- Collection:
- America's Turning Point: Documenting the Civil War Experience in Georgia
- Title:
- Alva Sinks letter
- Creator:
- Sinks, Alva, 1847-1881
- Date of Original:
- 1864-09-20
- Subject:
- Atlanta (Ga.)
Sherman's March to the Sea
Georgia--History--Civil War, 1861-1865
United States. Army. Ohio Infantry Regiment, 71st (1861-1864). Company B
United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865--Personal narratives - People:
- Hood, John Bell, 1831-1879
Sherman, William T. (William Tecumseh), 1820-1891
Sinks, Alva, 1847-1881 - Location:
- United States, Georgia, Fulton County, Atlanta, 33.749, -84.38798
- Medium:
- letters (correspondence)
- Type:
- Text
- Format:
- application/pdf
- Description:
- This collection consists of a letter from Alva Sinks to his father, George Sinks, written from a camp near Atlanta, Georgia, in 1864. In the letter, Sinks writes of fighting from Dalton to Jonesboro, Georgia, of the destruction of the countryside, and of the defenses of Atlanta and impending battle. The letter gives a first-hand account of the Union Army in the Atlanta area. Sinks praises the movements of William T. Sherman's troops and tells of Sherman's orders for all civilians to be removed from Atlanta and the city's transformation into a military encampment. He also mentions General Hood and the Confederate's fortifications. He describes magnificent houses riddles with bullets and how the countryside has been devastated, with no food or supplies left for the Confederate troops and civilians. Sinks also mentions his dislike for the "copperheads," Union men who were against the Civil War and wanted "peace at any cost." The collection also includes an envelope containing a woodcut of Gen. Winfield Scott is enclosed with the letter, as well as another envelope postmarked at Chattanooga.
Alva Sinks (1847-1881) was born in Ohio. During the Civil War, he served as a Union soldier in Company B of the 71st Ohio Infantry. He married Ann Macy on January 9, 1867. Sinks died on January 3, 1881.
America's Turning Point: Documenting the Civil War Experience in Georgia received support from a Digitizing Historical Records grant awarded to the Atlanta History Center, Georgia Historical Society, Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Library, and the Digital Library of Georgia by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission. - External Identifiers:
- Metadata URL:
- https://dlg.galileo.usg.edu/id:dlg_turningpoint_ghs0732-001
- Digital Object URL:
- https://dlg.galileo.usg.edu/ghs/turningpoint/do:ghs0732-001
- Bibliographic Citation (Cite As):
- Cite as: [Identification of item], Alva Sinks letter, MS 732, Georgia Historical Society, Savannah, Georgia.
- Original Collection:
- Alva Sinks letter, MS 732, Georgia Historical Society, Savannah, Georgia.
- Holding Institution:
- Georgia Historical Society
- Rights:
-
