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Start Over Creator N. R. Smith, Medford, NJ
Thomas Balch Library

Thomas Russell Smith Reminiscences 1908

In 1908, Thomas Russell Smith, at the behest of his children, set down his memories of the American Civil War. As a member of Society of Friends and the Goose Creek Monthly Meeting, Smith was a conscientious objector. During the war, Loudoun was buffeted by soldiers from both sides of the conflict. Smith provides a flavor of this back and forth and talks about family members, including one who joined the Union forces despite Smith's efforts to dissuade him. The narrative comments on enforced labor, transportation of grain and corn, theft of livestock and horses, and the burning of his barn. Smith's memoirs start with a description of his wedding day, 17 October 1859, which was the night prior to John Brown's raid, and provides detailed description of how these events impacted their wedding festivities and life. The concluding passages of the memoir recount the burning of his barn, removal of his livestock and recounts how he went after the soldiers and retrieved a cow needed to provide milk and butter for his children.
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Thomas Russell Smith Reminiscences 1908

N. R. Smith, Medford, NJ
In 1908, Thomas Russell Smith, at the behest of his children, set down his memories of the American Civil War. As a member of Society of Friends and the Goose Creek Monthly Meeting, Smith was a conscientious objector. During the war, Loudoun was buffeted by soldiers from both sides of the conflict. Smith provides a flavor of this back and forth and talks about family members, including one who joined the Union forces despite Smith's efforts to dissuade him. The narrative comments on enforced labor, transportation of grain and corn, theft of livestock and horses, and the burning of his barn. Smith's memoirs start with a description of his wedding day, 17 October 1859, which was the night prior to John Brown's raid, and provides detailed description of how these events impacted their wedding festivities and life. The concluding passages of the memoir recount the burning of his barn, removal of his livestock and recounts how he went after the soldiers and retrieved a cow needed to provide milk and butter for his children.

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