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| Field name | Value |
|---|---|
| Collection Reference Number | GLC05984 |
| From Archive Folder | Documents Relating to the 1860s |
| Title | Discharges for nine soldiers and William Yocum (signed recto by Brutus J. Clay) |
| Date | 22 January 1864 |
| Author | Lincoln, Abraham (1809-1865) |
| Document Type | Military document |
| Content Description | List of prisoners on front, with place of imprisonment, endorsed on verso by Lincoln. At the bottom of the list is a note of congressman Brutus J. Clay, requesting the discharge of the above. Lincoln orders the discharge of nine soldiers upon taking oath, and a discharge for William Yocum "not as a prisoner of war, but for an offence for which he has perhaps suffered enough...." Yokum, an employee in charge of contrabands (escaped slaves) at Cairo, Ill., had been sentenced to five years hard labor for "aiding in the kidnapping of employees of the U.S." (quoting Basler 7: 167 note). Lincoln pardoned Yocum Feb. 16 after a petition from members of Congress, including Clay (Basler 7: 187 note). |
| Subjects | Civil War Military History Union Forces Confederate States of America President Prisoner of War Prisoner Pardon Oath Congress African American History Contrabands Slavery Government and Civics |
| Place written | Washington |
| Theme | The American Civil War; African Americans; Slavery & Abolition; Government & Politics |
| Sub-collection | The Gilder Lehrman Collection, 1860-1945 |
| Additional Information | Notes: Lincoln's endorsement is printed in Basler 7:144. (But it does not include Clay's list, nor the note at the end from Edwin M. Stanton.) The list of prisoners and Clay's signed note are all in Clay's hand. Lincoln authored the note on the second page, including the date. |
| Copyright | The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History |
| Module | Civil War, Reconstruction and the Modern Era: 1860-1945 |
| Transcript | Show/hide |