Title: Charles E. Foote Papers

Date/Date Range :   1845 July 31-1866 March (bulk 1865 January 5-1865 November 5)

Extent: 3.0 linear feet

Abstract:

This collection consists primarily of correspondence (including newspaper clippings) between Charles E. Foote and his fiancé, Katie La Rue. Additionally, the collection houses Inventory, Inspection, and Ordinance forms from the Union Army and Foote's photo album, including a picture of Foote himself.

Call number: MS-3192

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

Aquisition Information:

Purchased by Special Collections, 2007 June 01.

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], Charles E. Foote Papers, MS-3192. University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Special Collections Library.

Collection consists of 4 folders.

Charles E. Foote was born in Ypsilanti, Michigan in about 1842. He served three months in the 1st Michigan Infantry in 1861. Following this service, he enlisted in the 22nd Michigan Infantry, Company H, on 1862 August 5. Foote was wounded at the battle of Chickamauga and later served at Camp Levitt's Military Prison in Chattanooga, Tennessee, as a provost guard. Foote rose to the rank of First Lieutenant before mustering out on 1865 June 26. He was awarded an honorable discharge from the United States Military. The family later moved to California, where Foote died on 1907 September 17.

Charles E. Foote wrote the letters in this collection to his fiancé, Katie La Rue. They are filled primarily with sentimental discussions of their relationship but also include information regarding the state of the war in his region. Foote discusses the movement of prisoners from Chattanooga to Nashville and his responsibility of guarding them. Foote also claims General William Tecumseh Sherman's army to be invincible and holds that taking Knoxville or Chattanooga would be difficult for the Confederate Army due to a strong elevated defense position in both cities. Foote is devastated by the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln and swears revenge on the Confederate Army. He claims that Lincoln's successor, President Andrew Johnson, will be much more severe with the Confederates. He feels that Confederate President Jefferson Davis should feel the same pain, saying "I pray the rope or the deadly bullet will put an end to Jefferson Davis." The letters are full of physical descriptions of the terrain, for example Lookout Mountain, as well as camp life.

This collection also houses many official Union Army documents, including inventory, inspection, and ordinance forms. These forms are signed by Charles Foote and detail many of the material needs of the unit's troops. There is also a ledger signed by every soldier receiving a new uniform from the Inventory Office. Finally, the collection contains newspapers and a photo album. The newspapers are dated, but Foote wanted La Rue to read the poems in them. The photo album is not labeled, but the pictures are of people from Ypsilanti, Michigan. The final picture in the album is a portrait of Foote.

• Lincoln, Abraham, 1809-1865 -- Assassination.
• United States. President (1865-1869 : Johnson).
• Davis, Jefferson, 1808-1889.
• United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865.
• Tennessee -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865.
• Soldiers -- Michigan -- Correspondence.
• United States. Army. Michigan Infantry Regiment, 1st (1861-1865).
• United States. Army. Michigan Infantry Regiment, 22nd (1862-1865).