Notes of the Travels of the Echols Guards In the War of 1861
with the Old United States of America
By
John Wesley Culpepper
Forward
The pages that follow
are from the early entries of the Civil War diary of
John Wesley Culpepper
of Lone Oak, Meriwether County, Georgia. He documented with youthful
enthusiasm the daily occurrences in the lives of the "Echols Guards,"
officially known as the 8th Volunteer Regiment of Georgia, Confederate
States of America.
His diary details his
unit’s journey to the seat of conflict in the American Civil War.
Beginning by boarding a train at Grantville, Georgia, the available
portion of the diary stops just short of the war’s first pitched battle on
July 21, 1861 at Manassas Junction, Virginia. The 8th Georgia found itself
in a key role at this battle, later called "First Manassas" by the South
and "First Bull Run" by the Union Army. The 8th Georgia served until the
Confederate surrender at Appomattox Court House, Virginia in April 1865.
This annotated
version of the diary entries has been edited for modern spelling
conventions; however, it should be noted that during the nineteenth
century, the ability to spell the same word in several different ways was
an accepted sign of education.
Although some may
find the racial tone of a few passages unpalatable and patronizing by
today’s standards, it is important to preserve them in context for future
generations.
This document is
actually a transcription of an earlier transcription of the original diary
by an unknown copyist at an unknown date. The original transcript is
actually only a partial document in itself of a much longer original text.
Every effort has been made to be accurate and true to the previous
transcription, but certain formatting decisions have been made in an
effort to improve the readability of the document. In most cases, grammar
and syntax have been left as originally transcribed, except where
clarification was deemed necessary. Editor’s comments and corrections are
clearly identified by the use of words within {brackets}, e.g.
{sic} and {colloq}, which are used to identify modern misspellings and
errors in grammar, or the use of colloquial speech, and quotations {"}
have also been added to indicate text that was recorded as having been
spoken by another individual.
The original
transcript was provided to the editor by Mr. John William Culpepper of
Lindside, West Virginia, for the sole purpose of continued Culpepper
family genealogical research on the part of the editor. This document is
the result of the editor’s wish to clarify the activities of the diarist
and to identify the persons and places he mentioned.
Permission to reprint
this document in whole or in part for any purpose, commercial or
otherwise, other than for genealogical research, or research surrounding
the 8th Georgia regiment, must be obtained from the editor. Additions,
corrections or comments are welcome, and should be submitted to the
editor.
Capos Conley (Chip)
Culpepper II, E-mail
21 Iviers Drive,
Little Rock, Arkansas 72223
Start Reading Diary Here
Other Culpeppers referenced within John Wesley Culpepper's diary are
listed below. Use the Search Engine to find
references for them in the diary and elsewhere on Culpepper Connections!
- George Washington Culpepper
- Homer Lee Culpepper
- James Culpepper
- Noah Culpepper
- Pitts Culpepper
- Simeon Fletcher Culpepper
Last Revised:
02 Jan 2015
Copyright 1997, Capos Conley Culpepper II. All Rights
Reserved.
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