Amanuensis Monday~Civil War Recollection of William Benjamin Davis

Amanuensis Monday is a genealogy blogging theme. It was started by John Newmark who writes the TransylvanianDutch blog.

His definition of Amanuensis is:
Amanuensis: A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another.
 
Today’s subject is a letter written by William Benjamin Davis documenting his time in the Civil war and return home. ¹

William Benjamin Davis.
I, W. B. Davis, volunteered in April 1863, enlisted in Company E, 21st S.C. (South Carolina) Regiment on Morris Island. In less than a month (I) was wounded by a shell on Battery Wagener (Wagner); it was a fifteen inch shell. I was sent to Summerville Hospital. It took two doctors two and one half hours to get the powder out of my face.

When able for service (I) was returned to Battery Wagener (Wagner), (and) from Battery Wagener (Wagner) to Fort Sumter. We whipped the Union army ten to one. From Charleston we were transferred to the Northern Army of Virginia. during the battle of Warhaul (Port Walthal) Junction I was detailed to the rear to guard a lot of baggage, (and) for three days and nights I had only a small piece of bread and a glass of milk for each meal. From there I carried the baggage about two miles back carrying as much as I could at a time for a short distance until I had covered the distance of two miles; at this place I had only wild onions to eat for three days and nights. some Cavalry-men (cavalrymen) passed and gave me a piece of bread and meat for some stationery to write to their homefolks.

From Warhaul (Port Walthal) Junction we went to Cold Harbor, from Cold Harbor to Drewery’s (Drury’s) Bluff, from Drewery’s (Drury’s) Bluff to Gaines (Gaines’) Mill and then to Bermuda Hundred. There I lost my uncle (,) Capt. (Captain) Benjamin Thomas Davis; he was wounded in the thigh and died from the wound. My Uncle Alfred W. Davis was made captain of Company E in his place.

From Bermuda Hundred we went back to Cold Harbor, from there to Malvernrs’ (Malvern) Hill, from there to East Petersburg. On June 18th we fought two hard battles. In one of these battles William A. Davis was wounded in (the) right chest. On June the 24th (in a battle between the Appomattox River and City point Road) I was wounded in the left side by a minnie ball (and) was carried to the rear to a Field Hospital, from there to City Point, put on the old New York boat and sent to Fortress Monroe, from there to Hampton Virginia (Prison) Hospital. Was there seven months with my bowels discharging through the wound partly(.) The first time I left my bunk, I slid on my hands and back to the ward masters (wardmaster’s) office and begged him for a piece of tobacco and he put me on his feather bed and let me rest all the afternoon.

(I) was sent from (the) hospital to Butlers (Butler’s) Bull-pen on (the) 23rd day of Jan. (January,) 1865(,) I was given (a) furlough and transportation home, but on the night of the 22nd Wilmington was captured and I was turned back at Greensboro, and sent to Charlotte and my transportation taken away from me. I stayed in Wayside Hospital one night and started home on foot(,) walked two and rode three miles the first day, second day walked half mile and rode eight, was too weak to travel, begged a man to let me spend the night or sleep in his horse stable but he refused, but later hitched a yoke of oxen to his carriage and brought me two miles towards Monroe, N.C. (North Carolina) to the next house(.) There I found a noble man and woman who took me in and cared for me (for) a week.
From there I rode on a wagon loaded with corn and meat to within two and one half miles of State line between Monroe and Chesterfield(.) The wagon broke down in a creek and there came a rider saying the Yanks were coming, so the driver said he could bring me no further(.) He jumped on the best mule and told me to take the other and follow(.) I rode from about two hour of sun ‘till 9 o’clock that February night in my shirt sleeves and my wound discharging nearly all the time. Had not a bite to eat all day, about nine o’clock we saw a fire, found it was a captain’s camp fire, he gave me all I could eat.

The next day (Sunday) I rode all day on a wagon, night found us about eighteen miles north of Wadesboro(.) There the captain (seeing my condition) went to a Widow Ladies (widow lady’s) house (and) asked her to keep me till Monday morning and he gave me $25.00 and a doctor gave me $20.00 The widows (widow’s) overseer said he would bring me to Wadesboro (,) so he went off for a horse and buggy and I haven’t seen him since. I stayed there a week, had a severe cough, couldn’t sleep, so the lady treated my cold and cured the cough.

After waiting a week for the man (Stevenson) to come back I wanted to get home, so the lady let me ride her horse across a creek, then turn him back to her on the other side.

I walked half a mile in a half day to a Mr. Hancocks (Hancock’s) and he brought me to Wadesboro(.) From there Mr. Tom Little brought me to Alfred Baucom’s place, by night I had walked on to the William Jerman place near Bethel Church and stayed with him a day and night(.) He sent me on an oxcart to Squire John Ratliff and he (with a good horse and buggy) refused to bring me home. So the cart brought me on to Peter Jones, he had picked up an old mule and pulled an old buggy out of Jones Creek, so then he borrowed a pair of plow lines and sent me to my Grandfathers (grandfather’s) for I had no father and mother, each having died during the war.

My father served during the first year of the war, but his health failed and he was sent home and died soon afterwards. I reached home on March the 8th 1865.

That was the end of my militery (military) career.

W. B. Davis
Co. E. 21st S. C. Regt., of Volunteers


 W. B. Davis' father was Carroll Washington Davis. He served with Company C, 2nd Battalion South Carolina Sharp Shooters CSA. He died in February 1863. ²



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[1] Source: Transcribed by me from original letter in possession of The Stonewall Chapter, United Daughters of the Confederacy, Chesterfield South Carolina
[2] "South Carolina Probate Records, Files and Loose Papers, 1732-1964," Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints, Family Search (https://www.familysearch.org/ : Viewed January 2012), images, "Carroll W. Davis, Probate File #66," images 23-158; South Carolina Archives and History.