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Civil War Soldier's Letters by James F. Stepter, 6th Maryland Infantry. ...
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Civil War Soldier's Letters by James F. Stepter, 6th Maryland Infantry. A series of twelve letters from James F. Stepter, private in Company B of the 6th Maryland Infantry. Written to his wife, Amanda Kershaw, the letters are dated from October 6, 1862, to August 18, 1863, and cover his time on duty in Williamsport, Maryland; Bolivar Heights, Virginia; and Berryville, Virginia. The letters measure 7.25" x 9.75" and are all written in ink. Stepter mustered in on August 14, 1862, and died a prisoner of war at Camp Sumpter in Andersonville, Georgia in May 1864. Originally a weaver, Stepter wrote avidly not only to his wife but to his many family members, and a collection of his letters are now held in the archival collections at the University of Maryland.Organized in August 1862 and disbanded in June 1865, the 6th Maryland Infantry fought throughout the majority of the Civil War. Soldiers began their service defending Baltimore in September 1862, where Union forces guarded the city against increasingly unruly Confederate sympathizers. From there, the 6th defended Washington at posts in Williamsport and Maryland Heights, MD until March 1863. After a winter encampment, the men marched to Berryville, VA where they participated in the Battle of Kelly's Ford on March 17, 1863. Perhaps most notably, the regiment fought in the Battle of Winchester on June 14 and 15, 1863, where they defended the Star Fort, a key defensive fort that protected the city. Although that endeavor ended in failure, the 6th continued on to play active roles in the Battles of the Wilderness, where several men were captured; the Siege of Petersburg; and the pursuit of General Robert E. Lee to Appomattox Court House in April 1865.
Despite the harrowing later years of the regiment's service, the first year of their organization was calm and largely stationary. It is during this period that Stepter wrote the letters here. On October 6, 1862, Stepter doubted that they would even see much action. He mused, in part, "I don't think this will last long, it is on its last legs. The rebels say so themselves. They say that they are tired of fighting. I have sen [sic] a good many of them myself, both wild and tame."
Again, only six days later, on October 12, 1862, Stepter did not appear very concerned about the rebel forces, focusing more on his relationship with his wife. He wrote, in part, "I don't know how it is that you don't rite [sic] to me any more . Am shur [sic] I would like to hear from [you] as wel [sic] now when I am so fare [sic] away from you as when I was nearer. My dear, I am well at present and I hope that you and the dear little children are the same. I would like to see all once more but I am to [sic] far away now, but, if God spares me, we will meet before Spring as we expect to stay her [sic] for some time and I will try to get a furlough to come home. The rebels have made another raid into Pennsylvania. We could see them going from ware [sic] we are at and we expect them to come back this way and if they doo [sic] they will met with a warm reception. We have been laying on our arms for forty eight hours wating [sic] for them. The town is full of soldiers and more acoming [sic] in... I want you to keep yourself and children comfertble [sic] this Winter. You must not want for anything, my dear."
Stepter's clear adoration of his wife shines throughout this collection and every letter highlights just how much the soldier missed his family. On October 22, 1862, he assured his wife of his fine health, writing, in part, "I think you worry to [sic] much about me. Now I don't want you to grieve yourself to death about me for I am doeing [sic] as well as any person can do. I have plenty to eat and I have fried aples [sic] three times a day and I am geting [sic] as fat as a hog. I want you to get the same way or when I get home, I will have to faten [sic] you myself and that I can easy doo [sic] and you know it to [sic]."
While Stepter's feelings for his wife weave a clear thread through his letters, he also provides a rare description of the deadly consequences of soldiers stuck at camp. On November 13, 1862, he wrote, in part, "We had a dreadful accedent [sic] in our camp this morning. Two of the boys in Company H were cutting up withe [sic] thare [sic] guns when one of them went off and kiled [sic] the other. The ball pased [sic] through his head; he fell and never spoke. He lived only about seven miles from here. They are going to send him home."
Though Stepter does not specify the gun used in the accident, it is likely that the soldiers in question were firing Springfield rifles, the most common brand used in the Civil War and widely distributed amongst infantry soldiers. Although the Union favored Springfields due to their relatively low cost, clear aim, and reliable service, the soldiers that wielded them often only received the most basic of training. This resulted in frequent accidental injuries and deaths.
After nearly three months of defending the Potomac, the 6th Maryland infantry marched toward Virginia in December 1862. Though Stepter and his regiment had avoided the Battle of Antietam in September, they were not so lucky as to escape the grim aftermath of the bloody attack. On December 16, 1862, he wrote, in part, "We had a perty [sic] hard march of it. The roads were verry [sic] muddy but wet I sen [sic] on the march paid for the tramp. We passed over the great battleground of Antetitam [sic] and I saw whare [sic] hundreds of our brave soldiers are buried. They are buried side by side ware [sic] they fell. I seen one row of soldiers that belongd [sic] to the rgermit [sic] our Jack belongs to. They all had head and foot stones to them and thare [sic] names on them. The rebles [sic] were throed [sic] into to [sic] holes by hundreds."
The deadliest one-day battle in American history, Antietam was a critical victory for the Union Army and gave Lincoln the momentum he needed to issue the Emancipation Proclamation as a decisive strategy rather than a last-ditch effort. On the morning of September 17, 1862, Federal troops numbering 87,000 engaged 45,000 Confederate soldiers. By the end of the day, 22,000 soldiers from both the North and the South had died. Stepter's account offers a somber description of this bloody outcome.
Yet tragedy also struck Stepter personally. On June 8, while stationed in Berryville, Stepter notified his wife of the capture of two of their good friends. He wrote, in part, "It is with sorrow that I tell you that William Thompson and James Beers are prisners [sic] in the hands of the Rebles [sic] and I expect they are in Richmond by this time. One Saturday morning our wagons had to go to Winchester for provisions. Thay [sic] got them and were coming back and were attacked by sixty Reble [sic] cavalry and thare [sic] was only nine of our guards. Thay [sic] got all but three and Thompson and Beers were among the party taken. Our cavalry were started in pursuit as son [sic] as we got the news but up to this evning [sic] thay [sic] have not found them, but thay [sic] brought fourteen this evning [sic] that belong to another party. I don't think it will be long before thay [sic] are paroled and sent back and then Thompson will have a chance to get home. While we were at the Ferry, the rebs took one of our boys on the same road and he has ben [sic] paroled. I am going to write to Mary Thompson tonight and let her know for I think it is my duty to doo [sic] so as painful as it is. Thay [sic] won't hurt them but thay [sic] may keep them for some time. It will allmost [sic] kill his poor wife but it is far better for him to be taken prisner [sic] than to be either kiled [sic] or wounded for he is shure [sic] to get home again."
Records do not report Private William Thompson or Corporal James Beers as prisoners of war. However, it is clear that Confederates either paroled or exchanged the men because both fought in the Battle of Cold Harbor in June 1864 and died as a result. While Thompson was killed in battle, Beers survived until October 6, 1864, when he succumbed to his injuries.
Only a year after Stepter wrote this letter, he too became a casualty of the Civil War and a prisoner of Confederate forces. Wounded at the Battle of the Wilderness on May 5, 1864, Stepter was taken to Camp Sumpter in Andersonville, GA, where he presumably died shortly thereafter. Only open for the last fourteen months of the war, the prison at Camp Sumpter housed nearly 45,000 Union soldiers. Of those, approximately 13,000 died of disease, malnutrition, or poor conditions. Men who survived reported foul scenes of facilities overrun by vermin and maggots, dangerously overcrowded living quarters, and overall mistreatment from Confederate guards. After the war, the Federal government charged Camp Sumpter's commander, Captain Henry Wirz, with war violations.
Stepter's candidness with his wife allows the reader to feel as if they too just marched past the gruesome battlefield turned cemetery at Antietam or faced the daunting task of notifying a soldier's wife that her husband had been captured by the enemy. He writes each of his letters with personality and honesty, making this collection an important addition to any Civil War collection.
Condition: All letters creased along mail folds. Occasional minor separations at folds. Occasional ink stains affecting text. Letter dated December 10, 1862 missing portion of integral page, not affecting text. Minor staining to letter dated December 23, 1862, and closed tear at right margin, both affecting text. Two ink fingerprints to letter dated December 30, 1862.
Auction Info
2023 September 21 Historical Manuscripts Signature® Auction #6272 (go to Auction Home page)
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