These two letters were written by 2nd Cpl. Thomas Wilkens Glascock Inglet, Co. C, 28th Georgia Volunteer Infantry. Thomas enlisted as a private on 10 September 1861. He was elected 2nd Corporal on 1 August 1863. His pension record shows he was wounded in the left hand and had two fingers amputated at Cold Harbor, Virginia, on 27 June 1862. He was wounded in the right foot at Darbytown Road, Virginia, on 7 October 1864. He was furloughed from Jackson Hospital in Richmond, Virginia, in 1864. At the close of the war he was in a hospital in Augusta, Georgia.
Thomas was born in Bath, Richmond County, Georgia, on 27 February 1839, the son of Matthew Wilkes Inglett (1806-1889) and Annice Baggett (1809-1873). He married Martha (“Mattie”) Ann Palmer (1843-1916) on 27 February 1856. Their first two children—Ruth and Lucy—died within a week of each other in August 1862. The “baby” mentioned in this letter was their third child, Virginia Colquitt Inglett (1863-1864) who was born in May 1863. She died on 28 March 1864—just a week following the date of this letter.
Thomas died on 13 April 1910. He is buried in the Fort Gordon Cemetery #4″ aka Reids Chapel Cemetery, Fort Gordon, Georgia.
The Hargrett Rare Book & Manuscript Library, University of Georgia, “has a large collection of letters written by Inglet to his wife Martha (Mattie) in Berzelia, Georgia (Columbia County) during his service as a Confederate soldier from 1861-1865. His letters give details of the war as his company moves to Manassas, VA; Fredericksburg, VA; Richmond, VA; Yorktown, VA; Petersburg, VA; Wilmington, NC; James Island, SC; Baldwin, FL; and Charleston, SC. He names fellow soldiers who are killed or wounded and discusses the harsh conditions of camp life. Also given are details of battles at Williamsburg, Fredericksburg, Petersburg, and Yorktown. He was wounded in the hand on June 27, 1862 at Cold Harbor, VA and in the foot on October 7, 1864 at Darbytown Road, VA. The final letters in the collection are written from hospitals in Virginia (Jackson Hospital in Richmond) and Georgia (Blackie Hospital in Augusta).”
TRANSCRIPTION LETTER ONE
Camp Beaulding, Florida
March 20th 1864
My dear wife,
I will drop you a few lines to let you know that I reach[ed] the camp safe and found all of the boys well. I lay up over at Quitman one night and lay over one night at Madison and one night at Lake City and I did not find Dennis [C. Inglett] ¹ but I heard from him. He is getting better. All of the boys are getting a plenty to eat. I got here to dinner today and the boys worked on the fortifications until dinner and it’s Sunday but it can’t be helped.
Give my love to all of my folks and give my love to your Mother, Father, and to the babe and tell them that I want to see them already. I hope this may find you and the baby and all the rest in the best of health. I will close by saying I hope that God will take care of us until we meet again. I feel that God has been with me and i hope that He will take charge of you all. God bless you, my love. Goodbye for this time.
Direct your letter to Lake City, Florida, Co. C, 28th Georgia, [Brig. Gen. Alfred Holt] Colquitt‘s Brigade
— Thomas W. G. Inglet to his love Mattie I. Inglet
¹ Pvt. Dennis C. Inglett – Company C, 28th Georgia Volunteer Infantry. Dennis C. Inglett enlisted as a private on July 21, 1862. The December 31, 1863, roll (last on file) shows him present. No later record. He is buried in the Fort Gordon Cemetery #7″ aka Inglett Cemetery, Fort Gordon, Georgia.
[Note: The 30 May 1864 Letter is from the collection of Richard Weiner and is published by express consent.]
TRANSCRIPTION LETTER TWO
Camp on the battlefield, Va.
May 30th 1864
My Dear Mattie,
I will drop you a few lines to let you know that I received your kind letter of the 23rd inst. and it found me well again and I hope this may find you well and doing well. I was very sorry to hear of Dolby’s being sick. I hope she will soon recover and be restored to health again. If Dolly was to die, I would lose my best friend except you. I take Mattie to be my best friend.
My dear, you said you [had] taken dinner with your mother the other day and you all thought of me. I wish I could a been with you all but it is out of my power to come home for now is the trying time for if we can whip this fight, peace will be made soon and we will whip them or we all will be killed—one or the other one. We are in line of battle in sight if the Yankees and we have been in line of battle 17 days and nights and we will have a big fight soon and I hope that I will come out safe but I am willing to die rather than to be run over by the Yankees and all true Rebs are in the same notion.
You must give my love to your mother and father and babe and tell them that I want to see them all very bad and I am honest about it. I do want to see them just as bad as I want to see my own folks. Give my love to all of my folks and tell them that I want to see them very bad. You must write soon and let me hear how Dolly is getting on. I am now sitting on a log in the Yanks old camp where the Ninth Maine Regiment had been encamped but we run them out of these camps this day two weeks ago.
I will close as the sun is bearing down hot on me. I remain as ever, your love, — T. W. G. Inglet
To his little love, Mattie Inglet
The prettiest girl in the world and I love her the best.
Write soon, my dear, to Petersburg, Va.
Spared & Shared 17 -- Saving History One Letter at a Time 