This captivating four page letter was written in April, 1863 by Sgt. Altus H. Jewel of the 77th New York Infantry from White Oak Church, Virginia. It is filled with rich descriptions of army life. One of the more interesting sections describes a visit from President Lincoln and high-ranking officers, which reads in part: 
 
 ”They were in a covered wagon drawn by four horses, & his son [Robert Lincoln]…was riding a horse. He was a real nice-looking fellow. They were followed by General Hooker, Sedgwick, and other generals and officers too numerous to mention that we did not know. They went down toward Belle Plain to review some troops there. When they come back, we gave three cheers for them—first for Old Abe, then for Hooker, & then for Sedgwick, & then we had to give three cheers for Little Mac. I don’t know what Hooker thought of us for giving three cheers for McClellan but he is the first and the last man that the Army of the Potomac will waste their breath cheering for, but we would cheer three times three if we could get him for our commander again."
 
 Following this account, Altus shares a considerably more unusual story about a soldier in the 31st New Jersey who gave birth to a baby. Her sex was discovered, Altus claimed, when she became ill on picket duty and was taken “…to a private house that was near & had a daughter born. You may think that this is a big story—-it is, but it is a true one. It was as much surprising to the company that she belonged to as it is to me or you. The company had noticed that she always tented with one person and many times when it was her turn to come on duty that her tent mate would take her place, but they had never noticed anything in her countenance or appearance to make them mistrust but what she was a man.”
 
 Jewel was 21 years old and a resident of Saratoga Springs, New York when he enlisted in the 77th New York Infantry in the summer of 1862. That December, Jewel was wounded at Fredericksburg. He survived his wound and went on to be promoted twice before mustering out with his regiment in 1865. His letter remains in excellent condition, with four full pages neatly written in ink. We cannot verify Altus’s story about a secret female New Jersey soldier giving birth, but were able to find another reference that seems to describe the same individual in a New York regiment. At least five soldiers are known to have performed military service while pregnant during the Civil War. 
 
 Interested bidders are encouraged to read the full transcript shown on photos 5 & 6 in the photo gallery of this lot. 
 
 [Civil War, Union, Confederate]