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Field name | Value |
---|---|
Collection Reference Number | GLC02164.03 |
From Archive Folder | Collection of letters written to Fannie Schoonmaker from Patrick Higgins, K company, 56th regiment, New York, infantry |
Title | Patrick Higgins to Fannie Schoonmaker regarding his love for her and missing the time they spent together |
Date | n.d. |
Author | Higgins, Patrick (fl. 1859-1862) |
Recipient | Schoonmaker, Fannie |
Document Type | Correspondence |
Content Description | Writes to her for the first time since they saw each other almost three weeks before. Asks if she was insulted because Sarah heard him say he loved her. He "can't help telling the truth" about how he feels about her. Talks more of times they had together, specifically longing for the next time they can ride together. Hopes to see her on Saturday, but is doubtful it will come to pass. Apologizes for not writing on parchment; he does not know how to write on it. Dated 11 September. No year given. |
Subjects | Love Letters Women's History |
People | Higgins, Patrick (fl. 1859-1862) Schoonmaker, Fannie (fl. 1859-1862) |
Place written | Fallsburg, New York |
Theme | The American Civil War; Women in American History |
Sub-collection | Papers and Images of the American Civil War |
Additional Information | Folder Information: The collection consists of ten letters written to a young lady named Fannie Schoonmaker, and one letter to an unknown recipient. Nine of the eleven letters, some of which predate the Civil War, are from Patrick Higgins. One letter is from David Reese, and another is from Charles Johnson. Patrick Higgins was from Neversink, New York in Sullivan County, about 110 miles northwest of New York City. On September 29, 1861 he enlisted in the Union army as a Private. On October 10, he mustered into K Company of the 56th New York Infantry. The 56th New York became part of the Army of the Potomac. On May 31, 1862, Higgins was wounded in the battle of Fair Oaks, Virginia and was discharged for disability on September 21 of the same year. Before Higgins enlisted in the army, he was a close acquaintance of Schoonmaker, and on more than one occasion confessed his love for her. He signs some of his letters "from your lover," so it is very possible that they were involved in a romantic relationship when he left to join the army. While Higgins is enlisted, he writes about camp life in Washington D. C. as part of the Army of the Potomac, and departs with the army as General McClellan begins his Peninsular Campaign in March 1862. He describes a battle scene in Warwick, VA, and comments on the eagerness of many in his company to engage Confederate troops. |
Copyright | The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History |
Module | Civil War, Reconstruction and the Modern Era: 1860-1945 |
Civil War: Theater of War | Main Eastern Theater |
Civil War: Unit | 56th regiment, New York, infantry, K company |