Oliver W. Shibley to Mary C. Shibley, 30 May 1863
Saturday May 30th/63 Mollie I wrote you a letter yesterday but the mail dont go out until to morrow, so I thought I would write a fiew lines this morning. every thing is quiet this morning, with now & then the loud thunder of cannon the rebs have offered to give up the place if we would let them march out with ther side arms. Grant told them that he would not do it for he had to good a thing of it. since then they have tried to cut their way out three diferent times but were repulsed every time with heavy loss. some diserters have come over & they say we have got vixburg but they intend to get away if they can & we intend that they shant get away the infernel sons of bitches have run all the women into vixburg & now it is geting to hot for them so they are seting them over the river at youngs point for the damd yankes to protect them. we have 600 of them corelled over thare & we have to feed them / all the time, damam, I would like to be over there, I would see what they are made of. they have great caves dug in town whare they was in & our morter boats throwed such heavy shells that they caved in on some of them & they left some them very suden. the diserters say that they live on half rations now & have for the past week. I think they will come to termes before long one shell from our morter went into a house & exploded killed a Colonel his two daughters four men & 2 nigers. they had no buisness to bring them in here. if they come & ask leave to send them out they could do so. we got a nice thing on them at Jackson, damem we distroyed everything that was of value to them. what the boys could not distroy was burned when we left, the most of Jackson lay in ashes.
no more this time, may this find you all well.
                                   
From your husband, O Shibly to Mollie
9410
DATABASE CONTENT
(9410)DL1594.036150Letters1863-05-30

Tags: African Americans, Business, Death (Home Front), Death (Military), Desertion/Deserters, Destruction of Land/Property, Mail, Marching, "Rebels" (Unionist opinions of), Ships/Boats, Ulysses S. Grant, "Yankees" (Confederate opinions of)

People - Records: 2

  • (3481) [writer] ~ Shibley, Oliver W.
  • (3482) [recipient] ~ Shibley, Mary C. ~ Coryell, Mary C.
SOURCES

Oliver W. Shibley to Mary C. Shibley, 30 May 1863, DL1594.036, Nau Collection