Raynors HCA 2015-11
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 12/3/2015
Rare war-date Union engineer's letter, 2pp. 4to., written by Pvt. Jerome Bottomly, Co. C, U. S. Engineers, Kellys Ford, Va., Nov. 10, 1863, in part: "…I am again on the Rappahannock and have bridged it for the fifth time in spite of the rebs. We were in our camp at Catlett's station three days after I wrote…we marched as fast as we could. Had eight days rations and it was a hard march…one o'clock when we came in sight of the river and we stacked arms and laid behind a hill so the rebs would not see us. Laid there two or three hours waiting for the infantry to come up…while we were behind the hill we heard artillery firing and supposed it was our batteries shelling the rebs…as we went down to the wrier we met two or three hundred prisoners and then we knew our men were acrost…the prisoners belonged to the 2nd N. Carolina. We soon had the bridge over and the third corps went over that night…the next morning the 2nd, 1st and 5th. The 6 crossed at Rappahannock Station…our cavalry had crossed the Rapidann. Do you understand the different corps marks? Each man wears his mark on his cap, sewed to the top…for the 1st div. the color is red. The 2nd white, 3d blue. There is always a flag at the head of each div. That tells what corps and which division is coming and there is brigade flag that tell by the color the brigade. These flags are three cornered. There is any quantity of flags. Gen. Head Qtrs flags is this [Draws a head quarters flag here.] letter G in the middle. I'll send you the corps marks. The 5 is more like this [Draws a fifth corps badge here.] The sixth corps mark look the purist I think. Gen. Hooker first ordered the marks…". Also included is a clipping, Bottomly sends home marking in period ink the various corps badges related to the Army of the Potomac plus the original stamped transmittal cover is included. Overall VG to near fine.
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