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Kezia Stradley Osborne to Roland C. Osborne, March 2, 1862

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  • In this letter of March 2, 1862, Kezia Stradley Osborne describes the need for additional men to take up arms for local defense needs in western North Carolina and reports details about her current living situation to her husband, Roland C. Osborne.
  • March 2, 1862 Beaverdam March 2d 1862 My Dear Husband Yours of the 23rd of Feb came in good time. I very readily examined a bad letter from you that day. It was so hot I could hardly write up here and no wonder you could not where it was so much hotter. I guess you have been cooler since then. It was very cold here all last week. But it is pleasant again this morning. You know my health always fails in the spring of the year and I begin to feel it again now though I have no room to com -plain my health has been so good all winter. Rufus is not very well this morning. Nothing serious I hope. Only he like all other children is troubled with sick brushes. It is no [on, an, a ?] wonder that he is as healthy as he is. He was six months old last Wednesday and weighted 25 lbs. What will you take for him per pound supposing get a chance to trade him. I am glad that your health is still good. I feel afraid that It will not be much longer if you stay where you now are I have been thinking perhaps you would be sent to the mountains to finish your term of service. It looks like the WNC men will have to come back to fight for their own homes. There is a company of Artillery now being organized to be stationed at Paint Rock that is not much over 20 miles from here and it is thought that Asheville ought to be fortified immediately. The Tories of East Tennessee are threatening to burn it down. I believe there are some men here who would see there country ruined and wives and children insulted and murdered before they would fire a gun. I am right glad that they are going to be drafted. I see that there are great efforts being made to get all the 12 months Volunteers to enlist for the war. I think there are good reasons why some should enlist for the war. It would let old Abe see that the South was not tired nor whipped out yet I do not think all should enlist for the war. I don’t think you ought to. It looks hard for those who have served 12 months to have to enlist again to fight for the lazy cowards who have stayed at home making money all the time and who never intended to go. I would not care much if some of the stores in Asheville was burnt up. They are only oppressing the people. R B Vance’s Reg have moved to Cumberland Gap. I am afraid they will fare worse than ever there has been about as many again deaths in that Regt as their has been in Clingman’s. Many no doubt caused by an necessary exposure that the Col. might have helped if he had tried. I expect Brother Thomas will Volunteer shortly I do not know what company he intends to go in I don’t know what will become of his family. I don’t think he ought to go at all but he hates the thought of being drafted there are now 9 Stradleys in the Field that I know of and I expect that Brother Judson will have to fight on one side or the other as the governor of Tennessee has called out all Militia. I don’t know which side he will take. His wife leans to old Lincoln’s side and a man follows his wife don’t he. I expect you had better get me a Repeater to fight with in case the rascals should come this way. There would be no one else to fight here. don’t you think I could do big work? you ask if I can tell you any thing about making a crop I don’t know any more than a cat about any of your things Or whether you will have any crop started or not. None of The Haywood folks have visited me since I came from there 3 months ago. They write sometimes but never mention such subjects. I suppose they tell you how your stock is doing. I never heard how your bacon sold. I reckon we can trust to Providence for something for you and I to live on. Your Father told me I might take my boy to old Ning Edmonston to support. That was one reason why I told you last week that I was not going back there until you come home. If you should never come back I think I would try support my boy until he could make his own living. I don’t know why they should object to his being called Rufus. I think it is a very pretty name. He knows his name now as soon as it is called. I am very sure I shall not change his name to please any of them. He has never been any expense or trouble to them. Hasseltine wrote to me last week to know how my little Basil was you had better believe it raised my English. I know I ought not get so mad but I can’t help it I have tried to live independent and to mind my own business since you left me. I am so anxious for you to come back so we can have a cabin of our own and more. If you and I did live in peace once and I think we could again if we had the chance. We have an important work before us. I mean, training our sweet boy up for usefulness here and happiness here after. I expect you will scold me for writing you such a letter as this but you know I always say what I please. The meetings I told you of at Asheville lasted until Friday night. 3 joined the Church and several moarners [?] were left. Won’t you soon know for certain whether your Regt will be disbanded in April or not. I have thought I would like to meet you in Greenville if I could but perhaps I had better not think of it. Times are getting so hard. If it is not disbanded then when will the full time be up. I am afraid you won’t get off. I always listen for the war news from the S.C. coast with the most intense anxiety. I was sorry that you had lost another man out of your company. Be careful of yourself Dear you know you are subject to fever admit would be apt to go hard with you now you are so fleshy [freshly ?] in a warm climate I pray that your life may be spared to return to your native home and to make glad the heart of her who has loved you and waited for your coming these many long long months. When I get to thinking of these things I can hardly sit still to write. I can hardly bear to wait any longer. Don’t you remember telling me that I must come out to meet you when you come back and that I must bring our little boy with me, for you said you would want to see him as bad as you would me. I often think of our long talks. We little thought how we would be situated and would have to talk of our boy on paper so long as we have had to do. I still hope that there is a better day a coming and that we will yet live to enjoy each others company and play with our boy till he gets large enough to Educate and make his mark in the world. May he be a good boy. Good night my Dear Kizz Osborne Civil War letters Annotated versions prepared by George Frizzell
Object
  • In this letter of March 2, 1862, Kezia Stradley Osborne describes the need for additional men to take up arms for local defense needs in western North Carolina and reports details about her current living situation to her husband, Roland C. Osborne.
  • March 2, 1862 Beaverdam March 2d 1862 My Dear Husband Yours of the 23rd of Feb came in good time. I very readily examined a bad letter from you that day. It was so hot I could hardly write up here and no wonder you could not where it was so much hotter. I guess you have been cooler since then. It was very cold here all last week. But it is pleasant again this morning. You know my health always fails in the spring of the year and I begin to feel it again now though I have no room to com -plain my health has been so good all winter. Rufus is not very well this morning. Nothing serious I hope. Only he like all other children is troubled with sick brushes. It is no [on, an, a ?] wonder that he is as healthy as he is. He was six months old last Wednesday and weighted 25 lbs. What will you take for him per pound supposing get a chance to trade him. I am glad that your health is still good. I feel afraid that It will not be much longer if you stay where you now are I have been thinking perhaps you would be sent to the mountains to finish your term of service. It looks like the WNC men will have to come back to fight for their own homes. There is a company of Artillery now being organized to be stationed at Paint Rock that is not much over 20 miles from here and it is thought that Asheville ought to be fortified immediately. The Tories of East Tennessee are threatening to burn it down. I believe there are some men here who would see there country ruined and wives and children insulted and murdered before they would fire a gun. I am right glad that they are going to be drafted. I see that there are great efforts being made to get all the 12 months Volunteers to enlist for the war. I think there are good reasons why some should enlist for the war. It would let old Abe see that the South was not tired nor whipped out yet I do not think all should enlist for the war. I don’t think you ought to. It looks hard for those who have served 12 months to have to enlist again to fight for the lazy cowards who have stayed at home making money all the time and who never intended to go. I would not care much if some of the stores in Asheville was burnt up. They are only oppressing the people. R B Vance’s Reg have moved to Cumberland Gap. I am afraid they will fare worse than ever there has been about as many again deaths in that Regt as their has been in Clingman’s. Many no doubt caused by an necessary exposure that the Col. might have helped if he had tried. I expect Brother Thomas will Volunteer shortly I do not know what company he intends to go in I don’t know what will become of his family. I don’t think he ought to go at all but he hates the thought of being drafted there are now 9 Stradleys in the Field that I know of and I expect that Brother Judson will have to fight on one side or the other as the governor of Tennessee has called out all Militia. I don’t know which side he will take. His wife leans to old Lincoln’s side and a man follows his wife don’t he. I expect you had better get me a Repeater to fight with in case the rascals should come this way. There would be no one else to fight here. don’t you think I could do big work? you ask if I can tell you any thing about making a crop I don’t know any more than a cat about any of your things Or whether you will have any crop started or not. None of The Haywood folks have visited me since I came from there 3 months ago. They write sometimes but never mention such subjects. I suppose they tell you how your stock is doing. I never heard how your bacon sold. I reckon we can trust to Providence for something for you and I to live on. Your Father told me I might take my boy to old Ning Edmonston to support. That was one reason why I told you last week that I was not going back there until you come home. If you should never come back I think I would try support my boy until he could make his own living. I don’t know why they should object to his being called Rufus. I think it is a very pretty name. He knows his name now as soon as it is called. I am very sure I shall not change his name to please any of them. He has never been any expense or trouble to them. Hasseltine wrote to me last week to know how my little Basil was you had better believe it raised my English. I know I ought not get so mad but I can’t help it I have tried to live independent and to mind my own business since you left me. I am so anxious for you to come back so we can have a cabin of our own and more. If you and I did live in peace once and I think we could again if we had the chance. We have an important work before us. I mean, training our sweet boy up for usefulness here and happiness here after. I expect you will scold me for writing you such a letter as this but you know I always say what I please. The meetings I told you of at Asheville lasted until Friday night. 3 joined the Church and several moarners [?] were left. Won’t you soon know for certain whether your Regt will be disbanded in April or not. I have thought I would like to meet you in Greenville if I could but perhaps I had better not think of it. Times are getting so hard. If it is not disbanded then when will the full time be up. I am afraid you won’t get off. I always listen for the war news from the S.C. coast with the most intense anxiety. I was sorry that you had lost another man out of your company. Be careful of yourself Dear you know you are subject to fever admit would be apt to go hard with you now you are so fleshy [freshly ?] in a warm climate I pray that your life may be spared to return to your native home and to make glad the heart of her who has loved you and waited for your coming these many long long months. When I get to thinking of these things I can hardly sit still to write. I can hardly bear to wait any longer. Don’t you remember telling me that I must come out to meet you when you come back and that I must bring our little boy with me, for you said you would want to see him as bad as you would me. I often think of our long talks. We little thought how we would be situated and would have to talk of our boy on paper so long as we have had to do. I still hope that there is a better day a coming and that we will yet live to enjoy each others company and play with our boy till he gets large enough to Educate and make his mark in the world. May he be a good boy. Good night my Dear Kizz Osborne Civil War letters Annotated versions prepared by George Frizzell