Researching Civil War Letters

By Ronald L. Hershner · Originally published November 2016 · p. 24

Researching the story of a Civil War soldier can lead down many intriguing and unexpected trails. That was the message of York County, Pennsylvania, historian Ronald L. Hershner, who was the keynote speaker at South Central Pennsylvania Genealogical Society’s recent workshop, “Mustering Up Your Family History,” held Sept. 24, 2016, at York County History Center. Hershner, who authored Letters From Home: York County Pennsylvania During the Civil War, spoke on the book’s insight into the Civil War home front derived from 23 letters written to John Harvey Anderson, a soldier serving in the Ninth Pennsylvania Cavalry during the Carolina Campaign. These letters to Anderson, while he was in service, survived 150 years, yet no letters from Anderson survive. The narrative is thus from the family’s perspective, not the soldier’s. Hershner provided several instances of how, in his effort to understand a line or two in a letter, he was led to new and unforeseen discoveries. The letters, which were written to Anderson by his family, describe a community that is divided over the war and its consequences. While the Anderson family were staunch supporters of Lincoln and the Union, many of their neighbors were Copperheads, opposed to the war and the draft. The letters to Anderson contain numerous references to the tension over the conflict and are full of patriotic pro-Union fervor. Another fascinating discovery was the ardent views of Anderson’s sisters and female cousins, who were well-informed of events and espoused strong mindsets about those who opposed the war and sought to avoid military service. To explain the story behind the letters, Hershner used regimental histories, family genealogies, military records, and period newspapers. He also spoke of the value of visiting the sites so as to fully understand what the letters’ authors saw and experienced. What Hershner found is that Anderson was 19 years old when he initially enlisted as the Confederate army was invading his native York County prior to the Battle of Gettysburg. By 1865, Anderson was part of the cavalry supporting Sherman’s 450-mile march through the heart of the Carolinas and was an assigned escort at the time of Joe Johnston’s surrender to Sherman at Bennett Place. Ronald L. Hershner is Managing Partner of Stock and Leader, a York, Pennsylvania law firm. He has written several books on local history and speaks regularly to civic and historical groups.