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| Field name | Value |
|---|---|
| Collection Reference Number | GLC02382.089 |
| From Archive Folder | Collection of Henry Jackson Hunt |
| Title | John F. Lee to Henry Jackson Hunt regarding a biography of Robert E. Lee, the Ku Klux Klan, Second Manassas, military reform and black labor |
| Date | 18 March 1871 |
| Author | Lee, John F. (1813-1884) |
| Recipient | Hunt, Henry Jackson |
| Document Type | Correspondence |
| Content Description | Mentions Emily Virginia Mason's biography of Robert E. Lee, for which Hunt supplied information. Discusses a compromise of Hunt's integrity, apparently regarding fabrications published about Hunt's false involvement with the Ku Klux Klan. States that Sherman did not bear false witness against Hunt in the matter. Speculates that Winfield Scott Hancock did not "make much" by the publication of his letters. Referring to the controversy regarding the conduct of Fitz John Porter at Second Manassas, asserts that General Irvin McDowell falsely accused Porter in order to serve Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton and General John Pope. Says, "I do not know how a soldier could do a more unworthy thing." Calls for reform of the military. Declares "When we settle down, and complete our reconstruction, the army will be exposed... the whole south, the northern democracy, & the volunteer heroes- who did all the service while west point cheated them of the glory & promotion... a better order, upheld by soldiers & gentlemen, may be hoped for." Discusses reconstruction at length, mentioning black labor, Ulysses S. Grant, and Charles Sumner. Says, "We have extirpated negro labor - and perhaps the negro. Certainly if he aspires to rule. If he dont, and is content to work, and be virtuous, he will be happy ..." Refers to his time spent in the War Department. Encourages Hunt to read a discourse on Stanton (possibly Jeremiah Black's book on Stanton, published in 1871). |
| Subjects | African American History Union General Military History Women's History Literature and Language Arts Confederate General or Leader Ku Klux Klan Law Finance Battle Civil War Second Battle of Bull Run (Manassas) Lincoln's Cabinet Corruption and Scandal Reconstruction West Point (US Military Academy) Sharecropping Slavery Government and Civics |
| People | Hunt, Henry Jackson (1819-1889) Lee, John F. (1813-1884) Mason, Emily Virginia (1815-1909) Sherman, William Tecumseh (1820-1891) Hancock, Winfield Scott (1824-1886) Porter, Fitz John (1822-1901) McDowell, Irvin (1818-1885) Stanton, E. M. (Edwin McMasters) (1814-1869) Pope, John (1822-1892) Black, Jeremiah Sullivan (1810-1883) |
| Place written | Upper Marlboro, Maryland |
| Theme | African Americans; Arts & Literature; Government & Politics; Women in American History |
| Sub-collection | Papers and Images of the American Civil War |
| Additional Information | Folder information: Henry Jackson Hunt was Chief of the Artillery in the Army of the Potomac. Considered by his contemporaries the greatest artillery tactician and strategist of the war, he was a master of the science of gunnery and rewrote the manual on the organization and the use of artillery in early modern armies: Instruction for field artillery. Prepared by a board of artillery officers, consisting of Captain Wm. H. French...Captain Wm. F. Barry...Captain H.J. Hunt...To which is added The evolutions of batteries, tr. from the French by Brigadier General R. Anderson (New York, D. Van Nostrand, 1864). Hunt was born in Detroit, Michigan, the son of Samuel Wellington Hunt, a career infantry officer. As a child he accompanied his father in 1827 to the Kansas Territory on an expedition to found Fort Leavenworth. He graduated from the U.S. Military Academy in 1839 as second lieutenant in the 2nd U.S. Artillery. He served in the Mexican War where he was elevated to captain and major. Hunt received attention when in the First Battle of Bull Run in 1861, his four-gun battery covered the retreat of a Union force with an artillery duel. He soon afterword became the chief of artillery in defense of Washington, D.C. As a colonel on the staff of McClellan, he organized and trained the artillery reserve and fought in the Peninsular Campaign. His keen work influenced battles at Malvern Hill, South Mountain, Antietam, Fredericksburg, and Chancellorsville. His most famous service occurred at Gettysburg. He served in Virginia through the end of the war. Following the Civil War, Hunt held various military posts. He served as president of the permanent Artillery Board. He also served at Fort Sullivan, Eastport, Maine (1868), Fort Adams, Newport, Rhode Island (1869-1872 definitely, and possibly until 1874), military commander at Charleston, South Carolina and Atlanta, Georgia (1875-1880), commander, Department of the South (1880-1883), and as Governor of the Soldier's Home in Washington D.C. (1883-1889). Hunt had served as Chief of Artillery for the Army of the Potomac. After the Civil War, he occupied various military posts. During the early 1870s, Hunt served at Fort Adams, Newport, Rhode Island. Stanton served as Secretary of War 1862-1868. Black was Attorney General 1857-1860 and Secretary of State 1860-1861. |
| Copyright | The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History |
| Module | Civil War, Reconstruction and the Modern Era: 1860-1945 |