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Letters from the Civil War: Henry Lawson Bert

Letters and diaries are often of more interest for the light they throw upon a way of life or a point of view than for their descriptions of great events. Such, to a degree, is the case with the letters of a drummer-boy that follow. His regiment, although almost constantly in active service, aside from the Vicksburg campaign, took part in few of the important battles of the Civil War. There are casual accounts here of a number, of forgotten skirmishes and expeditions, and something about the assault on Fort Blakely during the siege of Mobile, but some readers will perhaps get more of an idea, of a Civil War soldier's life from incidental things: from the chicken that spoiled in the haversack, so that "I did not get to eat a bit of it;" from the green corn that was "coming out in tassell in some places and looks very nice," but was used to make beds; from the picture cases that had "nearly all come to pieces," and that he wanted to exchange for photographs; from the pay delayed for a year; and from Mr. Cope who "comes to me everytime the mail comes and asks me if I got a letter from home and how his folks is."

Then, from this lad, who, in his later years, was one of the kindliest of men, comes the pious hope that "Andrew Johnson will kill every leader of the Confederacy which ought to be done," and the expression, "I don't know what they done with the butternuts but I hope they hung them for I know they need it." No seeker after glory in those days of 1864–1865, he cheered the fact that "Our regiment was so lucky as to not get into the charge," and he longed for the day when "we will once more have peace and hapiness restored to our once hapy [sic] country." Of such homely materials are most of the letters made, and so they are presented, with no omissions except of some extraneous and unimportant messages to the folk at home.

Henry Lawson Bert, author of the letters, was born at Jimstown, Ohio, on August 15, 1845, the son of Peter Bert and of Mary Frazier Bert. Henry was little more than sixteen years of age when he left his home at Tipton to enlist for the Civil War. He was not at once accepted—he was small for his age—but followed the Forty-Seventh Regiment of Indiana Volunteers from Indianapolis to Louisville, before he was finally enrolled as a drummer in Captain William M. Henley's Company I on December 21, 1861. He is described as four feet, ten inches in height, of dark complexion, with black eyes, whose occupation at the time of enrollment was that of a printer.

After the Civil War, Bert, became a merchant tailor, first in Indianapolis, and later in Edinburgh, Marion and Huntington. He died at Marion, Indiana, on December 8, 1910.
Below are the letters written by Bert.


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