Confederate States of America, War Department, Nitre and Mining Bureau, District 10 letter
-
No requestable containers
Scope and Contents
The collection contains a letter dated 4 October 1864, from W.H.C. Price, Superintendent of the C.S.A. War Department, Nitre and Mining District 10, requesting that P.J. Weaver furnish the government with "the dirt under the houses on your plantation" for "the manufacture of Nitre" and also the wood and water needed to process it and five "negro men" and a wagon and team for sixty days. Price states that "the necessity" for Weaver's cooperation is "urgent."
Dates
- Creation: 1864 October 4
Creator
- Confederate States of America. Nitre and Mining Bureau (Organization)
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research. Researchers must register and agree to copyright and privacy laws before using this collection. Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations. Due to the nature of certain archival formats, including digital and audio-visual materials, access to certain materials may require additional advance notice.
Biographical / Historical
Niter (saltpeter), a key ingredient in gunpowder and other explosives, was mined in caves in various places in the South. Early in the war, several officers began informally overseeing the mining operations. Niter for the manufacture of gunpowder, copper, lead, iron, coal, zinc, and other such materials as might be required for the prosecution of the war. Those activities became more formalized after 16 June 1863, when the First Confederate Congress passed an act authorizing the creation of a formal Niter and Mining Bureau as an independent office within the Confederate War Department. Its first commander was Colonel Isaac M. St. John. The Bureau opened new coalfields in North Carolina and Alabama and coordinated the flow of mineral fuel to Confederate naval stations along the coast. A corps of officers was established for this purpose. During the latter half of the war, the corps reported to Benjamin Huger. Among their battle actions was the Battle of Piedmont during the Valley Campaigns of 1864.
Extent
0.02 Linear Feet (1 item, 1 leaf)
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
Letter dated 4 October 1864, from W.H.C. Price, Superintendent of the C.S.A. War Department's Nitre and Mining District 10, to P.J. Weaver, requesting his urgent cooperation in the manufacturing of nitre.
Provenance
unknown
General
To provide faster access to our materials, this finding aid was published without formal and final review. Email us at archives@ua.edu if you find mistakes or have suggestions to make this finding aid more useful for your research.
Processed by
S. Braden, 2008; updated by Martha Bace, 2013
Genre / Form
Geographic
Topical
- Title
- Guide to the Confederate States of America, War Department, Nitre and Mining Bureau, District 10 letter
- Status
- Completed
- Date
- February 2008
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- English
Repository Details
Part of the The University of Alabama Libraries Special Collections Repository