November 24, 1862: Alexander Biddle to Julia Williams Rush Biddle

Alexander Biddle was a member of the prominent Philadelphia Biddle family and was married to Julia Williams Rush,  the granddaughter of Dr. Benjamin Rush.  Biddle served with the 121st Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, beginning in September 1862. Starting out as a major, he would participate at Fredericksburg and Gettysburg, among other engagements, and would leave the service as a lieutenant colonel. (He was commissioned, but never mustered, as colonel)

Transcript (excerpt):

Gen McMahon 1404 North 15^th Street

Monday Nov. 24^th 1862

Camp near Brooks Station on

Fredericksburg & Potomac RR

Head Quarters 121^st Reg. P.V.

Dear Julia,

On Saturday 22^nd we marched from our Camp on Accekeck Creek – the road being exceedingly muddy – fatigues had been repaving the road for the last two days but the mud was so thick that the wagons stuck in many places and horses fell As we kept in the woods and fields we had not much trouble – Louis lost a shoe but that was all. We passed Stafford CH and moved to this point. We are encamped along a ridge over looking the plains in which the RR runs. Our camp being on the left of the Brigade is very pleasant as we are just on the crest of the hill on the edge of a wood. In front and on our left we have the open ground the wood is thick small pine and in it most of our tents are pitched it makes an excellent shelter furnishes plenty of fuel and breaks the wind – about two hours after we arrived we went out on picket duty about a mile E of camp. We placed the pickets as well as we could in darkness but scarce saw those of the 2^nd Brigade until morning when we found we had overlapped them by a third of a mile. We made picket & found quarters at a small house we came on in the darkness two story – one room on each floor the house was inhabited by a man named Weston Rogers his wife and nine children, one or two grown up and away and one boy pressed into rebel service the others were all little from 13 years down to one who could just walk…

Citation: Alexander Biddle (1819-1899), autograph letter signed to Julia Williams Rush Biddle.24 November 1862. Rush:IV:30:25