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| Field name | Value |
|---|---|
| Collection Reference Number | GLC02831.48 |
| From Archive Folder | Collection of William H. Alden, F Company, 6th Regiment, Iowa Cavalry |
| Title | William Alden to his mother and sister describing a ride up to Fort Sully with the amil |
| Date | 25 April 1865 |
| Author | Alden, William H. (fl. 1844-1865) |
| Recipient | Alden, Charlotte |
| Document Type | Correspondence |
| Content Description | He had to go on a 45 mile horse back ride recently but as a veteran he was used to it. Includes separate note to Hattie complimenting her on her math skills and handwriting. |
| Subjects | Soldier's Letter Military History Clothing and Accessories Health and Medical Education Children and Family |
| People | Alden, William H. (fl. 1844-1865) |
| Place written | Crow Creek |
| Theme | The American Civil War; Children & Family; Women in American History; Education; Health & Medicine |
| Sub-collection | Papers and Images of the American Civil War |
| Additional Information | The collection comprises forty eight long letters written while on the Sully Expedition to put down the Sioux uprising, under the orders of Abraham Lincoln. Private Alden, a seventeen year old Iowan, wrote this first-hand account mostly to his family. He discusses hand to hand combat with Indians, rescuing immigrants on the overland trail, gold mining, the capture of a Sioux chief's feathered head dress, and the wounding and death of a soldier. The Sully Expedition, led by Alfred Sully (son of the famous painter Thomas Sully), was the largest military campaign against the Plains Indians up to this date, and marked an expansion of warfare with the Sioux. Includes 1 postwar photograph. Most letters written to his mother while on the Sully expedition against the Sioux. |
| Copyright | The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History |
| Module | Civil War, Reconstruction and the Modern Era: 1860-1945 |
| Civil War: Recipient Relationship | Mother Sister |
| Civil War: Unit | 6th Regiment Iowa Cavalry, F Company |