From Providence to Fort Hell: Letters from Company K, Seventh Rhode Island Volunteers

On September 6, 1862, the Seventh Rhode Island Volunteers was mustered into the service of the United States for three years. The Seventh was incorporated into the Army of the Potomac and joined the First Brigade, Second Division, Ninth Corps. They would fight with this unit from the horrors of Fredericksburg to the garrison of Fort Hell before Petersburg. Along the way, the regiment fought engagements in Mississippi and Kentucky and would return to Virginia in 1864. Here the men from the Seventh Rhode Island Volunteers would face constant danger from Spotsylvania to the North Anna, Mechanicsville, Cold Harbor, Petersburg, and Poplar Spring Church. One of the ten companies in that regiment was Company K. Found in collections throughout Rhode Island these transcribed and edited letters tell of a community of men at war. Here are the vivid accounts of battles and leaders, of fatiguing marches, and horrible illness as the men recorded it in letters home to their families. These letters reflect a critical moment in this nation’s history as these farmers and mill workers turned their backs from home and went south to fight in the Civil War. Carefully preserved through the generations these letters allow the veterans of the Seventh Rhode Island to speak. From these simple words, penned on faded pieces of paper the past is brought to life. These letters are presented to the reader exactly as the soldier wrote them, along with historical narrative, identification of those mentioned in the text, a roster, images, and bibliographical notes.