September 22, 2011
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 9/22/2011
War-date Union soldier's Autograph Letter Signed by Marshal P. Woods, 9th New Hampshire Infantry, 10pp. octavo, Arlington Heights, August 31, 1862, and reads in part: "...The City of Washington is a very large place but not so clean as some. It is much larger than I expected to find according to what I have heard...There was a great battle yesterday and day before to Manassas Junction and vicinity. We could hear the cannons all day yesterday and day before. The battle was not over five or six miles off about west from here. There was about 40 or 50,000 troops went past here yesterday and a lot went by this morning to reinforce General Pope and Gen. Burnside. They have had a very hard battle there. They say that we have taken old Stonewall Jackson and 16,000 prisoners besides a lot of other things, but perhaps it is not so. They say that we lost 8,000 on our side but I hope it is not so. The air was full of smoke yesterday that came right from the battlefield. We expect a battle here at any moment, but if they do have one we shall be ready. We can start out 50,000 men in half an hour...our Company throwing up rifle pits all the time. They extend the whole length of these hills, there are banks to get behind when we are fighting...[more on his trip south] we came into Philadelphia ...we had a good supper there and then marched about a mile through the city in the evening, the streets were full of girls a shaking hands with us and bidding us good bye. I bet I shook hands with more than 500 girls. Some of the boys would stop and kiss them. Some of the girls would say, I wish I could kiss you haha, but I could not stop to kiss them. I was in too big a hurry..." Fine condition.
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