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| Field name | Value |
|---|---|
| Collection Reference Number | GLC02649.30 |
| From Archive Folder | Collection of Dr. Thomas A. McParlin |
| Title | George Gordon Meade to Charles Hale Morgan recommending Thomas McParlin for advancement |
| Date | 16 April 1866 |
| Author | Meade, George Gordon (1815-1872) |
| Recipient | Morgan, Charles Hale |
| Document Type | Correspondence |
| Content Description | Major General Meade strongly recommends Dr. Thomas A. McParlin to Colonel Morgan for advancement in rank. Discusses details about military actions in the Civil War, and McParlin's role in them as an Army Surgeon and Medical Director of the Army of the Potomac. Notes that the campaign had more battles and heavier casualties (over 50,000) many any similar period during the war. Meade writes, "Surgeon McParlin reported to me as Medical Director of the Army of the Potomac in Jany. 1864, and continued to serve in that position till the army was disbanded in June 1865...the campaign from the Rapidan to the James, the Siege of Petersburgh & the final campaign resulting in Lee's surrender...the whole period...embracing more battles, movements & heavier casualties than any similar period during the war...I think the wounded requiring care & medical treatment amounted in this period of time to over 50,000...Surgeon McParlin, discharged his important duties not only to my satisfaction, but with great...advantage to the Government...your Board will concur with me in the justice & propriety of giving to an officer who has seen the service & distinguished himself in the manner that Surgeon McParlin has, the highest grade given to officers of his Department..." Marked "Copy sent direct." |
| Subjects | Hospital Civil War Military History Union Forces Union General Health and Medical Letter of Introduction or Recommendation Army of the Potomac Battle Injury or Wound Battle of Petersburg Appomattox Surrender Government and Civics |
| People | Meade, George Gordon (1815-1872) Morgan, Charles Hale (1834-1875) McParlin, T. A. (Thomas Andrew) (1825-1897) |
| Place written | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Theme | The American Civil War; Health & Medicine |
| Sub-collection | Papers and Images of the American Civil War |
| Additional Information | Folder Information: Includes personal and professional letters and documents to and from Dr. Thomas A. McParlin, medical director of the Army of Virginia and the army of the Potomac during the Civil War. Among the individuals represented in this archive are Secretary of War Simon Cameron, Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton, generals George Meade, George D. Ruggles, John Pope, Rufus Ingalls, noted reformer Dorothea Dix, and numerous Civil War medical officers. Documents include wartime and post-war items. Of particular interest is a lengthy (40 page) manuscript report, prepared by McParlin for General William A. Hammond, chronicling his efforts as during the campaign of the Army of Virginia during the summer of 1862. Thomas Andrew McParlin (1825-1897) of Maryland was a surgeon in the U. S. Army from the time of the Mexican War to after the Civil War. By the end of the latter conflict, McParlin had become Medical Director of the Army of the Potomac and was present during the siege at Petersburg. McParlin was appointed Assistant Surgeon, 03 March 1849; appointed Major, Surgeon, 21 May 1861, breveted Lieutenant Colonel, for faithful and meritorious service in the field, 01 August 1864; breveted Brigadier General for meritorious and distinctive service at New Orleans where cholera and yellow fever prevailed, 26 November 1866; breveted Colonel, for faithful service during the war, 13 March 1865; appointed Lieutenant Colonel, Assistant Medical Purchaser, 13 April 1881; appointed Colonel, Surgeon, 16 September 1885. McParlin retired on 10 July 1889; he died eight years later (28 January 1897). George B. Parker (b. 1826?) enlisted as a Assistant Surgeon on 3 September 1862 and commissioned in Company S, 42nd Infantry Regiment New York, he was discharged on 12 August 1863. |
| Copyright | The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History |
| Module | Civil War, Reconstruction and the Modern Era: 1860-1945 |
| Civil War: Recipient Relationship | Comrade |
| Civil War: Theater of War | Main Eastern Theater |