Noah Reeve Letter (September 1863)

Sept 11th(?) 1863

Camp near Chatanooga

Dear companion I now embrace the present oportunity of droping you a fiew lines to inform you that I enjoy tolerable good health at present hopeing that when you git these fiew lines they will find you and the little children well and enjoying all the gods choisest blesing I have nothing of much importance to rite to you I rote you a leter and sent it by (L.H. B–-t--?) dated the 26th of July or a bout that time and backed it to clearcreek falls and he said he mailed it at Jasper he went home on a furlow and has returned I sent you two rings in the leter made of mussels shells I have received a leter from you since I rote that leter but you did not say any thing about the rings moreover I don’t think you had time to git the leter so that is the reason that I have not rote no sooner I was waiting for you to rite to me so I waited until I got tired of waiting and concluded to drop you a fiew more lines to let you no how I was giting along and whare I was we have been looking for the yanks to attact us hear and our regment has been moving about on that acount we was out on pickette a weak or more and has been moveing about first one place and then another not far at no time not more than a half of a days march at a time so we are hear about five miles from chatanooga between the lookout mountain and the atlanta railroad They had commenced giveing furlows before this little fus was cicked up too or three of our company had got furlowed and has been home and got back ____ so turn over

(No conclusion available on my copy of this letter). This is transcribed from a faint copy of Noah Van Reeve’s original letter sent to his wife, Frances, in Double Springs, AL. This is my 2006 transcribed copy of what was legible from the copy sent to me. While there appears to be little or no punctuation on my copy, Noah’s penmanship was very clear and legible.

Noah Van Reeve- 28th Alabama Infantry, CO E CSA

(Probably enlisted Feb. 18, 1862 in Jasper, Walker County, AL)

-Tyner’s Station (Hamilton County, TN/in Chattanooga area) August 13, 1862

(Probably captured January 5, 1863 in Murfreesboro, TN; sent to prison at Fort McHenry, MD; paroled May 10, 1863 when he returned to his regiment)

-Camp near Chattanooga, TN Sept. 11?, 1863

-Encampment near Dalton, GA January 30, 1864

(Probably on furlough back home to Double Springs, AL in early April, 1864)

-Encampment near Decatur, GA April 24, 1864

-In line of battle near Atlanta, GA August 13, 1864

(Probably wounded sometime between August 13 and August 23, 1864 when he died- unsure of location or burial site)

(His son, Noah Smith Reeve, was born exactly 4 months after his death.)

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