J. Keith Jones

On November 28, 1862 Daniel Boyd writes his father, Robert Boyd, from Fredericksburg, Virginia. The 7th South Carolina had marched there from Culpepper on the 17th. As he writes this letter Daniel is preparing to go down to the town for picket duty. There he and his comrades will sit in the warmth of one of the abandoned homes along the waterfront where they will watch the northern army across the river. He is convinced that General Ambrose Burnside will not cross the river with his Union army since he has waited so long. Daniel doesn’t realize that once the pontoon bridges arrive the Yankee army will indeed cross the river, push through the town and clash with the Confederate army on Marye’s Heights where he will be a part of one of the greatest and bloodiest victories his young nation will see.

Boys of Diamond Hill

The Military Writers Society of America Gold Medal for History 2012.

To read the entries thus far in the Sesquicentennial series for The Boys of Diamond Hill click here.

To learn more click on the “Diamond Hill” link at the top. To buy the book you may go to any major online retailer such as Amazon or Barnes and Noble, or you may buy it directly from McFarland Publishers. “The Boys of Diamond Hill” is also available for the Kindle.

On November 26, 1862, Thomas Boyd found himself in the hospital in Dalton, Georgia. It is from there that he writes his sister, Mary Jane Hall. He had once again been battling pneumonia, this time for a month. Compounding this was another common complaint of the soldier, diarrhea. His illness had caused him to be moved first to Knoxville then to Chattanooga and finally to Dalton. At this point Thomas was on the mend and was nearly well enough to return to the 19th South Carolina in Tullahoma, Tennessee.

Boys of Diamond Hill

The Military Writers Society of America Gold Medal for History 2012.

To read the entries thus far in the Sesquicentennial series for The Boys of Diamond Hill click here.

To learn more click on the “Diamond Hill” link at the top. To buy the book you may go to any major online retailer such as Amazon or Barnes and Noble, or you may buy it directly from McFarland Publishers. “The Boys of Diamond Hill” is also available for the Kindle.

On November 14, 1862, Daniel Boyd wrote a letter to his father Robert Boyd. He was writing from Culpepper, Virginia.

It appears to be incomplete as it ends abruptly and is unsigned. From the subjects discussed and the people mentioned, it was almost certainly written by Daniel Boyd. He notes several letters he has received from others including James Alewine charting his recovery. He tells of deaths in the company and mentions news of several others. He also talks of a recent hard four day march and general boredom with the war.

He had been paid and states his intention to send some of the money home. He worries of having too much money on hand because of theft within the camps. Daniel also says that he has Pressley’s watch and wants to send that to his father as well. He debates the dilemma of not trusting it to the mail, but worrying that he may not be able to get home to deliver it himself anytime soon. There is mention of a debt owed to him by Sam Bowen and hint of a possibly contentious relationship over it. Daniel says they agreed that they would “settle it our selves if we live to get hom.”

Boys of Diamond Hill

The Military Writers Society of America Gold Medal for History 2012.

To read the entries thus far in the Sesquicentennial series for The Boys of Diamond Hill click here.

To learn more click on the “Diamond Hill” link at the top. To buy the book you may go to any major online retailer such as Amazon or Barnes and Noble, or you may buy it directly from McFarland Publishers. “The Boys of Diamond Hill” is also available for the Kindle.