Remember me to all the friends: Civil War letters from George W. Harwood, Massachusetts 36th Regiment

By: Janet M. Drake | Illustrated By: Rob Levine | Edited By: Brett Peruzzi

During the Civil War George W. Harwood enlisted for three years with the Thirty-sixth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteers. He was twenty years old, a graduate of the public schools in the town of North Brookfield, in Worcester County, Massachusetts. He came from a family who had farming and cattle trading interests. He had also worked in the shoe manufacturing trade, which was a prominent industry in North Brookfield at the time. This book is the collection of the letters he wrote home almost weekly for those three years.

His regiment travelled with General Ambrose E. Burnside’s Ninth Corps from Maryland, to Virginia, Kentucky, Mississippi, Tennessee and back to Virginia. Along the way there were numerous skirmishes, some major battles, and he provides an excellent description of the war and the land from a soldier’s perspective. The regiment participated in the Siege of Vicksburg, the Battle of Jackson, Mississippi, the Siege of Knoxville, the Overland Campaign, and the Petersburg Campaign. George was promoted twice, first to sergeant and then to first lieutenant. His letters home to family and friends often mention others in his regiments, friends and cousins in other regiments, and news about people back home in North Brookfield.

The Burnside Ninth Corps was sometimes referred to as the “wandering corps” as they travelled across a large portion of the area where Civil War engagements took place, from east to west and then back east. Because of these travels and his promotions, the reader sees a larger view of the Civil War than is often presented. The geographical coverage is extensive, and the perspective varied, as George’s experience as a private differs greatly from what he encountered as a commissioned officer.

The letters were passed down in the family from George’s parents and sister to his great niece and then to a cousin and her husband. They are now lovingly cared for by their daughter, the author of this book.

Product Details

• Paperback: 360 pages

• ISBN-13: 978-1-941573-67-9

• Book Dimensions: 7 x 10 inches