The collection is open for research.
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Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], William Burgess Letter, Ms1989-050, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.
The William Burgess Letter was purchased by Special Collections and University Archives in 1989.
The processing and description of the William Burgess Letter commenced and was completed in February 2022.
William Burgess was born in Fort Loudon (Franklin County), Pennsylvania on November 27, 1830. He married Margaret Ann Newman Burgess (1839-1930), and the couple would have five children. The 1860 federal census shows the family living in Franklin County, with William Burgess employed as a railroad agent. During the American Civil War, Burgess served as a lieutenant in Company D, 6th Pennsylvania Reserve Regiment (aka 35th Pennsylvania Infantry). (Later in life, Burgess was commonly known as "Captain Burgess," but the rank of captain seems to have been an honorific.) Following the war, Burgess returned to Franklin County and was elected to the Pennsylvania legislature for 1877/1878. In 1881, he was hired as a freight agent for the Cumberland Valley Railroad at Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, and he remained in this position until his death in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania on July 18, 1887. He was buried in Cedar Grove Cemetery, Chambersburg.
This collection consists of a single, two-page letter written by William Burgess, formerly a lieutenant in Company D, 6th Pennsylvania Reserves Regiment (aka 35th Pennsylvania Infantry). Written on Cumberland Valley Railroad stationery, the letter is dated Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, August 24, 1886. Addressed to General William D. Dixon, the letter discussses details of the Battle of Dranesville, focusing on whether or not General Edward Ord dismounted to train the guns of Hezekiah Easton's artillery battery and Ord's orders to the 6th to "take that Battery (Rebel Battery) at the point of the bayonet ..."
The guide to the William Burgess Letter by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 (https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc0/).