Camp near Brandy Station V. A
January 12th 1864

William H Rhoades
Dear sone
I embrace the
present leisiure time to let you know
that I am well a few minits ago
I finished my dinner it consisting
of bean soop Sowbelly & hard tack I
eat five tack and two plates of bean
I hope you are well also your mother
& sweet little Rella and all the
friends with you my cold is much better
[page 2]
I give below the form of our Regiment
the way the companys lay & the order
in which they come in thwn the
Regiment is formed Showing the streets
as wel as there Relative wedth it is not
got up in the stile that some could have
got it yet you can see how the companys
come in the Regiment
[diagram of the camp layout]
you will see how each departent is a ranged
by holding the top of the paper to the north
you then can see how the Regiments camps
company A at the left is the head of the or
[page 3]
righ B on the righ as seen in the reprcente[th?]
on is the lef of the Battallion when in
line of battles the first two squares above A
are commissary building next two musicians
quarter the next Adjutants the two next
are intended as Mager & colonls and the
one above K is the Sutlers Some of the company
havent shantys Some seven some only five
the places indicated by figures ar to repesent
the shantys the shantys are not formed
to gether their being a space of three or
fore feet between them
the squares below the letter representing the
companys are intended to represent the
captains quarters the drawing though
roughly done may be interesting to you
there are three Regiments that lay in
the same manner they laying east of
our Regiment then north of us near
a mile is another Brigade a mile east
of that is another in short they
[page 4]
are scattered all around the railroad
is jest north of our camp not more
than three hundred yards the cars
kum as far as Culpepper which is
two miles or two & a half miles west
or noth west of us
sometimes they go past with such
loads of hay & eatables that they
can hardly go up the rais past
our camp the Sixth Corps of the
army is around Culpepper as soon
as they get their winter quarters
fixed they will tak off some
of the picket duty tha[t] we have
to perform the most of our Regiment
is on picket but will be relieved
soon then our Regiment will not
have to get on for a month
But my sheet is filling so I must
close for the present my love to you
all from your Father John R Rhoades
to W H R