CIVIL WAR LETTER - 26th Indiana Infantry - BATTLE at Munfordville, Kentucky !!

Description

CIVIL WAR LETTER
Co. F, 29th Indiana Infantry
This Civil War soldier letter was written by David M. Frame (1822-1909), the son of Jesse Frame (1780-1859) and Nancy Abshire (1796-1865) of Warren township, St. Joseph county, Indiana. David wrote the letter to his sister Charlotte Frame (1815-1897) and her husband, Matthew C. Myler of Cottage Hill, St. Joseph county, Indiana.
David’s first wife, Mariah Keltner (1826-1860) died in Berrien county, Michigan. The following year, David enlisted in
Co. F, 29th Indiana Infantry
which was organized at Laporte and was mustered in on Aug. 27, 1861. It left the state on Oct. 9, and joined Gen. Rousseau’s command at Camp Nevin, Ky. from which place it moved with the army to the vicinity of Munfordville. It took part in a movement upon Bowling Green in Feb., 1862, and moved with McCook’s division to the Tennessee, participating in the second day’s battle of Shiloh, where it was under fire for 5 hours and lost heavily.
Despite his advanced years, David remained with the regiment until mustered out on 26 September 1864 after three years service.
NOTE - The envelopes shown in the scans came with this letter, so I am keeping them together.
Transcription
Addressed to Mr. Matthew Myler, Cottage Hill, St. Joseph county, Indiana
Camp Wood [Munfordville, Kentucky]
December 30th 1861
Dear Brother & Sister,
It is with pleasure that I take this time of writing to you a few lines to let you know that I am well at present. I hope that these few lines will find you all enjoying the same state of health. You must excuse me for not writing sooner. The reason why I have not wrote sooner is because I though I would be at home about Christmas but I could not get a furlough or a discharge. Now I have got to stay until the war is over or I am otherwise let go home. You need not look for [me] until the war is over but I don’t think the war will last over two or three months longer. I think we all will be at home by the first—March at furthest—but I may be mistaken yet. But it looks now like it would be over soon.
I was out on picket last night and we had very pleasant time of it. We have very pleasant weather here now. The sun shines like May Day. We have no snow here in this country but we have had some snow about a month ago. It was only two inches deep but we have plenty of mud now.
Now I suppose you would like to know where we are and what we are doing at present. We are now on the banks of Green River at village by the name of Munfordville in Hart County, Kentucky, but we are under marching orders and we don’t know how soon we will march further south on toward Bowling Green where the Secesh is entrenched and where is the only chance for them to do anything in this state. But their force will not amount to much by the time our forces get there for our forces is so much stronger than the rebels is that it won’t take us long to rout the out of their entrenchments. By the best accounts we can get, the rebels has not over twenty-five thousand and we have over one hundred thousand strong. And we have some of the largest sized cannon and we have lots of them and the rebels has but few of them—but they are good ones. But what can a few men do with so many more than their own number.
Now I will tell you something of the battle that fought on the opposite bank of Green River where we are encamped. It was fought on the seventeenth of this month. There was over 25 hundred of the rebels and there was only three hundred of our forces and our loss was in killed and wounded forty-one, and the rebels loss was over two hundred and fifty in killed and wounded. They lost one colonel and five captains and several lieutenants. The Twenty-ninth did not quite get within sight of the battle before it was over. It lasted only about half an hour. We would of been in time but we had Green River to cross before we could get there.
Now I believe I have wrote about all at present that is worth writing. But I remain yours as ever.
Goodbye, — David M. Frame
P. S. Now when you write, direct your letter to me in care of Captain F[rank] A. Hardman, Company F, of Indiana Volunteers, Camp Wood, Ky.
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