10 Confederate Civil War Letters, N. Carolina 61st Rgt. CSA, Siege Petersburg VA

Description

Lot of 10 Handwritten Confederate Civil War Letters from Joseph John Oliver, North Carolina State Troops, 61st Regiment, Company K.  All dated between February and September 1864 from Petersburg, Virginia.
A fascinating collection of ten individual letters written by Joseph John Oliver to his mother, Mrs. Penelope Simmons Oliver.  All letters are written affectionately to his mother and, in these, he covers a number of different topics from personal to bigger picture.  Each letter is signed and in great condition, though a few have some waterstaining.  These were found together in a ledger, preserved all these years, and are thus being offered as a collection.  Joseph was the Olivers' only son.  He ends many of the letters "your aff. son until death".  Tragically, he was mortally wounded at the battle near Petersburg, Va., and died in a hospital near Petersburg on October 29th, 1864.  The last letter in this collection is dated September 25th, 1864 and is presumably the last letter he wrote home.  Near the end of that letter he writes about his desire to join the Cavalry.  A remarkable grouping of letters that have never been published or been a part of an institutional collection.  These letters have presumably been in private hands the entire time.  A real piece of Southern American history!
I've done my best to describe the letters, but if you have additional questions, please don't hesitate to send me an e-mail and I will do my best to answer it for you.