George E. Dana Papers, 1852-1864
(Manuscript Collection #511)
Descriptive Summary
| Title: | George E. Dana Papers |
| Creator: | Dana, George E. |
| Repository: | ECU Manuscript Collection |
| Languages: | English |
| Abstract: | Papers (1852-1864) including correspondence, letters, description of trip, commentaries, price of gold, personal illness, etc. |
| Extent: | 0.22 Cubic feet, 24 items , copies, consisting of parts of letters. |
Administrative Information
Accessions Information
August 6, 1986, 24 pp, copies; Portions of letters and diary entries (1864) of Union officer's wife writing from London to New Bern, NC. Copies made available, courtesy of Rodney Barfield, Fayetteville, NC. Originals in possession of Malcolm Blue Historical Society, Aberdeen, NC
Access Restrictions
No restrictions
Copyright Notice
Literary rights to specific documents are retained by the authors or their descendants in accordance with U.S. copyright law.
Preferred Citation
George E. Dana Papers (#511), East Carolina Manuscript Collection, J. Y. Joyner Library, East Carolina University, Greenville, North Carolina, USA.
Acquisition Information
- Gift of Malcolm Blue Historical Society
Processing Information
-
Processed by V. Leary; M. Elmore, September 1987
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Encoded by Apex Data Services
Description
This collection contains portions of letters, July 5-August 25, 1864, written as diary entries by Cardee or Caudee Dana from London and Tenterden, England, to her husband stationed in occupied New Bern, NC.
Mrs. Dana's letters describe life in England and sightseeing trips where she and her father were visiting relatives. She makes references to having been with her husband in New Bern, NC., and her desire for him to meet her in New York upon her return from England.
Commentaries in the letters pertain to the price of gold, personal illness, weight loss and recovery, and the pleasantness of the weather in Tenterden. She also reports on newspaper accounts of intense heat in New Bern, droughts in Virginia, and attacks by the Confederates on Washington and Baltimore. She further speculates on the desperation of Southerners and Union General U. S. Grant's progress at Petersburg and Richmond. Other commentaries pertain to the explosion of a Confederate fort at Petersburg in which a whole regiment of ca. 1,000 men perished.
Names of Union officers in New Bern mentioned in connection with George Dana include Gen. Peck, Capt. Wheeler, Capt. Bradley, Lt. Duncan Hillis, Chaplain Jarvis, Maj. Jenney, and Col. Ames. One letter mentions the possibility of Dana being appointed to the Judge Advocate or Provost Marshall.
Three non-related photocopies of letters (1852-1861) relate to slavery. The first (September 1852) is from a Southerner writing possibly to Fayetteville, NC, in defense ofslavery. The second (May 15, 1855) is from a slave owner to a town merchant concerning a problem with one of his slaves. The third (July 21, 1861) is between Confederate soldiers and friends describing the battle of Manassas and possible plans to move on Washington and rout President Abraham Lincoln.
Subject Headings
Online access to this finding aid is supported with funds created through the federal Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA). These funds come through a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services which is administered by the State Library of North Carolina, a division of the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources. This grant is part of the North Carolina ECHO, Exploring Cultural Heritage Online, Digitization Grant Program.
