CIVIL WAR LETTER
Submitted by Annette Campbell, April 6, 2001
Gilbert Northrup, was my great, great grandfather, born in Franklin, Delaware County, NY on 26 Oct 1833.
Source: The Bloomville Mirror May 6, 1862 page 2 column 1
Here is entire letter written by Gilbert Northrup back home to the Bloomville Mirror
during his stay in the hospital in VA during the Civil War.
Young's Mills Hospital, Va.
April 23d, 1862
Mr. Mirror---I now sit down to give you some of the details of a little fight we had with the rebels.
The fifth of this month, on the morning of Saturday, we marched about seven miles through the mud, when all of a sudden we were drawn up in a line of battle and the shot and shells began to fly, rifles began to crack, sending their leaden messengers among our ranks. It made us bow our heads like a flock of young ducks in a rain storm, but as skirmishers we done the best we could, and got behind the trees and stumps; when we got a squint at one he was sure to drop. One of my tent mates was shot down by my side; we were both behind one tree, he looked out to see if he could see any of them, when a bullet came hitting him in the head, killing him instantly. We carried him back ten or fifteen rods, then returned to the tree where our guns were; the bullets came so thick that we were obliged to lay flat down and crawl like a snake to them. It was rather a tight place but we stuck to our posts until Sunday morning, when we were relieved by another regiment; there were quite a number of wounded, but only one killed. I can get along with all but the grape shot and bomb shells, when they come I think about dodging. The rebels are strongly fortified from here to Yorktown; some seven miles of forts and breast works; it is going to be a hard place to take on account of there being a stream of water between us and them; they have prepared dams across it, so that they can drown us out, should we undertakee to cross. No more this time.
Gilbert Northrup
Co. K, 49th Regiment, N.Y.S.V.
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