LETTERS HOME PART I

Continued from page one�

Much of the letters of Oliver Ragon's can not be published here on this site due to family nature and rules of the server, but we can tell you a bit about him. Oliver Ragon enlisted on March 1, 1862 at the age of 23. Serving as a Sergeant, he was captured at Stones River; exchanged and returned to Company B on June 12, 1863. He was appointed Corporal on March 1, 1864 and Sergeant (again!) on July 24, 1864. He mustered out with the company on November 30, 1865.

The following letters were provided by our friend Rick Mannion who discovered these gems and provided us with copies. This series of letters was written by Henry L. (S) Pennell, age 31. Pennel was a Sergeant with Company B, 49th OVI. He was discharged disabled, September 9, 1862.

Camp Stanton, Maury County, Tennessee
Friday, March 28th, 1862
Friend Jacob, I take my pen to write a few lines to let you know that I am well  hearty as I  hope this will find you and your folks all in the same state of health. I received your kind letter by the had of Cal yesterday and was glad to hear that you were all well. The health of our Regiment is very good and I hope it will continur so. We are in one of the most splendid countries I have seen. Nice land lays nice and the residences are of the nicest kind and are adorned with evergreens and shubbery in a very tasteful style. they plant there corn about the 1st and cotton about the middle of April. We are having the niceset kind of letter at this time. We are camped on the North Bank of Duck River opposite Columbia the County Seat of Maury County, Tennessee and are Rebuilding a Bridge that the Rebels destroyed before they left. They burned a nice covered bridge and then stopped. The Bridge will be done on Monday if nothing happens and we will be apt to cross on Tuesday if we don not before. We have quite a large force here in this division some 70,000 or more. General Buell is here at this time in person & I expect he will keep along with us as it is reported that the rebels are getting a large force together near Decatur, Allabamma and are going to give us a fight there and I suppose we will go to Decatur when we move on which do when the bridge is done if not before. If they stand their ground and give us Battle I think they are a whipped Nation and if so the War will be of short duration which I hope will be the case so we can get home again and enjoy the pleasures of Peace and Plenty again. Now Jacob as to the papers you spoke of I will say that I have received some from you several times and always mentioned it in the letters I wrote to Horace Hall and Jesse and I wrote a letter to your fatherand afterwards to you but I never got an answer to either of them and thinking you had correspondents enough without me I concluded I should not write again. But as you have broke the string I will do so to and I hope you will continue to do so and I will do the same. Give my respects to all that enquire about me and  to Halls folks and the Mill boys, Josh Meagley and in fact all of my friends you may see and accept the same for yourself  folks. Please write as soon as you can and as often and send me a paper once in a while  direct to H.S. Pennell Company B, 49th Regt. O.V.U.S.A. Care Captain Porter via Louisville, Kentucky  I will get them  now with my best wishes for your welfare and prosperity I will come to a close by subscribing myself your friend and well wishes.
H.S. PENNELL
to Jacob S. Holtz and others

MORE LETTERS TO COME�


This page last updated: January 04, 1999.
_______________________________________________________________________________

Return to Letters Home, Part I.    Articles of Historical Interest   Hom