Terms used during Civil War

[Arky 1]

I was reading a letter it stated after the battle the soldier was captured but later released because he was (hospital nurse)

 

[John Hartwell]

I was reading a letter it stated after the battle the soldier was captured but later released because he was (hospital nurse)

At the start of the war almost all nurses and attendants in army field hospitals were men assigned the duty from the ranks. Those with particular skill or experience might be kept in the job throughout their enlistments. It was a sometimes hard-fought struggle before women were allowed into the military hospitals -- and there was a lot of opposition to their presence throughout the war. Although courageous women would take over much of the work, many men would still be serving as nurses right up to the end, particularly in "front-line" field hospitals. Captured male nurses weren't usually released. Perhaps the enemy had released (left behind) sick or injured prisoners, and left the nurse to care for them.

 

[Arky 1]

here is the insert from the letter

John Heard who was reported as missing was taken prisoner and afterwards was released as a hospital nurse. He was in Helena until Monday or Tuesday after the fight. He says the Federals gave us credit for fighting with bravery. They anticipated another attack and had an alarm on Sunday evening. Heard saw the troops formed and put in the ditches. The negro troops were the first to get in to them. We have heard nothing lately from the wounded that fell into their hands. It is said that they treated the wounded with kindness. We suppose they buried our dead as they refused to let us do it.

 

[Wellwords]

"Soldier's Dream"

 

[JOHN42768]

"Soldier's Dream"

One could only dream the luxury of a soft, warm , dry, secure and peaceful spot to think about going home to wife and family

 

[Wellwords]

One could only dream the luxury of a soft, warm , dry, secure and peaceful spot to think about going home to wife and family

Yeah, 'soldiers dream' was used in my civil war letters, and since it sounded kind of silly, I decided to google it. And I found it was published in Harpers Weekly, which he read a lot of. Here's another version:

 

[Wellwords]

'Gold Pen'
This was a gold nibbed pen, which supposedly wrote smoother than a stiffer steel nib would do, and therefore was to be preferred.
Most of these were probably produced much later than the civil war, but their manufacturer (Mabie Todd) did start up in the 1840s, so their products would have been used a lot in the Civil War.

 

[22ndGa]

That's an impressive set of pens! Is this your personal collection?

 

[Lnwlf]

These posts have what to do with the letter posted by the OP? As a curious Moderator

"Soldier's Dream"

One could only dream the luxury of a soft, warm , dry, secure and peaceful spot to think about going home to wife and family

Yeah, 'soldiers dream' was used in my civil war letters, and since it sounded kind of silly, I decided to google it. And I found it was published in Harpers Weekly, which he read a lot of. Here's another version:

That's an impressive set of pens! Is this your personal collection?

 

[Arky 1]

These posts have what to do with the letter posted by the OP? As a curious Moderator

I was kinda wondering the same thing

 

[Wellwords]

That's an impressive set of pens! Is this your personal collection?

No *sigh* don't I wish. Just a lovely internet photo from a pen collector's website. My nib collection is mostly from the 20th century or very late 18th century.