Title: J. C. Gates Letter

Date/Date Range :   1864 April 11

Extent: 0.1 linear feet

Abstract:

Collection consists of an April 11, 1864, letter from Union soldier J.C. Gates in Ringgold, Ga., to his wife in Ohio. Gates mentions the arrival of Col. Brownlow and the East Tennessee Cavalry and discusses the fish supply in the local rivers.

Call number: MS-2155

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

Aquisition Information:

Collection was purchased by Special Collections in April 2004.

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], J. C. Gates Letter, MS-2155. University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Special Collections Library.

Collection consists of a single letter.

According to the National Park Service website http://www.itd.nps.gov/cwss/ , there is one Colonel James P. Brownlow of the 1st Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry and one Lt. Col. John B. of the 9th Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry. Both of these units represented the Union Calvary. Even though the name James Edwin Gates was assigned by the seller, this information may be questionable. No service record for James Edwin Gates of Ohio has been found in the sources available.

J.[C.] Gates is writing to his wife Hetty in care of a Mrs. E.W. Gates who may be his mother. Apparently, Hetty and "mother" had some disagreements and like a wise husband so far from home, he remains neutral concerning the incident. He wishes Hetty to continue to improve in health. Housing in Salem is hard to come by, but he reminds her that soldiers have learned to live without housing. His Battalion drill lasted two hours. He appreciates the newspapers that she sends. Bol. Brownlow arrived with the East Tennessee Calvary on April 11th 1864, the day of his writing this letter. Gates repeats from her previous letter to him about "Will Carpenter is hunting." He then tells her about the fish supply in the Chickamauga, Hiawassa, or Tennessee Rivers. Unfortunately, he has no hook and line to allow him to fish.

• Tennessee -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Personal Narratives.
• United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Personal Narratives.
• Soldiers -- Ohio -- Correspondence.