By Rachel Dworkin, Archivist
The past is a foreign country, but, if you’re really lucky, you might just find a pen pal. As archivist at the Chemung County Historical Society, it is one of my great, and admittedly a little weird, pleasures to read historical letters and diaries. When it comes to the history of the Civil War, I am so lucky to work at the museum with the largest collection of diaries and letters from the 107th New York Volunteers. History can be so dry with the dates and the facts and the battle casualty statistics. Letters and diaries though are intimate. They reveal not only what happened, but how the author felt about it in ways which help you get to know them as actual human people.
Although there were multiple Civil War regiments raised out of Chemung County, the 107th is the only one to have a statue here in Elmira. The regiment was raised in the Summer of 1862 in response to Abraham Lincoln’s call for 300,000 more men. Two local congressmen, Robert Van Valkenburg of Bath and Alexander Diven of Elmira, personally raised and commanded the 1,021 men from Chemung, Schuyler, and Steuben counties. The regiment fought at the Battles of Antietam, Chancellorsville, and Gettysburg and participated in the Georgia Campaign and Sherman’s March to the Sea. They arrived home to Elmira on June 8, 1865 to a feast, a parade, and the start of the rest of their lives.
107th monument in front of the Court House on Lake Street
Here at the Chemung County Historical Society we have the letters and diaries of 18 different members of the regiment. In some cases, we have multiple accounts of the same day or battle from multiple people. What an author chooses to include (or not) and the way that they describe it, reveals interesting things about their personality, priorities, and education. We have several diaries from the regiment which cover the start of the battle of Chancellorsville. While they describe the same events, they are stylistically quite different.
One of my favorite diarists from the 107th is Arthur S. Fitch of Company B. He was 18 when he enlisted as a corporal in July 1862 and quickly rose through the ranks. By Chancellorsville, he was a sergeant and ended the war as brevet captain. After the war, he opened a book store in Elmira and was a founding member in several veterans’ organizations. He described the first day of the regiment’s involvement in the Battle of Chancellorsville (May 1, 1863) like this:
“We had no more than got under way than the boom of the Artillery broke upon our ears not a mile in our front and we knew the ball was open. We went rapidly ahead, our Reg. having the advance. We were soon up with the artillery and the shot and shell flew over us pretty lively. No casualties, however and after an hour or two cannonading we were ordered to retire. It was only a move to feel the enemy’s position and no general engagement took place except in the left wing where the 5th Corps had some fighting. Our Reg. had quite a skirmish for our knapsacks; while out, we had laid them off before entering the woods and on returning for them we were fired upon by Rebel skirmishers. We brought them all away, however, but ran a narrow chance of being captured, as the Rebs planted a battery on the very ground we had just left before we were out of range. We got back to camp about noon, quite fatigued as the weather was very warm. Nothing more transpired until near sun down when the enemy advanced and a fight commenced. Our Regt. and the 13th N.J. were formed in the edge of a wood with the rest of our Brig. in our front. We were to support them and if they were forced to retire relieve them. Soon the Artillery joined in and then it became quite lively, the musketry volleys were rapid and we lay anxiously awaiting for our turn at the enemy, but the Indiana & other Regts. in our front held them in check and we lay quietly on our arms that night. Only casualty of Friday is Capt. N.E. Rutter of Co. I who was mortally wounded by a shell about sundown and died less than an hour after.”
Arthur S. Fitch, ca. 1880s
Bartlet Bennett enlisted in Company
E at age 25 along with his younger brother Sylvester in July 1862. He joined as
a private, but was a sergeant at the time of the Battle of Chancellorsville. I
don’t know much about his life before the war. After it, he lived in Elmira and
worked as a railroad flagman. While Fitch practically wrote a novel, Bennett
wrote a poorly-spelled haiku. “May 1, 1863, The enemy atact us; laid on arms all nite. Built
brest works.”
Bartlet & Sylvester Bennett, 1862
Russell M. Tuttle was a 22-year-old
from Almond, New York who enlisted as an orderly sergeant in the 107th
immediately after graduating from the University of Rochester. He joined
Company K, which was under the command of his uncle, Allen Sill. Tuttle had
been promoted to second lieutenant shortly before Chancellorsville. After the
war, he went on to be the editor of the Hornellsville
Times and founder of the Hornellsville Public Library. His diary entry is
happy medium between Fitch’s and Bennett’s.
“May 1st: Advanced on the road to Fredericksburg to cover a movement of Gen. Mead on Bunk Ford. Came back, and then went back to get knapsack. Slight skirmish. Back to camp and had a fight. 27th Ind. ahead of us. Capt. Rutter was struck by a shell. Poor fellow, a sharp fight along the line. Slept on our arms.”
Russell M. Tuttle, ca. 1860s
I keep a diary myself every night. On the scale between Bennett and Fitch, I’m more of a Tuttle.