1863 Civil War Soldier Diary from Pennsylvania Talks About the Assassination of Abraham Lincoln Shot Through the Head Heard an African American Preacher

Item Details

40 page tall manuscript diary from a Civil War soldier from Pennsylvania from 1863 to 1867.  He talks about his service, Lincoln's assassination, and hearing a "Colored" preacher from Virginia and much more.  It is guaranteed original and says in part:

Have this day been to town.  Have some little notion of starting tomorrow morning in a company under Captain Whistler for the war.  The only impediment I see in the way at present is the great amount of profanity and perhaps intemperance with which I shall be surrounded.  The company as far as I can learn is made up of careless indifferent fellows who have no regard for religion or the author of their being.  Whistler is in rather bad spirit being addicted to the use of strong drink sometimes to excess.  As an officer I have no doubt of his ability...How can we expect to succeed with so much wickedness in our armies!!

During the last seven months I have been in the service of Uncle Sam.  I enlisted on the 16th day of June 1863 in Captain Whistler's company of men under the President's call for volunteers for six months.  Left home on the morning of the 23rd took the cars at Greenville for Pittsburgh arrived there that evening and was taken out to Camp Howe...

Marched over to Wheeling where we got on the cars again.  the next morning about 10 o'clock found ourselves in the city of Cumberland Maryland doing guard and provost duty.  When we went there our company was not quite full...we belonged to the 2nd Battalion PV commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Lininger...

On account of some fears that the Rebels would move onto Cumberland but troops were sent there in such great numbers that the Rebels preccedently concluded to postpone their visit...we arrived at Wheeling the next evening...

People were beginning to think this long and bloody war was about over and the rebellion crushed, but when the general excitement reached its highest peak, the sad intelligence was circulated throughout the country with lightning speed that th President Lincoln was dead, Secretary Seward and his son mortally injured on last Friday evening the 14th while the Preisent was attending a theatre he was shot through the head.  He lived till the next morning.  About the same time the Secretary and his son were attacked in their own house the son knocked down with a club and his father stabbed both thought at the same time to be mortally wounded but I believe they are both living yet.  The perpetrators of this foul deed are not found out.  What a pity if they are not? No human beings can make up the loss which this nation has sustained...

A day of humiliation and prayer by President Johnston on account of the death of the late and lamented President A Lincoln...In the evening went to hear a lecture by a Colored Preacher by the name of Thornton in the FP Church, a pretty sharp Darkey from Virginia....