© Copyright 2000 James David Pearce
Petty Shore
May 7, 1863
To: Isaac Pierce, Co. G, 31st Infty:
Dear brother:
I have some real bad news since my last letter that I feel obliged to tell you. Isaac Thomas is dead. Elizabeth and Sarah got the official word last week from a Union quartermaster who brought a letter from a colonel at a Little Washington hospital. The letter expressed regrets to Elizabeth whilst saying "your son died this evening in our hospital of wounds struck in the fighting around the sixth of September" (last year).
So sad. With spring coming here so clear and beautiful after the cold of winter, and now the sad story about Thomas. Elizabeth knew he had been hurt in the arm and captured by the Yankees, but she was hoping he hadn't been hurt so bad. The secessionist sheriff from St. Johns had brought her a letter before from a soldier friend of Thomas who said he had been hurt and was left at the battlefield when the regiment had to retreat back to Raleigh.
Thomas was in the 17th. I was glad to hear you and your 31st didn't have to go to the fighting at Little Washington, but I am so sorry to hear about Thomas. Elizabeth and Sarah will have to do all the cropping now just about by themselves, because Mary is not big enough to be much help. They do have an orphan woman, Martha Lowe, about 18 or 19, who they took in a while ago and who is staying there now to help them. I guess they can get along. They still have their mules and their cows and goats &c, and everybody around here gets a lot of help from Job, but you know with his leg he's not able to do anything in the fields – he just keeps everything fixed up for folks – and his wagon business is getting better and better. If the Yankees would come on over here and stay on this side of the river, Job could probably get rich with all the wagon-work they'd have.
We haven't been bothered too much by the secessionist soldiers here lately. It looks like they try to stay back west, as far away from the wide river as they can. A few of them come by once in a while, trying to scrounge around for something to take away, but generally they don't use their guns or make much trouble when folks try to hang on to what little they have.
The Union men are coming more and more often. They don't stay too long. Hardly ever do any stay overnight, only once in a while. Most any day a boat will come up at Petty Shore or on the Wiccacon at Harrellsville and a squad will walk around the countryside, visiting folks. So far they are always polite as can be, but they like to talk to people to find out any news about what the secessionists are doing. They always bring some US money, and they buy stuff from the farmers like eggs and chickens and such that I guess they don't get too much of at Plymouth. Lots of times they will trade blankets and boots, coats, hats, sewing needles and bolts of cloth for garden produce.
Some of them are from Massachusetts, but most are from Pennsylvania. Now and then we see a few that are from Edenton or Elizabeth City that have joined up with them. Generally I have to say they are a pretty good lot. They hang around Job's wagon-shop when near town, and he has been able to get some good wagon iron and other such supplies from them. He sure can't get anything from the secessionists. Everything they get their hands on that they can't eat or wear goes straight to Raleigh or Virginia, so we hear.
Milly is having the hardest time of anybody, I guess. Five little kids, the oldest Martha, 11, and no help around. I am glad she doesn't live too far from mama and Abigail, who have a homeless girl, Margaret, helping them. Mama is still not too happy about Adolphus and Cit volunteering for the secessionist cavalry. She particularly is still mad about them taking the two best horses from the farms. And she doesn't think Cit had any business going off and leaving his wife and five little younguns, to fight for rich people to keep slaves.
Some of the plantation folk might not have all their coloreds much longer. It's getting kind of ordinary to see some strange dark faces around here, down by the river bank. We hear that a whole bunch took off from a farm up around Rich Square and carried everything they could with them down to the river near Barfields where they were picked up by Union men. We don't know yet what's become of them, but the big folks are getting spitting mad.
Sometimes I think I could thank God that Job and Priscilla don't have any children. He's sure been left around here with enough of other peoples' to tend to. If it wasn't for Job, a lot of things around here would certainly already have gone straight to perdition.
Mama and Abigail are getting along all right, but they have to work every minute that the sun shines, harder than any colored slaves on the plantations. They say the girl Margaret that stays with them is getting to be a lot of help. Healthy and strong.
The weather here is so beautiful and everybody is getting a plenty to eat. The herring-run down on the river this year was about the best that ever was. The nets were always full and people were using shovels to dip them out of the water around Hare's Mill and Barfields. There's been many a barrel filled and salted away for next winter. Even the Union men from Pennsylvania are starting to like them.
I can't keep my mind from going back to poor Thomas. He always liked the herring-runs and being on the river in the spring. God grant nothing like that happens to you or Cit. I still see you and Thomas, scrapping and arguing. The same size, the same age, the same granddaddy and the same grandmammy. The same hair and the same eyes, like two peas from one pod. Even the same name. And he never wanted to be called Isaac and you never wanted anybody to call you Thomas. But I don't guess that people will be getting you two mixed up any more. So sad.
That girl I used to see at church, the one whose daddy had the big farm out back from Winton? Well, she's moved away. The whole family has gone to stay on another place close to Tarboro. They took most everything with them, all their stock and furnishings and all those slaves they had. I guess he didn't like the Union men coming through the neighborhood. He's no great loss, but I sure did kind of hate to see her leave the prayer meeting. Well, maybe if we all just smile, things will get better sometime.
If you ever get a furlough and any kind of a chance to come home, it might be best if you don't wear your secessionist uniform when you get close to here.
Your brother, James
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