Augusta County: Henry H. Dedrick to Mary E. A. Dedrick, May 10,
1863
Summary:
Dedrick describes the battle of Chancellorsville, the wounding and death of General Jackson,
and the shortages plaguing his regiment, i.e. food and paper.
Mary E.A. Dedrick
May 10th 1863
Spotsylvania Co. Virginia. Camp near Hamilton's Crossing
Dear Father-
I take this opportunity to drop you a few to answer your few lines that I received from you this evening. I was glad to hear from you all and to hear that youw as well. I am well at present and hope when these few lines comes to hand they may find you all enjoying the same blessing of god a resting upon you.
You said that you heard that Gen. Jackson had a fight. It was not only him it was all of the troops. We had one of the hardest fights that we ever had since the war begun. General Jackson has lost one of his arms and [unclear: has] now got the pneumonia. He is not expected to live. He was shot by our own pickets. He got out side of our pickets after night and he come up in a gallop and they fired on him and wounded him and all of his guard but one. Our loss is said to be twenty thousand killed wounded and missing. I don't know what the [unclear: loss,] of the enemy was but it must be terrible. I have just heard that General Jackson was dead. If he is it is a great loss to the Southern confederacy.
You said that there was a petition wrote and sent to me or my officers. I have not heard nothinig from it. I don't think I will need but you can get it and send it to me, for if the officers gets it it won't do me any good. William Offlighter and Hiram Coyner is in Richmond from what I can find out. They left the last day of April and I have not heard from them since.
If we stay here I wish you would come down and bring me something to eat for we don't get half enough and I can't stand it. If you do come you can bring something along and make more off of it [unclear: than] you can make any other way. You can get from 50 to 75 cents for a pie, and tobacco is very high. You can sell most anything at all, potatoes 50 cents per quart. Thread is very high and I have two overcoats and a good blanket I would like to send home. If I had them at home I wouldn't take less than 60 dollars for them. If you come and if we are at the ame place you can come to Hamilton's Crossing, that is in two miles of our camp.
Joshua [unclear: Robison] and Adam Pannell sends their best respects to you all. I must close for this time. You will please excuse me for this. May god bless you all. Write soon.
Henry H. Dedrick to Elijah Balsley
May 11th 1863
Dear Wife-
I take this priviledge this morning to drop you a few more lines. I received your
kind letter yesterday after I had written home one to you. It found me well except the
toothache it all but set me crazy. I commenced while I was writing to you and I had to quit
writing for awhile but it has quit aching now. Give father and mother and Betty my love and
tell him I would have written him a letter but I have not got the paper. Tell him to write to
me. I must close. May god be with you all. I remain your affectionate husband until death
separates us
