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Civil War Diary and Tintype of Griffin LaDue, 8th New York Heavy Artillery. ... (Total: 2 Items)
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Description
"...We made a charge on the breastworks and were cut down like grass. There were some two or three hundred killed and wounded on our forces."
Civil War Diary and Tintype of Griffin LaDue, 8th New York Heavy
Artillery. 1864 pocket diary on lined paper. 3.25" x 6", 56
pages, recto and verso; bound in soft cloth boards. Entries date
from January 1 to October 22 of 1864. Penned in pencil and ink.
Griffin LaDue (1842-1927) mustered into Company K of the 129th New
York Infantry (which became the 8th Heavy Artillery) on August 14,
1862. His diary opens with a poem that reads, "With pen in hand
/ I'll try to date, / The things that passes / Every day. And when
/ the years is ended. / That I may tell. / How the year has past. /
And passed how well." The entries discuss the weather and their
movements through Virginia, including their participation in the
battles of Spotsylvania Court House, North Anna, Cold Harbor, the
siege of Petersburg, and his time as a POW. While his entries are
largely perfunctory, the diary illustrates the near-continual
number of engagements experienced by the 8th New York in 1864.
[Punctuation has occasionally been altered in the description for
clarity.]In Spring 1864, the 8th was attached to Tyler's Heavy Artillery Division with the Army of the Potomac and took part in the Overland campaign. His entries from May 18-26 discuss their participation in the battles of Spotsylvania Court House and North Anna. [May 18]: "... we were then ordered to the left wing. There was some heavy fireing [sic] this morning. One passed over our heads..." [May 19]: "...at night we were ordered out, and we went out and done some fireing. I went out as picket. We retreated back and then we stoped [sic]. There was Three of our company wounded in the engagement." [May 20]: "This morning we went over the ground where the battle was fought and saw a great many killed we had 9 killed & 27 wounded in last nights engagement." [May 23]: "Today we have marched all day. There is verry [sic] heavy fireing all along the lines to night... Our forces has taken one line of rifle pits and one fortification..." [May 24]: "...There has been verry brisk fireing of artillery. We came across the river under a verry heavy fire of artilery [sic]. There was quite a number of wounded in crossing... our orderly was wounded last night." [May 26]: "...We throwed up some intrenchments to day. There has been some artilery fireing here today..."
From May 31-June 12, the 8th took part in the calamitous Battle of Cold Harbor. After two days of artillery fire stationed behind the Union entrenchments, the 8th was reformed as a line of infantry and charged the enemy's breastworks on June 3. The assault was made under heavy Confederate fire and resulted in a devastating number of casualties, as described by LaDue in that day's entry. "... We made a charge on the breastworks and were cut down like grass. There were some two or three hundred killed and wounded on our forces. They were repulsed." The 8th then participated in the siege of Petersburg for the remainder of the summer. On the 18th of June, they were embroiled in the Second Battle of Petersburg which LaDue duly records. "...This afternoon there was a verry heavy battle fought. We lost a good many in killed and wounded. Our company lost some..." On the 22nd, Lt. Col. William W. Bates was mortally wounded in the stomach at Jerusalem Plank Road. His entries for July record skirmishing and the movements around Petersburg that culminated in the battles of Deep Bottom and the Crater.
On August 25, LaDue was captured at the Second Battle of Ream's Station "with a number of our men." The last entries in August record their march to "Libbie [Libby] Prison" and transfer to Belle Isle Prison, where he remained until his parole on September 12. LaDue was in possession of his diary during their short interment, however the entries from this period are brief and principally concern the weather as "nothing of importance transpired during the remaining days of this month." Following his parole, LaDue was sent to Annapolis, where he appeared to remain at the diary's close. He mustered out of service on June 5, 1865. The diary is accompanied by a 1/9th tintype of LaDue in uniform.
Condition: Front board detached from text block. First two pages are likewise detached from the text block and laid in. Boards rubbed and soiled but entries remain clean and legible. Tintype is hand-detailed with light crackling and scratching.
Auction Info
2023 February 22 Historical Manuscripts Signature® Auction #6260 (go to Auction Home page)
Auction Dates
February, 2023
22nd
Wednesday
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