Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use

The copyright status of this collection is unknown. Copyright restrictions may apply. Contact Special Collections and University Archives for assistance in determining the use of these materials.

Reproduction or digitization of materials for personal or research use can be requested using our reproduction/digitization form: http://bit.ly/scuareproduction . Reproduction or digitization of materials for publication or exhibit use can be requested using our publication/exhibition form: http://bit.ly/scuapublication . Please contact Special Collections and University Archives ( specref@vt.edu or 540-231-6308) if you need assistance with forms or to submit a completed form.

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

Preferred Citation

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], Hannibal A. Johnson Letters, Ms1990-058, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Source of Acquisition

The Hannibal A. Johnson Letters were acquired by Special Collections in 1990.

Processing Information

Initial processing and description of the Hannibal A. Johnson Letters was completed in 1990. Additional description was completed in December 2014.

Biographical Information

Hannibal Augustus Johnson was born on June 4, 1841, to Mark and Sarah (Simmons) Johnson, in Hallowell, Maine. Before the Civil War, Johnson worked in a dry-goods store. He enlisted with Company B, 3rd Maine Volunteer Infantry in April 1861. By 1864, he was a lieutenant with the company. During the war, he was captured at Gettysburg and spent seven weeks at Belle Island prison camp near Richmond, Virginia. He was captured again the Battle of the Wilderness, confined at several prisons, and escaped in November 1864. He returned to his regiment, mustered out, and reenlisted with the 1st Maine Battalion in April 1865. In 1866, he mustered out again, and returned to the business world. In 1868, he married Emma Watts Lombard. They had one son, Walter. Johnson died in Lynn, Massacusetts, on July 3, 1913.

Further biographical information can be found online .

Johnson was the author of The Sword of Honor: A Story of the Civil War , available online at https://archive.org/details/swordofhonorstor01john . The book details his experience during the war.

Scope and Content

The collection contains two letters from Hannibal A. Johnson to his friend, Samuel, written from Camp Fessenden, Alexandria, Virginia, in August and September 1861. Johnson's letters include descriptions of his experiences concealing himself in a cornfield to evade Rebel troops, meeting with General Jeb Stuart's cavalry in a skirmish at Chain Bridge, and how men were detailed to cut down trees between the fort and the enemy.

Related Material

The Hannibal A. Johnson Letters is related to the Hannibal A. Johnson Letter, Ms2019-032 .

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• Civil War
• United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865

Rights Statement for Archival Description

The guide to the Hannibal A. Johnson Letters by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 ( https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc0/ ).