Letter from Joseph Adolphus Engelhard, August 28, 1864 - North Carolina Digital Collections

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Title

Letter from Joseph Adolphus Engelhard, August 28, 1864

Date

August 28 1864

Creator

["Engelhard, J. A. (Joseph Adolphus), 1832-1879."]

Place

["Dinwiddie County, Virginia, United States"]

Local Call Number

VC.17.1

Document Details
Image Details

Document Details

Title

Letter from Joseph Adolphus Engelhard, August 28, 1864

Date

August 28 1864

Creator

["Engelhard, J. A. (Joseph Adolphus), 1832-1879."]

Rights

All rights held by the State Archives of NC. Permission to publish must be obtained from the registrar in writing.

Description

This Civil War letter, dated August 28, 1864, is signed by Major Jos[eph] A. Engelhard and addressed to "Friend Ruf." In the letter, Major Engelhard describes the successful Battle of Ream's Station (Dinwiddie County, Virginia) as a "'Tar Heel' fight," with the result that "we got Genl. Lee to thanking God, which you know means something brilliant." Certainly the letter seems to give credence to the tradition that General Lee had given thanks to the Almighty for the Tar Heel boys. Born in Mississippi in 1832, Joseph Adolphus Engelhard attended the University of North Carolina and was graduated in 1854. Thereafter, he attended Harvard Law School and subsequently read law under noted judges in Chapel Hill and Raleigh. Engelhard left his growing law practice at Tarboro in May 1861 to serve as assistant quarter master (captain) of the Thirty-third Regiment under Colonel, later Brigadier General, Lawrence O'B. Branch. Reportedly, Branch collapsed into Engelhard's arms as he fell mortally wounded at Sharpsburg on September 17, 1862. Rising to the rank of major, Engelhard was made assistant adjutant general and transferred to General William D. Pender's brigade. From May 1863 until the close of the war Engelhard served as division adjutant. He was serving under General Pender at Gettysburg when General Lee formed the Third Corps and placed Pender in charge of one of its divisions. Following Pender's fall at Gettysburg on 2 July 1863, Engelhard came under General Cadmus M. Wilcox. After the loss and wounding of many soldiers during battle, Engelhard assumed command of the right flank of his division. According to various accounts, Engelhard's horse was shot out from under him upon reaching the opposition's lines. Following the request of General Lee, Engelhard later wrote the official performance report of Pender's division during the three days of battle at Gettysburg. Engelhard continued under Wilcox, whose stubborn defense at Petersburg on 2 April 1865 made it possible for General Lee's army to cover its withdrawal and to move westward toward Appomattox. At the close of hostilities, Engelhard was selected as clerk of the North Carolina Senate. He served again during 1866-1867 session, representing Edgecombe County. During 1866 Engelhard acquired substantial interest in the Wilmington Journal and served as the paper's editor for the next ten years. In that position, Engelhard became the voice of the Cape Fear region in protesting the policies and acts of Reconstruction. A Democrat, Engelhard attended his party's national convention in Baltimore as a delegate. In 1875 he called for a state convention to revise the Constitution, particularly the provisions relating to local governments. During the following year, voters approved a variety of constitutional amendments, many of which were championed by Democrats as minimizing the more unreasonable aspects of Reconstruction. By a large majority, Engelhard was elected secretary of state in 1876. He served in that capacity until his death 15 February 1879 in Raleigh. Engelhard's funeral service was held at Christ Church (Episcopal) and he was buried in Oakwood Cemetery.

Subject

["Ream's Station, Battle of, Va., 1864","North Carolina--History--Civil War, 1861-1865","United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865","United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865--Campaigns"]

Index Terms

Lee, Robert E. (Robert Edward), 1807-1870

Local Call Number

VC.17.1

Place

["Dinwiddie County, Virginia, United States"]

Time Period

["(1860-1876) Civil War and Reconstruction"]

Digital Collections

["Treasures"]

Source Collections

["Tar Heel Collection. Vault Collection. State Archives of North Carolina"]

Format

["Letters (Correspondence)"]

Hosted By

["State Archives of North Carolina"]

Identifier

VC_17_Joseph_Adolphus_Engelhard_letter

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