Nesbitt Memorial Library Journal, Volume 8, Number 1, January 1998 Page: 33
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Documents, Letters, Reminiscences, Etc.
Civil War Letters of Benjamin Marshall Baker
1. Benjamin Marshall Baker to James Davis
Baker, July 30, 1861, from the transcription
published in the Colorado Citizen, August 3,
1861.
Lookup Camp, near Harrisburg, July 30, 1861
Dear Citizen: The "Echo" Company,
from Colorado county, is now encamped within
one and a half miles of Harrisburg. The Camp
of Instruction is very pleasantly situated, good
water and plenty of wood being convenient.
The timber is red oak, lynn, hickory, sweetgum,
walnut, magnolia, pine, &c. This last reminds
me of my early home in Eastern Texas, and I
hear again the "sweet and saddening music of
the mournful pine tree." We have the requisite
number of men, if they were all upon the
ground; but some have not yet arrived, and oth-
ers are in Harrisburg. We think we will be
mustered into the service of the Confederate
States of America tomorrow. The officers of
the company are: Captain, John C. Upton; First
Lieutenant, J. H. Bullington; Second Lieuten-
ant, J. D. Roberdeau; Third Lieutenand, Ed.
Collier; First Sargeant, W. D. Denney; Sec-
ond Sargeant, Walter S. Hare; Third Sargeant,
D. H. Henderson; Fourth Sargeant, Ben Baker;
First Corporal, J. D. Buchanan; Second Cor-
poral, J. B. Wall; Third Corporal, John S.
Miller; Fourth Corporal, W. W. Pinchback.
Some sickness prevails in camp, mostly
chills and fever, owing to change of living,
water, &c.
It is rumored in camp that as soon as
we are mustered in we will move for Virginia,
and that an attempt will be made to run the
blockade. There are six companies here-the
Gonzales, Travis, Guadalupe, Robertson,Bexer, and Colorado.
All the other companies are in a better
position, as regards equipment, than that from
your county. When I reflect that Colorado stands
among the foremost in wealth, I feel sorry that
we received so little encouragement-nay, so
much opposition-from parties in Colorado. But
'tis no use to repine, and as I have little time, I
must close.
YQur Bro. Ben
2. Benjamin Marshall Baker to James Davis
Baker, August 1, 1861, from the transcription
published in the Colorado Citizen, August 3,
1861.
Camp near Harrisburg, Aug. 1, 1861
My Dear Citizen--
I snatch a few moments from the drill
this morning to write you. I have an old tam-
bourine for a desk, and as it has no legs of its
own I have loaned it mine. We have a beautiful
camping ground on the east side of Oyster
Creek, the ground sloping and covered with
trees, bordered by a fine, grassy prairie. We
cook and eat our biscuit and bacon in the shade
of pines, magnolia, etc. There are at present
about one thousand men in this camp. I cannot
enumerate the different companies. We were
the third company on the ground, and we have
stood by and seen six companies mustered in
who arrived after we did, because we lacked a
few men, and now they have raised the mini-
mum number of men to seventy-eight. I hope
no citizen of Colorado county will ever gas
about war again; if any one should, just tell
him to come and fill this company, or-dry up!
If our company is not filled, some of the men33
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Nesbitt Memorial Library. Nesbitt Memorial Library Journal, Volume 8, Number 1, January 1998, periodical, January 1998; Columbus, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth151402/m1/33/?q=nesbitt%20memorial%20library%20journal: accessed April 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Nesbitt Memorial Library.