1868 - a Confederate soldier's letter
Transcription of a letter written to Hanley H. Hendrix by an unidentified nephew. The underlines are those of the writer; the question marks indicate words which were difficult to read. My family has no information on the Hendrix family beyond Hanley Harrison Hendrix, but it is assumed that this unknown nephew and his brother Sol were most probably children on his side of the family and not the Pedigo side. Memphis Aug 10th 1868 Dear Uncle Your very welcome but unexpected letter to hand to day -- I assure you it afforded me much pleasure to hear from you. Not having heard from you since the war nor during it -- You ask me where I was & what I was doing during the war. I was in the rebel army from the time it commenced until it closed -- I went(?) out from this place in the 4th Tennessee Infantry & remained(?) until the fall of 63 when I was promoted to a captain in the Commisary(?) Department & was asigned to post duty where I remained until the surrender. Fortunately, I came out without a blemish & never in prison, my brother(?) Sol (who is dead) & myself when the war broke out had made a good start & had a good business in this city & left Memphis thinking ourselves worth 80,000. But we lost it all -- after the surrender I went to Selma & remained until March 1866 when I returned to Memphis having made a little money. I there(?) went into the stave(?) business making & exporting staves(?) to foreign countries but found I was not making any money & last fall I went into the whiskey business & doing well -- You will see from your card that I enclose you the style of our firm(?) & business. We have every reason to think that we will make money this fall & winter if there is not another war stired(?) up over this presidental election -- Pa & Ma & family were pushed from pillow to post during the war & almost everything they had destroyed & confiscated. He writes me his making a good living but that is about all. I hope by next spring to be able to help him, we have all had to struggle very hard to get another start having no money and no friends that had any at the close of the war, I am much in favor of Pa & the family all moving to California. It would be impossible for me to leave under 12 or 18 months, for I am now making money & think that by close application to business for that time will place me easy in the way of money matters. I will write to Pa tomorrow & and advise him. [No Signature] |