Alfred Parmenter papers

Collection

Identifier: W-0153

Scope and Contents

The collection includes letters and newspaper clippings related to Alfred A. Parmenter, a member of the Twenty-sixth Massachusetts Infantry. In the letters to his parents, dated from February 1861 to August 1862, Parmenter describes battles and camp life. In his earliest letter, dated February 14, 1861, and written aboard a ship stationed at Ship Island, Mississippi, Parmenter assures his parents that "the people are, as near as I can learn, disgusted with the C. S. of A." and that he anticipates returning home soon. An enclosed note identifies this letter as the earliest Civil War letter. In his later letters, Parmenter describes the Battle of Baton Rouge and describes the inadequate medical treatment for Union soldiers stationed in New Orleans. This collection includes typed transcriptions of some of the letters and newspaper clippings related to the Battle of Baton Rouge.

Dates

1861 - 1862

Creator

Williams, A. S., III (Collector, Person)

Conditions Governing Access

None

Biographical / Historical

Alfred A. Parmenter was born in Lowell, Massachusetts, on August 20, 1836. He was a musician enlisted in the Twenty-sixth Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry. Parmenter was stationed on Ship Island, Mississippi, in February 1861, and then in New Orleans in 1862. He returned to Massachusetts after the war and married Letitia M. Fillmore. He died in Lynn, Massachusetts, on June 20, 1880.

Extent

0.05 Linear Feet

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Overview

Letters written by Alfred A. Parmenter, a member of the Twenty-sixth Massachusetts Infantry, describing battles and camp life in the South to his parents

Physical Location

The A. S. Williams III Americana Collection, Amelia Gayle Gorgas Library, The University of Alabama

Provenace

gift of A. S. Williams III, 2010

Related Materials

Alfred A. Parmenter papers, Manuscripts Collection 690, Louisiana Research Collection, Howard-Tilton Memorial Library, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA.