at Myeroes he shot his two right fingers off by an accident it may be that he will have to come back and go into the invlid corps to wait on the wounded they can not put him their either unless he is willing
I wish you would send me some letter stamps I do not like to send letters with (out) paying for them I am afraid that you wont get them may be I can get a furlow when we take Richmond I would like to see you and the children and all the rest of you has mothers got plenty of fruit how dose the wheat corn and potato4es look about their Joseph Mayhugh was walking back towards headquarters this morning and he got his ants leg cut with a rebs ball just scratched his leg a little it did not hurt much I stay close to the brestworks in day time after nights I can walk about with (out) danger I have got a book called Melvills Sermons it is better reading than Spurgeon or at least it interests me more it has 387 pages in it it contains the faith of Joseph on his death bed the thirst of Christ the latter rain, the lost sheep and several other sermons I want to bring it home with me if I am spaired have lost my testament but I can borrow one whenever I want one it is a comfort to me to read the testament I have not heard a prayer since I left Camp Chase it is verry hot today we can make a shade with our tents and lay in under them but their is no aire going we have found some ripe apples hear not verry many though their is more huckel berries hear than enny thing else but they are not ripe yet but we gather them and cook them they taste like currants sweeten them I will bring my letter to a close nothing more at present

        Thomas W. Stephenson

        Direct as you all ways did

A special thanks to Martha Williams for contributing this information. Thomas W. Stephenson was her great great grandfather.