Letter Image

Other Civil War Letters

The John Clark Esarey Civil War letters document his service in the 53rd Regiment Indiana Volunteers during late 1864 and early 1865, including his participation in Sherman's March to the Sea and the Carolinas Campaign.

Letters from John Clark Esarey to Barbara Ewing Esarey:

• November 8, 1864 - From Marietta, GA
• December 20, 1864
• December 31, 1864
• January 11, 1865
• January 20, 1865
• March 26, 1865
• March 31, 1865
• April 11, 1865
• April 1865 (undated)
• May 10, 1865
• May 26, 1865
• June 2, 1865 - Washington City (this page)

Letters from Barbara Ewing Esarey to John Clark Esarey:

• January 22, 1865
• March 19, 1865
• April 2, 1865

Other Related Letters:

• January 12, 1865 - JCE to Jonathan Davis Esarey
• April 22, 1865 - JCE to Parents
• May 31, 1865 - JCE Discharge Papers

Historical Context

This is the last surviving letter from John Clark to Barbara before his discharge. He was hoping to get home by July 4th — the first Independence Day after the war's end. His words "You need not look for me until you see me coming" capture the uncertainty of a soldier waiting for his papers to come through.

These letters follow John Clark Esarey from his entry into the 53rd Regiment Indiana Volunteers (September 27, 1864), through his participation in the devastating campaigns of William Tecumseh Sherman known as The March to the Sea and the Carolinas Campaign, to his discharge the following summer in Washington, D.C.