Henry Cherry Letters

Finding Aid for the Henry Cherry Letters, 1864-1865

MS-2214

University of Tennessee Special Collections Library, Knoxville, TN

Encoded by: Erin Lawrimore, May 10, 2006

Summary Information

Title: Henry Cherry Letters

Date/Date Range : 1864-1865

Extent: 0.1 linear feet

Abstract:
The Henry Cherry Letters, 1864-1865, contain nine letters from Cherry, a Chaplain with the 10th Michigan Cavalry in the Civil War, to Amos Gould of Owosso, MI, describing both military and civilian life in the Union Army during the Civil War. The majority of these letters were written from Knoxville, Tenn.

Call number: MS-2214

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

Access and Use

Aquisition Information:
Collection was purchased by Special Collections in December 1999.
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], Henry Cherry Letters, MS-2214. University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Special Collections Library.

Arrangement

Collection consists of a single folder.

Biography / History

Henry Cherry, a Presbyterian chaplain during the Civil War, served with the 10th Michigan Cavalry. After serving in Lexington, Ky., until late January 1864, this regiment moved to Knoxville in early March 1864. The 10th Michigan Cavalry moved throughout East Tennessee for the next 17 months, until they moved to West Tennessee in August 1865. The men were mustered out on November 11, 1865. During the war years, the regiment lost a total of 271 men, including two officers and 29 enlisted men killed or mortally wounded in battle.

Amos Gould of Owosso, MI, was an attorney and banker. His family was one of the first to arrive in Owosso around 1837. When the city was incorporated in 1859, Gould was elected Owosso's first mayor.

Collection Scope and Content Note

The Henry Cherry Letters, 1864-1865, document the military service of Cherry, a Chaplain with the 10th Michigan Cavalry in the Civil War. In nine letters to Amos Gould of Owosso, MI, Cherry provides insight into life as a Chaplain in the Union Army as well as descriptions of Knoxville and the people of East Tennessee. The final letter, dated November 1, 1865, includes post-war descriptions of Jackson and Memphis.

Cherry provides numerous details on the churches and means of worship in the area, noting in an April 21, 1865, letter "the destructed state of the churches divided & impoverished by the war." He also describes his friendship with Professor Lamar, an instructor of languages at Maryville College, who invites him to preach in Maryville.

Another recurring topic in Cherry's letters is the difficulty that his regiment has faced in getting paid. Cherry expresses regret that he cannot repay his debts to Gould until the Union Army supplies his paycheck. He also discusses paperwork difficulties encountered when he was reunited with the 10th Michigan Cavalry after a brief separation in Kentucky.

Subject Terms

Knoxville (Tenn.) -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865.

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

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

United States. Army. Michigan Cavalry Regiment, 10th (1861-1865).

Tennessee -- Religion.

Maryville College -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865.

Contents List

Folder 1	Item 1	Letter from Henry Cherry to Amos Gould from Somerset, Ky., 1864 March 4 Online Document Scope Note: Talks of the difficulty getting paid. Also discusses how the other officers support him, despite the negative statements made about him by Captain Ayers. Notes that "the great pike to Knoxville is now abandoned." Questions how he will be reunited with his regiment.
Folder 1	Item 2	Letter from Henry Cherry to Amos Gould from Knoxville, Tenn., 1864 June 10 Online Document Scope Note: Describes regimental in-fighting as well as continued problems with pay.
Folder 1	Item 3	Letter from Henry Cherry to Amos Gould from Knoxville, Tenn., 1864 July 11 Online Document Scope Note: Discusses Sunday services, saying "I gave in the morning by special request, an address to a Union Sabbath School, and preached in the afternoon. The people from every direction are urging me to come & preach, but my duties will not permit me to be often absent from camp."
Folder 1	Item 4	Letter from Henry Cherry to Amos Gould from Knoxville, Tenn., 1865 March 27 Online Document Scope Note: Recounts the story of the Battle of Fort Sanders. Also describes Knoxville's fortifications as well as his current location across the Holsten from Knoxville, saying he has "a fair and beautiful view of the city & the river between us which is somewhat over 1000 feet wide & in low water from 8 to 12 feet deep in the channel." Tells of a growing uneasiness in the area, as "over 70,000 troops are said to have traped [sic] through Knoxville to operate somewhere around Lynchburg."
Folder 1	Item 5	Letter from Henry Cherry to Amos Gould from Knoxville, Tenn., 1865 April 11 Online Document Scope Note: Notes the arrival of the news of Lee's surrender, saying "from every Fort around Knoxville demonstrations of joy were given in the firing of cannon." Expresses displeasure with Grant, arguing that he should now have "offered any other than unconditional surrender and then let Government show such mercy & leniency as might be wise & proper." Also speaks of the beauty of the area and the opportunities available for lawyers.
Folder 1	Item 6	Letter from Henry Cherry to Amos Gould from Knoxville, Tenn., 1865 April 21 Online Document Scope Note: Describes "the destructed state of the churches divided and impoverished by the war." Discusses a meeting with the "strongly Union" Professor Lamar at Maryville College as well as an upcoming trip to Maryville to preach for "a colony of good industrious Northern men." Asks Gould to write a letter of support for him for the position of State School Superintendent, as "education in Tennessee has lost four years. The cause needs an Agent, or Leader."
Folder 1	Item 7	Letter from Henry Cherry to Amos Gould from Knoxville, Tenn., 1865 May 2 Online Document Scope Note: Talks of Maryville College and Professor Lamar during the war years, saying "the College was broken up, but he remained." Speaks of a friendship with an unnamed "wealthy planter" who is an elder in a local Presbyterian Church and friends with the Speaker of the House and Governor Brownlow. Asks again for a letter of recommendation, saying "the Universities, Colleges & Academies, & schools have all collapsed, & will have to be reorganized, & I want to assist in doing it." Also discusses his views of Reconstruction, arguing "the matter of Reconstruction will involve a great many very nice points in law & in morals and in practicability also for what will work pretty well in one neighborhood will not reach the peculiarities of another."
Folder 1	Item 8	Letter from Henry Cherry to Amos Gould from Knoxville, Tenn., 1865 June 24 Online Document Scope Note: Outlines the command of the regiment, which has just made camp at Lenoir's Station. Also notes that they are still unpaid. Describes many sick soldiers and says that "Red Tape-ism has closed up the avenue to Hospitals at Knoxville."
Folder 1	Item 9	Letter from Henry Cherry to Amos Gould from Memphis, Tenn., 1865 November 1 Online Document Scope Note: Expresses happiness over rumors that they are to be mustered out today. Describes Jackson as "a wealthy & very beautiful place said to be the handsomest town in Tennessee. But the people are very different from those of E. Tennessee. They are proud, haughty, aristocratic, and are today as rebellious in spirit as they were four years ago." Also talks of post-war anger in both Jackson and Memphis.