LETTERS OF WILLIAM A. ALLEN William A. Allen served as 3rd. Sgt. in Co. I, 3rd. Regiment, 2nd. Brigade, Georgia State Troops in Capt. Henry L. Cunningham’s Company known as the “Forsyth County Wildcats. He then served as 1st. Lt. in Company G, 56th Georgia. Three letters were written by Allen to his wife Agnes (Aggie) and were found attached to loose pension applications in the Forsyth County Probate Office. Letter’s are reproduced as written with some additions in parenthesis for clarity. Letter written November 8, 1862 from Lenior Station, Tennessee. Dier Wife, I now seet my Self to inform you that I am well at this time hoping that when the few lines cum to hand that tha may find you an famaly all well. I have nothing if intrust to rite to you, tho I can say to you that I recive(d) you® letor that you sent by William Allen An was glad to hur form you an to hur that you all was doing well at that time an was A doing well. You rote to me About sroping (swapping) my mule or selling my mule, that you cood not doo nothing with him. I will Say to you that I had drother you wood turn him out to dy than to fo(o)l him Away for I did not want you to sell him for I don’t thank that the war will last long. (Keep) the mule this winter an if you want Another hos wy you can by hit next Sprang An then you can tu®n in the pasters. I don’t git no leters from you but I can hur from you. I can hur that you ar(e) Aleting ever bodey have him to work, I herd that you let Matheye Strikling (Matthew Strickland) have hit to work to Matson to his bugeye (buggy) an I thought that you wod of taking beter cur of my thangs than that an if that is the best that you can do with him I want you to get Sumboddy to take him out an shoot him for I don’t want to hur of my mule Abeing Sarved in no sich Amanner. Si I don’t want you to doo so enny more. So I wood be glad to See you agin. So I will rite to you for you to cum as Sune (as) I get settle(d). I don’t thank we will Stay hier enny. I want you to git me A pare of galses (galluses) ne(x)t an send or fetch them to me. (I)f I find out that we will stay hier long I will cend you to come hear to see me if you want to come & if you hant put your hogs up I want you to put them up & let them get as fat as they will by cold wether. If you have the corn to give them & if you have got more Stock than you can winter you have Better sell them or dispose with them in some way; & if you cant winter them you Better git Mr. Ackols or some of the neighbors to come and price them them & see what you ought to have for them; & if have got moe sheep than you wont to keep you had better sell them while they are a good price & u=in good order, & you can get up what you can of them & put them up in the fields to winter them. I wont you to write to me consarning these things an let me no what you can do with them & then I can tell you Better what to do about them. I must Bring my letter to a close by saying I hope to hear from you Soon. Nothing more at present. I remain your affectionate husbsnd until death. Willam Allen To A F Allen farwell Letter written January 24, 1863 from Jackson, Mississippi Dier Wife, I now take my pen in hand to inform you that I am well at this time, hoping when thes few lines comes to hand that tha may find you an the children all well. I haf nothing of importing (importance) to rite you at this time, onely I receive(d) you® kind leter baring date the 15 an was glad to hier that you was well, tho you rote that the baby was sick an did not rite what was the mator with him. I was Sorry to hier that he was Sick, but I want you to take as good cier of the children as you can, an if you git a canc(chance) to send them to school I want oyu to send them. I will now say Sumthing About the grub that we haf to eat. We haf plenty to eat. We haf beef that is Stall fed. It is stall(ed) in the mud An is fed on hickery. So you may know that it is good beef, tho we draw plenty of me(a)l An molasses An shugar An rise, AN can by potatoes Aplenty At too dollars pur bushel, An can by pork At 25 Sents per po(u)nd. So you may know that thar is no danger of sufring hier. I will now Say something About our drawing monney. We did draw $68 and did fix hit up to Send hit home by Lutender Brown An he cood not git his furlow Sind up by the jinerl, So we don’t know when we will git the canc to Send hit now. But I will Send you $60 dollars by the first won that passes So I will send you monney As fast as I can An I want you to take good cier of hit. I must cum to A close; rite sun An often. I wod like to git A lettor ever weak. So no moer At present; rite sune William to Aggy F. Allen Letter of January 30, 1863 from Vicksburg, Mississippi Dier wife, I now imbrace the oppitu(n)ity of informing you that I am well at this time hoping that when the few linds cumes to hand tha may find you An the childern all well. I can say to you that I resive(d) A letor from you baring date the 15 An was glad to hier that you was well tho I was sorry to hier that the baby was Sick An you haf not rote to me Sence So I am oneasy About him An I will be untell hier from him. SoI wantyou to riet to me wether haf got your monney that I sent to you or not by July Bennett and Emley Streatmon/ An I hird that you mool had runiway an had torup your waggin an I wood like to know if he did hurt enny theng or not.(D)ock (A)ddums told me About it. AnI want you to rite to me About hit. I will now Sate to you About the helt(h) of the boyes. (Their) helt(h) is very good, exsept the water dos not Agree with us, tho our grub is so good that we don’t exspect enny thang, elc. I wll now State to you About what cind of grub that we haf hier: hit is Stall fed beef; it is stall(ed) in the mud an is fed on w(h)iths, so you may know it is good tho we draw plenty of molasses an shugar an rise an meal wich is jest chop(ped) up, tho we can by flower hier at 40 cnts a po(u)nd an can by fresh backbones of A hog at 40 cnts a po(u)nd, tho tha say that we will draw pork from this on. So I don’t thank that tha is enny dang(e)r of suf(fer)ing hier. So dond (don’t) be dis sadisfade About us. So you can tell All of the fox(folks) About thar(that) this is the hart of the world that I haf sene. I will now state to you concerning the Yankeys: the(re) is Aplenty of them hier. An tha ar(e) canno(na)ding on bofr sids ever day, tho tha haf not dun no hurt yet, tho we ar(e) exspecting of A fite ever day. Tha haf taking too of our bots that was lodid with wiskey An shot three holes in A nother but did not git hit. So tha is About too hundred Yankey bots hier in Site tho the Sitsons (citizens) don’t thank that tha can take this place for tha haf tride be four with About Sixty bots. We haf got intrans(h)ment(s) cut for About nine miles long, if tha shud land, we then in tend to give them a good whiping, tho I don’t think that tha is enny danger of them A landing hier for we haf too menney troops hier for them to rush on us. Tha is About Sixty thousent of our trups hier now an tha ke(e)p cuming mour and mour ever day. I want you to see (H)enry (A)llen an tell to pay one dollar an Seventy- five ctns the monney that he ose me for them pant(s), an’ that will be all rite with me an’ him. If you see enny of the runaway(s) tell them that tha had beter cum back to the(I)r command an pull at buck A while longer, for I know that I want to cum home as bad as enny boddy in the hold world, but I intind to Stand up and fass them like Jacap(Jocob’s) cat. I will cum to A close for the present; rite sune an ofton. William Allen to Aggy F Allen