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 Gildersleeve Vardell Letters, 1862-1863, 1882, Ms1995-016, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.
The collection was donated to Special Collections and University Archives prior to 2002.
The processing, arrangement, and description of the William Gildersleeve Vardell Letters was completed in December 2023.
William Gildersleeve Vardell (1829-1897) of South Carolina was a Major in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War. He served in the Quartermaster's Department attached to the Holcomb Legion and the 17th, 18th, 22nd, and 23rd South Carolina regiments. Vardell married Jane "Jennie" Dickson Bell in 1857 and had eight children with her. Vardell became a Presbyterian minister in 1885 and served as the pastor of Johns Island Presbyterian Church from 1885 to 1897.
External Source:
"William Gildersleeve Vardell" family tree, Ancestry.com, https://www.ancestrylibrary.com/family-tree/person/tree/89329983/person/77006437231/facts, accessed December 2023.
The William Gildersleeve Vardell Letters consist of photocopies of 48 letters from Vardell to his wife Jennie, written between August 1862 and August 1863, while he was encamped in Montgomery, Alabama, and Jackson, Mississippi, during the American Civil War. He writes long and eloquent letters about news and effects of the war and battles, items he would like sent from home, and the strength of his Christian faith, among other topics. One letter is to Mrs. J. Jackson written in October 1882.
The South Carolina Historical Society maintains the William G. Vardell letters, Manuscript 0271.00.
The guide to the William Gildersleeve Vardell Letters by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 (https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc0/).