Civil War diary of Douglas O. Lilley
Overview
This Civil War diary of Douglas O. Lilley, a private in Company D of the Kansas 8th Regiment, contains his daily entries for the entirety of 1863, describing his military duties at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, his transfer as a prisoner to Benton Barracks in Missouri, his service in Tennessee and Georgia, and his return to Kansas and resumption of civilian life following disability discharge in December 1863. A letter enclosure is at RH MS P619.
Dates
- Creation: 1863 - 1864
Creator
- Lilley, Douglas O., 1845- (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
No access restrictions
Conditions Governing Use
Spencer Library staff may determine use restrictions dependent on the physical condition of manuscript materials.
Biography of Douglas O. Lilley, b. 1845
Douglas O. Lilley was born on January 25, 1845 in Pennsylvania. At the age of sixteen, he was living at Rock Creek in Nemaha County, Kansas, when on November 5, 1861 he enlisted as a private in Company D of the Kansas 8th Regiment. Lilley’s company was mustered November 9, 1861 and was posted at Fort Kearney, Nebraska and then at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. In February 1863, Company D joined its regiment at Nashville, Tennessee, and in subsequent months of 1863 engaged in battles in Tennessee and Georgia, including those of Chickamauga, Chattanoga, Orchard Knob, and Missionary Ridge. While in service, Lilley suffered prolonged periods of illness. He was hospitalized at Nashville in October 1863, was issued a disability discharge on December 4, 1863, and departed for Kansas soon afterward, arriving in late December.
Extent
1 volume : holograph ; 13 cm
Language of Materials
English
Scope and Contents
Lilley’s diary contains daily pencilled entries commencing January 1, 1863 and continuing through 1863. Following these are four random 1864 entries, the last dated July 5. Lilley's entries begin during his military service at Fort Leavenworth. On February 3, he writes without explanation of his transfer as a prisoner to Benton Barracks near St. Louis and of his five-day incarceration there before departing with his company for Nashville. Thereafter until his discharge in December 1863, Lilley writes chiefly of his daily drills and patrols, his eventual duties as mule driver for the regiment's supply wagons, and his worsening health and medical treatment. His December 1863 entries chronicle his discharge, his return trip to Kansas, and his resumption of civilian life. Following Lilley's diary entries are his notations of various debts, purchases, payments, and receipts, many of which are marked through but readable. At RH MS P619 is a brief business letter which was enclosed in the diary.
Physical Location
RH VLT MS A3
Physical Location
RH MS P619
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Purchase, Charles Apfelbaum.
Subject
- Lilley, Douglas O., 1845- (Person)
- United States. Army. Kansas Infantry Regiment, 8th (1861-1866). Company D (Organization)
- Title
- Guide to the Douglas O. Lilley Civil War Diary
- Subtitle
- Civil War diary of Douglas O. Lilley
- Author
- Finding aid prepared by mh, 2004 ; Finding aid encoded by mh, 2004
- Date
- 2004
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- Finding aid written in<language encodinganalog="language">English</language>
- Finding aid permalink
- http://hdl.handle.net/10407/0307167242
- Preferred citation
-
Civil War diary of Douglas O. Lilley, Kansas Collection, RH Vlt MS A3 and RH MS P619, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas Libraries
Repository Details
Part of the University of Kansas. Kenneth Spencer Research Library Repository