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| Union regiment in camp with Sibley tents (Mathew Brady via Fold3.com: ID B-305) |
In a Daily Evening Express letter from an unnamed 79th Pennsylvania soldier, we have a new "first" in the life of the Lancaster County Regiment (and apparently Pennsylvanians in the Western Theater): the first shots exchanged with the enemy. The occasion was a scouting party out in the countryside beyond Munfordville and the Green River in the direction of Horse Cave, Kentucky. Slaves provided reliable intelligence, and one of Col. Hambright's companies scared away rebel cavalry. There were no reports of casualties.
Also exciting for the Lancasterians was the arrival of Sibley tents, teepee-like canvas structures that were received very favorably by the soldiers for their warmth (especially with the addition of a stove in the center).
Finally, from the January 31, 1862, it is now apparent that the author of the letter signed, "A Pennsylvania," in Franklin County's Semi-Weekly Dispatch is Capt. Morris D. Wickersham of Company E, 79th Pennsylvania. I didn't connect the dots in last week's post, but the letter is the same and its full text can be viewed here.
Here's the letter describing the scouting party from the February 4, 1862, Daily Evening Express: (alternate link)
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