How Nimrod might have looked
This letter was written by 31 year-old Pvt. Nimrod Young (1832-1917) of Co H., 89th Illinois (known as the Railroad Regiment) from the field hospital at Vining’s Station, Georgia, just days after the fall of Atlanta. He enlisted in August 1862 and was mustered out of the service in June 1865 at Nashville.
Nimrod was the son of George Henry Young (1792-1875) and Catherine Empey (1802-1891) of Bristol, Kendall County, Illinois.
TRANSCRIPTION
General Field Hospital D. C.
Vining’s Station [Georgia]
August 30th 1864
Friend Nancy,
Your kind letter of the 9th was received and was glad to hear from you that you was well. My health is not good. I have been unwell for two weeks but hope I will be better ‘ere this reaches you. I had a slight attack of Pleurisy but feel much better but we have so much to do that I fear that it will bring me down again.
I am sorry that the wheat crop is an entire failure but hope the corn crop will make up the loss.
You tell Miss Phebe that I am obliged to her for contradicting my word but I will have to look over it as I destroyed all my old letters. If I only had it, I would send it to her and show her that I did no tell a falsehood but I will say no more about it as the small pox have subsided in this part of the South, although it hurts my feelings to have my word disputed when far away from you and I cannot defend my own cause but you know that such things will come up. Now can you blame me for doing what I have done? I think a great deal of Phebe and would have written long ‘ere this but when she sent word by you to me to have you ask why I did not answer her letter and told her the reason, and now she denies writing. So she ought to [have] written, I think, don’t you? I will change the subject.
We have a great many sick in this Hospital and are looking for wounded every day as they had another battle — at least that is the report this morning. Fred Ernds has just come in the ward. His health is good. It seems like home to him to see me every day. We have some good times and some awful hard times, but such is the lot of a soldier life when he is at ease. Then lookout for breakers. Give my respects to Hat and all the rest — Miss Clara’s skiff included. I would like to make you another visit this fall but I don’t know as I can be spared long enough to do so. I presume the most of the boys are getting scared concerning the draft which will commence soon. I hope they will bring out some of those home boys. It would do me good to see some of those conscripts come down here to help and see how they will like it. I must close and write a letter for Fred and hope this will find you well.
Write soon and oblige your friend, – Nimrod Young
Direct to Nimrod Young, General Field Hospital D. C., Vining Station
Spared & Shared 9 