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| Field name | Value |
|---|---|
| Collection Reference Number | GLC00686.08 |
| From Archive Folder | Collection of the Van Valkenburgh family |
| Title | Gerrit S. van Valkenburgh to his brother on why he is fighting for the South |
| Date | 28 October 1862 |
| Author | Van Valkenburgh, Gerrit S. (fl. 1860-1866) |
| Document Type | Correspondence |
| Content Description | Two handwritten copies of the same letter in the file. Says it has been a long time since he wrote, but not because he has not thought of his family in the North. Claims that "although we now belong to sections of our country which are engaged in an unnatural and unholy warfare Yet I cannot say that I love your or my friends less than I did when we were Members of the same great family." Wonders when they will be reunited. Says last letter from the family was July 1861. Says he shed blood for the South and that he is "now in the army fighting for liberty - for the same great principles that our grandparents fought for in the Rev. struggle." Mentions family news. Location listed as "Camp Bellfont," in Arkansas. |
| Subjects | Military History Civil War Confederate Soldier's Letter Confederate States of America Children and Family Revolutionary War Freedom and Independence |
| People | Van Valkenburgh, Gerrit |
| Place written | Boone County, Arkansas |
| Theme | The American Civil War; The American Revolution; Children & Family |
| Sub-collection | Papers and Images of the American Civil War |
| Additional Information | Gerrit was the only one of the five Van Valkenburgh brothers who eventually sided with the Confederacy. |
| Copyright | The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History |
| Module | Civil War, Reconstruction and the Modern Era: 1860-1945 |