1863 Richard Berry 82nd OVI Letter Fighting Regiment Gettysburg
Letter to Richard Berry: Kenton OH Revival & War Economy. Document Date: December 23, 1863. Berry, 82nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry (OVI).
Location: Kenton, Hardin County, Ohio. This original 4-page manuscript letter was sent to Richard A. Berry of the 82nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry during a critical turning point in the war.
The 82nd OVI was a "Fighting Regiment" that had just been decimated at Gettysburg (losing 181 out of 258 men) before being transferred to the Western Theater to join the Army of the Cumberland in Tennessee. The letter provides a rare, detailed look at the Ohio Home Front in the winter of 1863. It covers the economic hardships of the war-specifically the "slimmest corn crop ever raised"-and the social atmosphere in Kenton, Ohio, including a massive religious revival and the timber trade. It is with pleasure I write you a few lines to let you know we are all well & hope when this comes to hand it will find you all well. I got yours of last week and was glad to hear from you and to hear that you was getting along so well with your timber. I tell you, you are doing well with your Elm. I have been giving away elm but I guess I will stop that now. We are talking of getting a saw mill down here and if we do I will get a lot of elm for fencing. I think I will get timber hauled out for a house if the mill comes. I don't know how it will be with me. We didn't have much of a crop this year but we are living in great hope of better crop another year. I think we have done well. We are just about holding our own considering the year. I was down to Urbana last week.I went down to see Perry Turner to see how he was getting along. They raised a good crop down there this season. That is something that a great many here in this country can't say. The slimmest corn crop that ever this country raised. We have had quite a bleeding snow for the past week but it is melting off now and looks like rain tomorrow is Christmas.
What are you going to be doing through holidays. If you will come over we will put the little pot in the big one and we will have a time. They are having a big meeting now at Kenton. I think I will go tonight if it don't get to raining before time to go.They are having quite a revival there. They are fixing the church. How long they will hold out is hard to tell. We hope they may hold out faithful until the end. [Page 4] I can give you the dimensions of it.
Trust me I have not got the belt yet. We are trying to have a mill in the neighborhood right away.Probably it will commence early next week. We have had very nice winter weather so far. We have been thinking of going out to Georges for some time past but I don't know how soon we will get to go. I will close by asking you to write soon.
The "Fighting" 82nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry. The recipient of this letter, Richard A. Berry, served in one of the most storied "Fighting Regiments" of the American Civil War. The 82nd Ohio earned a reputation for being in the thick of the most desperate fighting in both the Eastern and Western Theaters.The 82nd OVI is immortalized for its action on July 1, 1863. Positioned north of town, the regiment was caught in a crossfire and refused to retreat until nearly surrounded. They entered the battle with 258 men and lost 181-a staggering 70% casualty rate in a single afternoon. Unlike many units, the 82nd fought in both major theaters of the war.
After surviving Chancellorsville and Gettysburg in the East, they were rushed by rail to the Western Theater to help break the Siege of Chattanooga. At the Time of This Letter. In December 1863, the regiment was stationed in the mountains of Tennessee and Alabama. Having just participated in the battles for Lookout Mountain and Missionary Ridge, they were regrouping for the 1864 Atlanta Campaign.
The 82nd Ohio is officially recognized in "Fox's Regimental Losses" as one of the few Union regiments to suffer such extreme combat casualties while remaining a disciplined, effective fighting force until the end of the war. This letter is an authentic historical document from the Brandon D. White Collection, aka Alabama Dirt Digger.