I would like to take thee in my arms once more and have the little
children around me. . . . But I know it is my duty to stay here and
try and be one of the many that God has raised to put down this
rebellion and blot out the institution of slavery.--Taylor Peirce
We hear so much good news of victories and all things are
working well. Yet there is a sadness over it at last for there is
so many wives and mothers left to mourn the loss of some brave son
or husband in our late battles and I do not know but I am one of
the number that may have to mourn for thee at this very
time.--Catharine Peirce
Taylor Peirce was 40 years old when he left his wife and family
to enlist in the 22nd Iowa Volunteer Infantry Regiment. He served
for three long years and saw action in both theaters of the Civil
War-ranging thousands of miles from the siege of Vicksburg through
engagements in Louisiana, Texas, Georgia, both Carolinas, and the
Shenandoah Valley. During that time he saw his wife only twice on
furlough, but still stayed in close contact with her through their
intimate and dedicated exchange of letters.
Both ardent Unionists who hated slavery and revered Lincoln, the
Peirces wrote nearly every week over their long separation--letters
that reveal a deep and abiding love for each other, as well as
their strong--willed allegiance to the Union cause. Taylor's
letters tell of battles and camp life, drilling and training, brave
and cowardly commanders, troop morale, raucous amusements like
music and gambling, delinquent paymasters, and his own moral code
and motivation for fighting . They include graphic descriptions of
the battles around Vicksburg, including vivid details about burning
plantation houses, digging canals and trenches, and enduring
constant rifle and artillery fire.
Catharine, for her part, reported on family and relatives, the
demands of being a single mother with three young children,
business affairs, household concerns, weather and crops, events in
Des Moines, and national politics, filling gaps in our knowledge of
Northern life during the war. Most of all, her letters convey her
frustration and aching loneliness in Taylor's absence, as well as
her fears for his life, even as other women were becoming widowed
by the war.
While there are many collections of letters from Civil War
soldiers to their wives, very few include such a rich trove of
letters from the homefront. Together they paint an engrossing
portrait of a soldier and husband who was trying to do his
patriotic and familial duty, and of a wife trying to cope with
loneliness and responsibility while longing for her husband's safe
return. Beautifully edited and annotated by prize-winning Civil War
historian Richard Kiper, they bring to life a nation under siege
and provide a rare look at the war's impact on both the common
soldier and his family.
General
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