An 1863 leather-wrapped pocket diary kept by William W. Weller of Littleton, New Hampshire, who enlisted in the Union Army on April 20, 1861, as a private in Company G of the 2nd New Hampshire Volunteer Regiment. Though he appears to have carried this diary with him throughout the year of 1863, he did not write extensively; there are about 140 pages with a few lines of writing, of which about a dozen refer to the war. These entries are sporadic and usually just one or two lines long. On January 17, he writes the lyrics to 'Rally Round the Flag': "The Union Forever hurrah / boys hurrah down with / traiter and up with the / Star then ralley ralley / around the flag boys / ralley once again / Shouting the battle cry / of freedom."
The most notable entries concern the Battle of Gettysburg and its aftermath:
July 2: "Arrival at Gettisburg this morning. First fight to day."
July 3: "Second day of the battle of Gettisburg."
July 4: "Third and last day of the fight."
July 13: "Inside of the Rebes fortifications near the river found a five leaf clover never seen one before." A dried four leaf clover is laid into the diary here.
July 27: "Left the Army of the Potomac and went to Washington."
July 31: "Arrival at Point Lookout this morning."
Other entries regard his pay, weather, numbers of recruits, letters sent and received, and other general information. On December 28, he interestingly notes: "219 Reb prisoners arrived this morning." On the last page, he records detailed measurements of the US Capitol building. In very good condition, with general wear and soiling.
At Gettysburg, the 2nd New Hampshire entered battle with 353 soldiers. In under three hours, 47 were killed, 136 wounded, and 36 went missing; of 24 officers, only three escaped unscathed. Due to their high losses, the regiment was assigned to guard duty at Point Lookout, Maryland—as Private Weller records in this diary on July 31st. A fascinating, though terse, first-person account of the Civil War's most famous battle.
We use cookies on this site to improve your experience. By using this site, you accept our use of cookies. To learn more, please see our Privacy Policy.
