The full content of this document is only available to subscribing institutions. More information can be found via www.amdigital.co.uk
If you believe you should have access to this document, click here to Login.
| Field name | Value |
|---|---|
| Collection Reference Number | GLC02382.111 |
| From Archive Folder | Collection of Henry Jackson Hunt |
| Title | L. Bringer to Henry Jackson Hunt regarding the Greely expedition |
| Date | 13 November 1886 |
| Author | Bringer, L. (fl. 1886) |
| Recipient | Hunt, Henry Jackson |
| Document Type | Correspondence |
| Content Description | Mentions an article Hunt wrote for Century Magazine (possibly on the Battle of Gettysburg). Congratulates Hunt on his son Henry's bravery for participating in the Greely expedition. Mentions the death of a recent acquaintance, who caught dysentery from drinking water in St. Louis, Missouri. The 1881 Greely expedition in the Arctic ended in disaster due to the failure of supply ships to reach the expedition party. When assistance reached the expedition in 1884, only seven members remained. |
| Subjects | Battle of Gettysburg Union General Military History Civil War Battle Journalism Literature and Language Arts Children and Family Bravery Polar Exploration Frontiers and Exploration Death Disease Disaster |
| People | Hunt, Henry Jackson (1819-1889) Bringer, L. (fl. 1886) Hunt, Henry Jackson (1855-1886) |
| Place written | Mexico |
| Theme | The American Civil War; Health & Medicine |
| Sub-collection | Papers and Images of the American Civil War |
| Additional Information | Folder information: Henry Jackson Hunt was Chief of the Artillery in the Army of the Potomac. Considered by his contemporaries the greatest artillery tactician and strategist of the war, he was a master of the science of gunnery and rewrote the manual on the organization and the use of artillery in early modern armies: Instruction for field artillery. Prepared by a board of artillery officers, consisting of Captain Wm. H. French...Captain Wm. F. Barry...Captain H.J. Hunt...To which is added The evolutions of batteries, tr. from the French by Brigadier General R. Anderson (New York, D. Van Nostrand, 1864). Hunt was born in Detroit, Michigan, the son of Samuel Wellington Hunt, a career infantry officer. As a child he accompanied his father in 1827 to the Kansas Territory on an expedition to found Fort Leavenworth. He graduated from the U.S. Military Academy in 1839 as second lieutenant in the 2nd U.S. Artillery. He served in the Mexican War where he was elevated to captain and major. Hunt received attention when in the First Battle of Bull Run in 1861, his four-gun battery covered the retreat of a Union force with an artillery duel. He soon afterword became the chief of artillery in defense of Washington, D.C. As a colonel on the staff of McClellan, he organized and trained the artillery reserve and fought in the Peninsular Campaign. His keen work influenced battles at Malvern Hill, South Mountain, Antietam, Fredericksburg, and Chancellorsville. His most famous service occurred at Gettysburg. He served in Virginia through the end of the war. Following the Civil War, Hunt held various military posts. He served as president of the permanent Artillery Board. He also served at Fort Sullivan, Eastport, Maine (1868), Fort Adams, Newport, Rhode Island (1869-1872 definitely, and possibly until 1874), military commander at Charleston, South Carolina and Atlanta, Georgia (1875-1880), commander, Department of the South (1880-1883), and as Governor of the Soldier's Home in Washington D.C. (1883-1889). Hunt had served as Chief of Artillery for the Army of the Potomac. After the Civil War, he occupied various military posts, including that Governor of the Soldiers Home in Washington D.C., from 1883 until his death. The 1881 Greeley expedition in the Arctic ended in disaster due to the failure of supply ships to reach the expedition party. When assistance reached the expedition in 1884, only seven members remained. |
| Copyright | The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History |
| Module | Civil War, Reconstruction and the Modern Era: 1860-1945 |