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Home / Historical / 2011 November 12 Civil War & Militaria Signature Auction- Dallas Auction #6074 / Lot #52056
    LOT #52056  | 
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    [Civil War] Prisoner of War Poem....

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    • Miscellaneous:Ephemera, [Civil War] Prisoner of War Poem....
    • Miscellaneous:Ephemera, [Civil War] Prisoner of War Poem....
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    Description

    [Civil War] Prisoner of War Poem. Two pages, 8" x 10", Ohio, 1864. The poem is written on blue-lined paper with the following introduction: "Written by Col. Hawkins, C. S. A. (prisoner of war at Camp Chase) a friend of a fellow prisoner, who was engaged to be married to a southern lady. She proved faithless to him. The letter arrived soon after his death, and was answered by Col. H. in the following lines:." What follows is a beautifully sad poem of eighty lines, written in rhyme scheme. It reads in part:

    "Your letter came, but came too late,
    For Heaven had claimed to own;
    Ah sudden change! From prison bars
    Unto the Great White Throne.
    And yet, I think he would have stayed,
    For one more day of pain,
    Could he have read these tardy words
    Which you have sent in vain."

    Colonel William Stewart Hawkins (1837-1865) was born in Alabama. Prior to the war, he attended the University of Nashville and Bethany College in Virginia studying poetry and literature. A supporter of secession, he joined the Tennessee cavalry in 1861. He was present at Shiloh and was captured in 1864 and place in the Union prison camp, Camp Chase in Ohio. He was paroled later that year and was appointed Confederate Agent to the prison. He died in 1865 aged twenty-eight years. The poem has the usual fold creases which are weakened, toned, and slightly broken in places, but the text is not affected. Fine.

    Auction Info

    Auction Dates
    November, 2011
    12th Saturday
    Bids + Registered Phone Bidders: 1
    Lot Tracking Activity: N/A
    Page Views: 890

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    19.5% of the successful bid (minimum $14) per lot.

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