Men from all walks of life and all ranks in the service are represented here over the span of the entire war. The famous and anonymous are included—personal stories of great battles and humorous stories of army life.

You’ll find pathos, sorrow, fear, and great courage detailed in these letters. Most soldiers were very humble and modest about their own accomplishments but spoke of their comrades with love and admiration. Common soldiers often made remarkable observations:

“Prejudice against color is fast going away, and the negroes, anxious to learn to read and write, provide for themselves, and show themselves men, will soon prove to the white race that they are not such an inferior race as they have been represented to be.”