William A. Huddard Papers

Finding Aid for the William A. Huddard Papers, 1861-1864

MS-2119

University of Tennessee Special Collections Library, Knoxville, TN

Encoded by: Erin Lawrimore, May 3, 2006

Summary Information

Title: William A. Huddard Papers

Date/Date Range : 1861-1864

Extent: 0.33 linear feet

Abstract:
This is a collection of sixty-one Civil War letters written by William A. Huddard to his father. The letters begin in June of 1861 and end in April of 1864. Huddard's letters to his father describe many aspects of life in the western armies during the Civil War. He describes battles, camp life, enemy combatants, the environment, furloughs, his health, rumors, and weather.

Call number: MS-2119

Repository: University of Tennessee Special Collections Library, Knoxville, TN

Access and Use

Aquisition Information:
Collection was purchased.
Access Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Copyright:
The copyright interests in this collection remain with the creator. For more information, contact the Special Collections Library.
Preferred Citation:
[Identification of Item], William A. Huddard Papers, MS-2119. University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Special Collections Library.

Arrangement

This collection is divided into two series. Series one contains biographical information about Huddard and the 1st Ohio Infantry Regiment. Series two includes all of Huddard's correspondence in this collection.

Biography / History

Private William A. Huddard served in the First Ohio Infantry. He enlisted into Company D. of the First Ohio Infantry on September 9, 1861. By order of the War Department, he was mustered out on August 17, 1864. On May 14, 1864, Private Huddard was wounded at Resaca, Georgia. Huddard's regiment participated in twenty-four engagements in the western theater during the Civil War. Five hundred and twenty-seven of his colleagues were killed or wounded.

Collection Scope and Content Note

The William A. Huddard Papers were comprised by a Union soldier during the Civil War. These letters begin in June of 1861 and conclude in April of 1864. Private Huddard had excellent penmanship and most of his letters to his father are easy to read. All but two of his letters in this collection are well preserved. Huddard describes the First Ohio's involvement in the battles of Perryville, Stones River (Murfreesboro), and Missionary Ridge. He makes references to the battles of Shiloh, Tullahoma, Corinth, and Knoxville. Most of the letters do not describe military engagements, however. Huddard tells his father of his good health. On several occasions he informs him that he has actually gained weight and not lost any pounds. Most letters contain a reference to the changing weather conditions. Throughout the collection, Huddard asks his father to write to him and send him supplies, money, stamps, and clothing. Another recurring theme is Huddard's desire for news, particularly when his regiment is in East Tennessee. Huddard also writes of the hard marches, constant drilling, and the frequent building of defensive positions which included the construction of breastworks and the digging of trenches. "Taking it all together," he wrote in early 1862, "I still like a soldier's life and I hardly think you will see me home until the war is over." Ten letters have been transcribed and these transcriptions are included in the collection.

Subject Terms

Tennessee -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865.

Ohio -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Personal Narratives.

United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Personal Narratives.

United States. Army. Ohio Infantry Regiment, 1st (1861-1864).

Soldiers -- Ohio -- Correspondence.

Contents List

		Series 1: Personal and Biographical Information
Box 1	Folder 1	Biographical information Scope Note: Printouts of information regarding to William A. Huddard and some of the soldiers he refers to in his correspondence.
Box 1	Folder 2	1st Ohio information Scope Note: Printouts of information regarding the history of the 1st Ohio Infantry Regiment in the Civil War.
		Series 2: Correspondence
Box 1	Folder 3	Correspondence, 1861 June-December Scope Note: In his first seven months of service, Huddard describes the life of a union soldier training in Ohio and then marching in Kentucky. He informs his father that he is in good health and that when he goes to town to weigh himself, he realizes that he has gained eight pounds. In September he visits the Ohio state fair. "The fair this year is very poor and was not worth the price of admission," Huddard writes. But the first time the regiment is called out to action, Huddard is scared.
Box 1	Folder 3	Correspondence, 1862 January-February Scope Note: Huddard writes of his good health, the weather, hard marches, news of the capture of Forts Henry and Donaldson, constant drilling, and rebel movements. "Taking it all together," he writes on January 8, "I still like a soldier's life and I hardly think you will see me home until the war is over."
Box 1	Folder 5	Correspondence, 1862 March-May Scope Note: In the spring and early summer months of 1862, Huddard discusses his marches through Tennessee and tells his father that he is "anxious for a fight." "So far I am pleased with the country but not with the people for more than two thirds of them are secesh." He asks his father to send stamps, money, and shirts. On April 16, he mentions the "stench of dead bodies" still on the Shiloh Battlefield. But Huddard believes that the two armies will soon meet again. "The pickets of the two armies are within sight of each other and there is no telling when the fight may commence," he writes following Shiloh.
Box 1	Folder 6	Correspondence, 1862 June-September Scope Note: Huddard continues to enjoy good health but the continuous marches are beginning to take a toll. "My feet were never so near played out as now," he writes at the end of the month. When not marching, the regiment forages liberally. "When we want fresh meat, we go and take it right before the eyes of the farmers." The abundance of supplies and the ability of the federal army to procure whatever it wants prompts Huddard to inform his father: "I tell you what, we are making them pay fore the trouble they have been giving us."
Box 1	Folder 7	Correspondence, 1862 October-December Scope Note: The long marches "cripples" Huddard's feet and he is forced to ride in the ambulance in the early October. Marching through Kentucky, the 1st Ohio misses the battle of Perryville. While marching back to Nashville, one hundred and fifty of the regiment are captured by John Hunt Morgan's Confederate cavalry. When he sees brick chimneys at the headquarters, Huddard is assured that the regiment will be there for some time. At the end of November, Huddard realizes that the rebels are massing near Murfreesboro. "At present it looks as if we should have a pretty hard battle at Murfreesboro" and that "the men are all anxious for a fight and say the sooner, the better," he writes on December 15.
Box 1	Folder 8	Correspondence, 1863 January-March Scope Note: Huddard is upset with the role that the 1st Ohio played in the battle of Murfreesboro (Stones River). He believes that his division commander, General Johnson, "has acted the traitor." During the battle, Huddard is captured and taken prisoner. However, when Union cavalry retake the position he is being held at he is able to escape. The regiment loses one hundred and thirty men during the engagement. Huddard is discouraged by news from the homefront. He is appalled that the northern people are getting discouraged and that they are ready peace on any condition. But he is glad that the conscription act has been passed. "I think the only way to settle the war is by fighting and the more men we have the better it will be for us and the sooner we will end the war," he writes on the first of March.
Box 1	Folder 9	Correspondence, 1863 April-May Scope Note: "Rest assured that the Copperheads of the North have no friends here in the army," Huddard tells his father. Rumors abound that the regiment will be ordered back to Ohio to enforce the Conscription act but these rumors do not come to fruition. Huddard is further disappointed when he is unable to procure a furlough. News of the army of the Potomac's movements in the early spring give Huddard excitement. "We begin to think that we will yet winter in Ohio," he informs his home on May 7. But on the May 21, Huddard laments that the news from Hooker's army "is not the best." Drilling, guard duty, and the construction of breast works keep Huddard's mind of the recent failures in the eastern theatre.
Box 1	Folder 10	Correspondence, 1863 June-August Scope Note: Huddard is upset with the lack of letters he is receiving from home. In a moment of sarcasm he writes on July 31: "For the last two or three weeks I have been anxiously looking for a letter from you but day after day I have been disappointed." The number of Confederate deserters coming into the Union lines is a good sign for Huddard. The latest rumor now is that the regiment will go to Atlanta.
Box 1	Folder 11	Correspondence, 1863 October-December Letter, William A. Huddard in Knoxville, Tenn., to his father in Ohio, 1863 December 13 Online Document Letter, William A. Huddard near Knoxville, Tenn., to his father in Ohio, 1863 December 20 Online Document Scope Note: The regiment participates in the battle of Chattanooga. Huddard is stationed so close to the Confederates that he can hear their conversations. He tells of exchanging coffee, sugar, and papers with Confederate soldiers during a cease fire period. The rumor mill says that General Hooker is en route with three corps of infantry and that Grant will take command. On November 27, Huddard writes to his father about the "great battle" of Missionary Ridge where the men of his regiment were dropping by the dozens. After Chattanooga is won, the 1st Ohio marches to East Tennessee to relieve General Ambrose E. Burnside. "I have always heard of East Tennessee being a rich country and so it is, for I have never lived better than I did on this march," Huddards says on December 13.
Box 1	Folder 12	Correspondence, 1864 March-April Online Document Scope Note: In the final months of Huddard's preserved correspondence, his regiment is constantly on the move. The rumor in April is that the regiment will be assigned to the Army of the Potomac. Also, Huddard claims that it is very difficult to get papers and news in and around Knoxville. New recruits join the regiment to augment its strength.