A massive archive of approximately 174 letters sent by Arthur Izenour (1821 - 1892) and his family, during his enlistment in Company F of the 39th Pennsylvania Infantry, commonly referred to by their original designation, the 10th Pennsylvania Reserves. The bulk of the letters are penned from 20 September 1862 to 30 December 1863. A complete list of included letters, with select quotes, can be viewed here. 

Notably, Arthur Izenour is a cousin of President Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890 - 1969), as they share Hans Nicholaus Eisenhauer (1681 - 1760) as a common direct ancestor.

Izenour was a frequent letter writer, writing or dictating around 85 letters of the archive. A carpenter by trade, he was literate but evidently not very comfortable with regular correspondence. Early in his time in the army, he enlisted his messmate William Kettlewood to pen his letters home which he dictated. Despite these reservations, he writes frequently, taking up the pen himself near the end of 1862. 

His eldest daughter, Mary (1843-1912), was his most constant correspondent, typically writing on behalf of her mother, Elizabeth Craig Izenour (1823-1900), and the rest of the family in Rochester, Pennsylvania. Mary was curious and deeply observant about her community and the ongoing war. She writes with insight on the Draft, Confederate prisoners, the progress of the war, and much more.

Throughout 1863, Arthur began a habit of replying to letters on the same lettersheet that he received from Mary, resulting in interesting “double letters” that include a letter written by Mary followed by a response days (or weeks) later by Arthur. The unusual form of correspondence, and the sheer volume of letters form a fascinating archive that allows the reader to appreciate full conversations that are true rarities. 

Izenour enlisted in September 1862, joining Company F of the 39th Pennsylvania Infantry, which was better known by its earliest designation, the 10th Regiment Pennsylvania Reserves. He arrived in camp not long after his new comrades had been bloodied at Antietam. He writes home on 22 September 1862: “Got my uniform and bounty and sent it home to you but I only got 29 dollars instead of 42 but we will ge the rest when we get to the regiment.” In the same letter, he gets his first glimpse of the enemy: "We have about 300 Rebel Prisoners here in camp they are a hard looking set of men nearly naked and half starved when they came here I was on guard duty yesterday and last night." 

Moving to Alexandria, he relates the rough nature of camp life: “the night before we left camp at Alexandria a man from new York cut his throat and the night before a man in a drunken [state] was shot 3 times by a Lieutenant and died the next day. That was the hardest place I ever seen in my life I am glad we have got away from it." (6 October 1862). About a month after the Battle of Antietam, his regiment revisited the battlefield and Arthur wrote home with a vivid account of the scene, especially the fresh graves on both sides: "we are laying about one mile from Sharpsburgh Md it is just on the edge of the Antietam battle ground. I was all over the battle ground yesterday it is a hard looking place for a man that is not used to it. There is 1900 buried in one field of Rebels and 500 in another. They bury the Rebs very poor. Some of them with their feet sticking out of the ground they bury I seen in one pit there was 180 buried and the most of Union men in one was 14 the Union men are all buried decent good deep graves and well fixed up all that I seen were marked with their names and Rgts. and what state from so their friends can find them." (12 October 1862). 

An astute reader of the papers, Mary wrote presciently on the 1st of December: “But there is to be a battle before long at Fredericksburgh." Her father, despite being on the front and soon to confront the reality of the battle, writes in response: “you talk about having a [fight] at Fredericksburgh but we don't think there will be a fight there for it is said that the rebs has left there. We have been lying within 12 miles of that place." (7 December 1862) His very next letter, however, relates his survival of the Battle of Fredericksburg: “I now set down to let you know that I am still living and well. Kettlewood was taken prisoner. Purvis was wounded. Peifer was wounded. I thank god that I was not hurt, it God’s mercy that I was spared for the balls whistled a round me as thick as hail but thank God they did not hit me. There was 3 killed in our Company, [Christian Holland], John [Disel], Henry Gull, 16 wounded and missing." (16 December 1862). Several days later, he writes again with some more details of the battle: “the battle where the bullets flew as thick as hail but I was not touched. I was in the battle 2 hours and twenty five minutes and our division was in the front but was not supported as was ordered so we was compelled to fall back which we did with a loss of nineteen out of 33."

William “Bill” Kettlewood (ca 1829-1881), a fellow native of Rochester, Pennsylvania, enlisted at the same time as Arthur and was a frequent topic of conversation. Kettlewood assisted Arthur in writing many of his early letters in 1862, but was captured at the Battle of Fredericksburg. During his confinement, Mary shares scandalous news with her father that Kettlewood (referred to as “Bill”) was writing other women in town, despite being married to Ann Kettlewood since 1854: "Mother and I have passed our opinion on Bill Kettlewood long a go I was a going to tell you about him long ago but mother thought I had better not. Every body knows about him writing to Sal Tracts or Miss Bella Burlington as he directs her letters. Ann suspected something long ago for one day she was taking a letter for Sal to go to Bill she opened it and got Tom Taylor to read it to her for she can't neither read or write and she broke in Sal's trunk and got a lot of Bill's letters he had sent to her when Sal found out what she had done they had a big fight. Sal had on of Bill's likeness and when she went for it Sal sent it to her with the face half rubbed out so any sent it to Bill out I suppose Bill did not let you see it. I can't tell you half what is said about Bill but one thing is I don't think he will ever show his face here again if he does he will have but few friends his folks knows all about him and the way that he has done." (28 January 1863) Later that month, news broke of Kettlewood’s parole, but Mary speculated: "but I don't think he will have the face to come back here for every body has something to say about him or her there was." In May, Arthur noted that Kettlewood had returned to the company and “looks well” (21 May 1863) but was wounded again in a skirmish in October (16 October 1863). Though initially he reported the wound as minor, he wrote on December 20th: “Bill Kettlewood is worse it is thought he won't get over it. His skull is fractured and his brain is diseased and he is out of his mind it is thought the cause of it is because his wound healed up too fast." 

Arthur and Mary also wrote frequently to each other about Copperheads in their community. Arthur wrote on 15 March 1863: "I hear that there is a band of copperheads out about Boggses schoolhouse that has taken an oath to die at home but I think they had better look out what they are about for it is thought that this division will be brought back to the state to enforce the draft and I hope it will for I would like to be one that would steer them out for I think they are worse than the rebs for the rebs think they are fighting for their homes but the copperheads fight against their homes so I say they are worse than the rebs." (15 March 1863) Mary doesn’t know who he means, but does comment: “there is great talk of resisting the Draft in the Country and it is no doubt but they will try it at least the country people say there will be an insurrection before they will go.” (n.d. March 1863). 

News of the draft in Rochester is discussed by Mary as early as 17 October 1862, “There is a great many aching hearts to night for the draft came off yesterday and today these was none taken out of Rochester but there was four out of Rochester township.” In late June 1863, Mary reported that “there was 47 drafted out of Rochester Borough and Township. I will give you a list of all I can remember," and proceeds to include the names of he drafted. 

In late April 1863, Arthur moved with his regiment to Alexandria and then to Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. where they performed guard duty at the Old Capitol Prison (which he refers to as Carel/Carrel Prison) where southern sympathizers were imprisoned: “I am guard to day at Carrel prison there is over two hundred prisoners in this prison they are mostly citizens that has been arrested because they was not loyal and would not take the oath some of them has been in here for some time and there are still more coming every day and yesterday there was six hundred prisoners brought in to this city from Fredericksburg and there are a great many more expected today we have whipt them badly. The papers say and I believe it so."

In June 1863, the regiment reentered the field. During the Gettysburg Campaign, he reports of a skirmish near Manassas Gap (29 June 1863), but does not comment at any length about the Battle of Gettysburg, although his regiment is recorded as being in support of Vincent’s brigade at Little Round Top. He writes on July 16th: “"we have drove the rebels in to Virginia again and we give them a good whipping it has rained very near every day for three weeks and the roads has been very muddy but mud is not as bad as dust. We have had some hard marches but I stood it very well and all the rest.” Mary comments on the lack of letters in the aftermath of the battle: "we never got as few letters or as far between as we have since you left Washington but I believe you are excused for you have been on the march ever since the Battle of Gettysburg but it is the General opinion that this cruel war will be over in the three months.” (31 July 1863)

 
In the same letter, Mary writes of Morgan’s Raid, and the proximity it came to their hometown of Rochester: “Well Pop you may believe we had exciting times last Sunday when Morgan was not more than 18 miles from our homes but I guess he found that the north was strong enough to capture him and his army they had a battle on Sunday morning near Salineville Ohio the report is that there is 5 or 6 thousand more crossed the Ohio but let them try coming up here they will find there is a trap set for them." 

Though the vast majority of letters are between the Izenour family, there is one letter written by Arthur’s friend Edward Malone. He acknowledges Arthur’s service and comments eloquently on the nature of the war, calling slavery “wickedest” system upon Earth. In part: "You have made a great sacrifice to your country, and I hope that you will live to return to the bosom of your family, and to receive the honor due to such disinterested patriotism. Events have transpired since I wrote that have lifted a load from every loyal heart, and fallen like a thunderbolt upon those base traitors that would sacrifice their country to perpetuate a system which the whole civilized world has pronounced the wickedest upon earth. And that too often that system has aimed the dagger at the nation's heart, and to hurt the fair form of freedom from the only throne she occupies on earth. After it has aimed and is aiming to break this country into fragments, and rend it like a house divided against itself, and which as Christ has said cannot stand. The devil tried to raise a rebellion in heaven, to establish the doctrine of secession, and divide the kingdom that he might therefore reign over a portion of it as an independent sovereign. But as there could not be two Gods in heaven without eternal war neither can there be two independent nations in the country without eternal war. As there can be but one God and one kingdom, so let us have but one people, one country, and one principle to reign over it and that principle Freedom." (6 September 1863)

In September, the Izenour family was hit with tragedy when Arthur and Elizabeth’s youngest son Eddie died of disease, possibly whooping cough. Mary writes with the devastating news, as well as family friend James Cross who promises Arthur: "Don't give yourself any uneasiness about the temporal necessities of your family, they shall not need anything if I know it...Sincerely hoping that this Cruel War will soon end + that you thousands more can return again to your peaceful homes."

Shortly after, the topic of re-enlistment begins to dominate the conversation. Arthur reports of the offers being made to the hardened veterans: "there is some excitement here about enlisting in the Veteran Corps they are given four hundred dollars bounty to old [soldiers to] reenlist for three years more and let them go back to the state this winter and recruit and a twenty day furlough to go home when you write le know what you think if I reenlist." (9 October 1863). Mary responds with a shrewd if cynical opinion of the benefactors of the war: “"I just think that as long as they can get men to fight they intend keeping this war in progress I am afraid there is too much money made by this war for it to end soon and it makes me feel angry when I think of it and to think how they will offer great inducement to get men to reenlist and I expect if you to reenlist you will not see Pennsylvania this winter for now they have commenced fighting again they will need all the men they have got for they say there is going to be another Draft in six weeks and what is that for if they don't need men. I am very sure we would like to see you for you are very much missed as much as when you first left home so you can do as you think best for you have all the hardships to endure you won't have much longer to stay than if you are consolidated into another Regt.” (18 October 1863) She writes again on October 25th with more resistance to the idea: “"Mother is not agreed to you reenlisting she says the time seems so long for you to be away…Mother is in nettles about you enlisting in the Veteran Corps some times she thinks you might as well reenlist and...that they can Draft the three years men when they come home and then you would run the risk of being drafted so I expect you had better do as you think best but if you can wait until we write again you don't get the four hundred dollars down...but we do not value the money as much as we do your life." Though she notes that "Leaf  Hamilton says that all the greenbacks Abe Lincoln can make would not induce him to enlist."

Save for one letter from 1864 and one letter from 1865 (in which news of Booth’s capture is related and Arthur speculates his return home) no further letters are included in the archive from Arthur after his letter dated 30 December 1863. He would continue fighting, with his regiment joining the Overland Campaign fighting at the Battles of the Wilderness and skirmishing at Spotsylvania Court House where he was wounded. Despite this, Izenour would end up re-enlisting, joining the 191st Pennsylvania Infantry in June 1864 and then the 16th Veteran Reserve Corps at the beginning of 1865. He was discharged on 10 June 1865, returning to his family and carpentry business in Rochester, Pennsylvania. 

A fascinating archive providing the perspectives of both the soldier and the home front, with a special connection to President Dwight D. Eisenhower. 

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