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Head Quarters, 129th Regt. Ills. Vols. Infty.
Gallatin, Tenn., July 11th 1863

My Dear Wife

Another day has passed without any word from you. I leave at 10 o’clock to-night on a scout of 100 cavalry, 200 infantry & 2 pieces of Artillery. Will be absent for two days,¹ but as the trains do not run north of Louisville, I can hardly expect to hear for several days. Morgan has possession of the Rail Road from Jeffersonville to Indianapolis.²

We are all well. Capt. Reed, Sergt. Quakenbush, Lacy McFee & Bob McIntyre came near being captured at Spradling’s to-day by some 30 Rebels but succeeded in making their Escape.³

I expected to have several letters to answer to-morrow (Sunday). Hoping that God’s blessings may rest upon you & Frankie, I remain,

Ever Your Affect. Husband
J. F. Culver

1. Private Dunham of Company C wrote his parents on July 12, “I am heare alone [at Gallatin] most of the boys went out last nite on a scout. They took two peces of artilery with them”, Through the South with a Union Soldier, p. 76.
2. Morgan and his raiders on the 10th swept through Salem on the New Albany & Salem Railroad, and on the 11th slashed across the Indianapolis-Jeffersonville Railroad near Vienna and the Madison, Indianapolis & Peru Railroad at Vernon. O. R., Ser. I, Vol. XXIII, pt. I, pp. 719-726.
3. Henry B. Reed, a 30-year-old farmer, was mustered into service on Sept. 8, 1862, as captain of Company G, 129th Illinois. From Feb. 17-April 18, 1864, he was detailed on court martial duty in Nashville. Captain Reed was mustered out on June 8, 1865, at Washington, D.C. George M. Quackenbush, a 27-year-old saddler, was mustered into service on Sept. 8, 1862, as a sergeant in Company D, 129th Illinois, and was appointed regimental quartermaster sergeant two days later. Sergeant Quackenbush was mustered out at Washington, D.C, June 8, 1865. Robert M. McIntyre, a 24-year-old tinsmith, was mustered into service on Sept. 8, 1862, as a private in Company G, 129th Illinois. Private Mclntyre was hospitalized at Gallatin on April 14, 1863, and on his release from the hospital was detailed as provost clerk. On Dec. 7, 1863, he was assigned to duty with the Nashville Quartermaster Depot, and on April 28, 1864, he was ordered to report for naval service at Chattanooga. Henry L. McFee, a 28-year-old farmer, was mustered into Company B, 129th Illinois, as a private on Sept. 8, 1862. He was appointed wagon master on Feb. 4, 1863, and on Dec. 21, 1863, was detailed as a clerk to the Nashville Quartermaster Depot. Compiled Service Records of Union Soldiers, NA.

Head Quarters, Co. “A” 129th Regt. Ills. Vols.
Gallatin, Tenn., July 10th 1863

My Dear Wife

If you have ever anticipated without presuming to doubt the arrival of glad tidings & being delayed day after day with bright hopes for the morrow (when anticipated pleasure brings but blank disappointment & you are left in doubt & uncertainty with great fears for the result). If you have experienced all this, you can sympathize with me to-night.

The mail arrived for the first time this evening for 9 days, bringing a large number of letters for a large majority of the Company, but none for me. No news from my wife. No knowledge of where you are, whether you have reached your destination & are in good health, & a great many things that I expected to hear. No news from home, not a letter or paper.

To say that I am disappointed is scarcely half. I fear something has happened but what I cannot determine. I pray God my fears may be groundless & all be well. Oh, how anxiously I have looked for this mail. I shall most earnestly hope for some news to-morrow. If you were near where a telegram would reach you, I should not wait for the train for word from you, & yet if anything has happened I hope our friends would be considerate enough to let me know immediately. I shall hope on; hope that you are well & Frankie also.

My health is quite good. We were reinforced to-day by the 71st Ohio Regt.¹ Two more regts. are expected with a Batallion of Cavalry.² I can but close & wait. My God bless & keep you both, fill you with love & grace divine.

Good Night

Your affect. Husband
J. F. Culver

1. The 71st Ohio Infantry had spent the winter of 1862-63 at Fort Henry, Tenn., and was ordered from Fort Donelson, on the Cumberland River, to Gallatin in the first week of July. There it was to help guard the railroad between Nashville and Mitchellville. Reid, Ohio in the War, Vol. II, p. 410.
2. There was no substance to the rumor that the force at Gallatin was to be further reinforced. General Rosecrans had decided that three infantry regiments (the 129th Illinois, and the 71st and 106th Ohio) and one battery of artillery (the 13th Indiana) were sufficient to hold Gallatin and guard the railroad.

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Head Quarters, Co. “A” 129th Regt. Ills.
Gallatin, Tenn., July 9th 1863

My Dear Wife

Another day has passed without any mail, with the usual promise that it will come to-morrow. Morgan has gone with a portion of his command to Indiana. Should he venture any considerable distance his capture is certain.¹ Reports still confirm of the fall of Vicksburg & the rout of Lee’s Army in Penna., but we scarcely believe it all.

By the time we get reliable news, great changes will doubtless have been effected. It looks to me much like the last struggle before their [the Confederates] final overthrow.² Some 5000 deserters from Bragg’s Army have come into Rosecrans’ Camp.³ They are rapidly evacuating Tennessee.⁴

We may look for stirring times where small detachments are stationed. We are expecting reinforcements here daily of an entire brigade, even now within striking distance of the place, so that our duties if we remain here will have lighter duties to perform.⁵

Our health is still good. Russell is rapidly improving & is able to be about most of the time. I have nothing new to communicate. How I wish for some word from you. Kiss Frankie for me.

May God bless my Dear Wife

Your Affect. Husband
J. F. Culver

1. Morgan and his division after crossing the Ohio had struck northward into Indiana, and on the 9th passed through Croydon. J.F.C.’s forecast was correct. Morgan’s raid north of the Ohio caused thousands of militia to turn out, and with the Ohio and other rivers and streams of the region at or near flood stage, it made a recrossing of the  Ohio  problematical.
2. Most Union leaders would have echoed J.F.C.’s estimate of the situation. The Confederates, however, fought on and the war continued until the spring of 1865.
3. The figure (5,000) given by J.F.C. as the number of Confederates who had abandoned the fight and had surrendered to Rosecrans’ army during the Middle Tennessee Campaign (June 24-July 7), is greatly exaggerated. During this period, 1,634 Confederates were captured, of whom 616 claimed “to have delivered themselves” voluntarily, being “conscripts or tired of the war.” O. R., Ser. I, Vol. XXIII, pt. I, p. 425.
4. General Bragg’s Army of Tennessee had evacuated Middle Tennessee, crossing to the south bank of the Tennessee River at Shellmount and Kelly’s Ford on July 6-7. General Rosecrans now halted his pursuit to bring up supplies and consolidate his gains, preparatory to advancing on Chattanooga. O. R., Ser. I, Vol. XXIII, pt. II, pp. 900-902.
5. On July 7 Rosecrans directed Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger, commander of his reserve corps, to send one or two regiments to strengthen the force at Gallatin. This was in response to General Paine’s plea for reinforcements. Ibid., p. 518.

Tuesday, July 9, 2013
Submitted by Jessica Rogers

We moved our Columbian hand press from the first floor of the library to the third floor, in front of Special Collections, to make more room for the Learning Commons. If you have not yet had a chance to see it, please, stop by and gaze in wonder at the remarkable craftsmanship and beauty of this historic hand press. As your eyes drift over the various decorations and counter-weights of this cast iron behemoth, take a moment to think to yourself “man, I bet this thing is really, really, really, heavy.” And it is.

Our particular Columbian was cast in 1843 at 120 Aldersgate Street, London, as stated on the brass plate which is mounted at the top of the structure. There is no indication as to when it was shipped to the U.S., where it was used, or when it arrived at the University of Iowa. It is roughly seven feet high and four feet wide (when the press bed is out) and made primarily from cast iron. Although no exact weight of the machine could be found it has been firmly established that the press is very, very heavy. Moving the press from the first to third floor took five men and a cherry-picker, a tool that is used in auto shops to lift car engines. After nearly four hours (and one almost-broken toe) the Columbian was at last settled in its new home.

The Columbian press was invented in 1813 by George Clymer, an American mechanic in Philadelphia. Sadly, Columbian presses were not as popular in the U.S. as they were overseas and Clymer moved his business across the pond where the machines proved more popular. Despite American printers rejection of his press, Clymer continued to decorate the Columbian (the name itself a tribute to Clymer’s beloved America) in patriotic symbols. In fact, Columbian presses can be most easily identified by the bald Eagle counter-weight at the top of the press. To date, there are no remaining American made Columbians and any Columbians located in the U.S. were made abroad and shipped back to American printers.

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Head Quarters, Co. “A”, 129th Regt. Ills. Vols.
Gallatin, Tenn., July 8th 1863

My Dear Wife

As communication is not yet open, I have received no letters from you, & I presume none of mine have reached you. I wrote a long letter on Friday evening [the 3d], but the train & mail was captured so that someone else will peruse it than my wife. I hope it may do them good. Some of the men of this Regiment were captured with the train, but I have not yet learned who.¹ If the train coming South was captured, which is probable, Daniel Graff is likely among the number, as he was to have returned by it.²

We have had no papers, but several dispatches sent as we think by Morgan, as he had a Battery attached to the lines:³ one was of the entire overthrow of Lee’s Army in Penna; the other, the fall of Vicksburg on the 4th inst. with 24,000 prisoners.⁴ Report says that Morgan has retreated & that the road will be repaired in a few days.⁵ But we dare not rely on the reports not knowing who works the wires. Morgan evidently has in his employ some operative of the Road, as a stranger could easily be detected. Instead of destroying the train he captured, he sent it back to Nashville with all the ladies aboard, telegraphing at the same time that it was the regular train from Louisville. We have no news from any part of the Army that is reliable.

Lt. Culver left here for his regiment at the front yesterday.⁶ He promised to hunt up Bro. Johnnie & let me know where he is. I cannot understand why he has not answered any of my letters. You cannot imagine with what anxiety we await the first train for news from friends & loved ones & the Armies.

Russell’s health is improving; but he is not able to be about much yet. I have been reading during my leisure hours a history of the war by E. A. Pollard.⁷ I am sorry to say I never read such a collection of falsehood in my life. I wish very much to get a true, well written history. Perhaps in your travels you may find one; if so purchase & read it, & I can get it should I succeed in getting home this fall. Another thing I want very much is a pocket map of the U.S., reliable. Should you see any of Floyd’s [sic] Newspaper maps of the seat of War, please send me one by mail.⁸

I had a short ride in the country this evening with Col. Cropsey. This country is looking beautiful & reminds me so forcibly of Cumberland Valley that I long to see the old home once more.⁹

We are plodding on in the even tenor of our way lately; duties heavy but health good. I am getting quite fat lately which is unaccountable. I think I shall soon be up to my old weight. We are having quite a feast on blackberries, which are ripe & plentiful. I should like to have a mess of whortleberries. They are ripe now. I hope you will enjoy them. I presume you have ripe apples, eat a few for me. I hope you are enjoying yourself visiting the old haunts of pleasure.

I thought this evening while riding through the grove that perhaps you were roaming around those old hills, visiting old friends & thinking of the change the few years of absence has effected in your own condition & that of others. I earnestly hope you may have no regrets for the result & that your cup of happiness may be full.

I have not forgotten my tramp from New Hartford to Mr. Case’s through mud ankle deep; of the pleasant acquaintances I made while there. Indeed, had I been single, I am not sure that it would have been a wise policy to send me among those lady friends of yours there. As one of them has very large lustrous eyes that are quite captivating, I do not deem it prudent to mention names. Yet an initial acrostic may not be inappropriate such as:

Songs of Minstrels fill the air
While Nature blooming ever fair &, &c, &c

Do not get alarmed at my poetry for I never wrote a line correctly in my life, & I am rather far advanced in life now to be effected by the muses.

Remember me kindly to all our friends. I set down to have a little chat with you and have almost exhausted all the subjects at my command. I have written punctually almost every day. Indeed, I think I have not missed more than three or four since you left. I can hardly expect you to do as much as you will be very frequently without facilities to write.

Capt. Hoskins has been quite sick to-day. Mrs. Smith requests me to say that she would like to hear from you. She is well.

I hope Frankie is making good use of his time & opportunities; that he is enjoying good health & giving you little trouble. I wish I could encircle you both in my arms & get a sweet kiss in return. Sometimes I feel sorry that you are gone, yet I must confess that I could not wish you surrounded with the dangers we are liable to encounter here. I hope the time will soon come when separation will no longer be a necessity, & we in our quiet home can enjoy the greater sweets from our long absence, when our country will no longer need the sacrifice of all that is so dear to our hearts. Let us devoutly pray for a glorious future. I could not enumerate all the dreams of future happiness I have had should God in His Infinite Goodness prosper us.

I feel very sanguine that the great dark clouds will soon disappear & the reign of Peace be ushered in. May it come speedily.

Let us trust wholly in the promises of God & earnestly strive to do his will. I feel unusually buoyant & happy tonight, whether it is the precursor of a fit of the blues or the dawning of a glorious reality, I cannot tell; yet I will not forego the pleasures of present realities. Trusting in God for your happiness, I remain,

Your Affect Husband
J. F. Culver

1. The train had been captured at Bardstown Junction on the 6th. After destroying the mail and robbing the express company safe and a number of passengers, Morgan released the train and sent it back to Elizabethtown. O. R., Ser. I, Vol. XXIII, pt. I, pp. 659, 702.
2. Daniel Graff, a 33-year-old farmer, was mustered into service on Sept. 8, 1862, as a private in Company A, 129th Illinois. Graff was promoted to corporal on May 9, 1863, and was mustered out at Washington, D.C., June 8, 1865. Compiled Service Records of Union Soldiers, NA.
3. Morgan’s command included several skilled telegraphers, equipped with keys and batteries, who would tap into telegraph lines and send dispatches calculated to confuse the Federals.
4. The messages detailing Lee’s defeat at Gettysburg and of the surrender of Vicksburg were legitimate and had not been sent by Morgan’s scouts. On the 7th Secretary of War Stanton had telegraphed General Rosecrans, “Vicksburg surrendered to General Grant on the 4th of July. Lee’s army overthrown; Grant victorious.” O. R., Ser. I, Vol. XXIII, pt. II, p. 518. At Vicksburg 29,500 Confederates had been surrendered by General Pemberton.
5. Morgan and his raiders had been dislodged from their brief grip on the Louisville & Nashville Railroad, and on the 8th, having seized a steamboat at Brandenburg, crossed the Ohio and carried the war into Indiana. O. R., Ser. I, Vol. XXIII, pt. I, p. 705.
6. Lt. Charles Culver had been mustered into service as 2d lieutenant of Company H, 105th Illinois Infantry. He was currently serving on General Paine’s staff. Compiled Service Records of Union Soldiers, NA.
7. E. A. Pollard, editor of the Richmond Examiner and caustic critic of President Jefferson Davis, in 1862 wrote The First Year of the War. This book, while critical of President Davis, was sympathetic to the Confederacy.
8. H. H. Lloyd & Co. of 25 Howard Street, New York City, in 1863 published a “New Military Map of the Border and Southern States.” The popular 33 x 92 inch map sold for fifty cents.
9. Reference is to the Cumberland Valley of Pennsylvania where J.F.C. had spent his youth.

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