Chattanooga tennesea June the 16 18 62
Dear wif I tak my pen in hand to inform
you that I am as well as Common
at this time hoping that these fiew
lines may Cume to hand and find you
well we landed hear last night and and
went out to the Camp it is a butiful plase
to Camp but when it rains it will bea the
wors place tha you ever saw it will be
worse than any river bottom you ever saw
the slickist in the world the water
is bad to take on a average the wells is
generly about 6 and 8 feet deep the water
is not good a bit I saw whar the yankes
bursted the tin of[f] ove the top of a house
top with thir bums and bursted in
to a house with one it opined a very
good winder in it
[page 2]
I am a bout 300 miles fom home by the
railrod and right by the foot of the
look out mountain a bout one half a
mile from Chattanooga I am well and well
satisfied for the place the lime stone
water makes som of the boys sick but
I think that I fatten on it the
mail is a bout to leave and I must
close I dont no how long we
will stay hear you must
rite to me Soon
direct your letters to

W P Mangum Chattanooga
Tennesee Co Jonson rigment in
Cear of Capt A T Bennett








William P. Mangum to Louisiana C. Mangum and Elzy Mangum

Chatanooga Tenensee June the 22 1862
Dear wife I take my pen in hand to drop you a fiew
lines which leavs me and all the rest of our
boys well and I do hope that thes fiew lines
will reach your hands in due time and find you all
well and doing well I have nothing of importance
to rite to you more than we have had no fight yet
we was ordord to Shelmount the eigtteenth of
this instant with the view of having a
heavy battle we went and staid a night and
day and did not fire a gun the pickits was
firing at each other a cross the river the yanks
woned one of our men and our men killed one of them
and taken ten prisners we was in a bout two
hundrd yards of them with a bout seven
thousand armed men we Could see yanky
balls Cut the dust in a bout fifty yards
of us turn over
[page 2]
we had eigt hun men that crost the river
to them and the yankes lefte and we did not
cross so then we turnd a bout and cum
back we Camped in poisan hollow betweene
two moutains it is a bout twenty miles
down the tennesee river and a ledg of muntains
all the way some plases the rode was cut down
til the bank was 1200 feet high and you
may Jest no that it was a rugged place
Caroline I received a letter from B F Catlett
when I got hear this morning and H J Whitworth
they stated that they was well and expected
to Cum back to this place thar is only 40 of
thir company sick thar is som of our men
sick but only a few and they ar able to go whar
they please but not able to do duty I have not
bin so yet but what I Could do my
shear and eat my shear
[page 3]
we have not drawd our bount[y] yet our Captain
has bin gon home and we think maby that we
will getit now he Came home last nigt
when I git my mone[y] i will send it to you
as soon as I can and when we get our money
maby thar will bea a Chance to send it
home and then you must send my uniform
to me if thar is any chance and if thar is no
chance you can hold it on to it til thar is
a chance I am not a needing it now tell
middleton that I wish he Could hve
bin wih us Just to sea the Loktion of east
tennesee the huts is stuck a long in
the gulles and sids of the mountains and
they a not more than ten feet squar
rite soon and rite oftain Sothing more at presant
but remains yours until death W P Mgngum