Thomas, Henry Goddard, Letters and Memoirs Henry Goddard Thomas Letters and Memoirs, 1868-1889 Ms.1991.073

Henry Goddard Thomas Letters and Memoirs, 1868-1889 Ms.1991.073


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Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech

Special Collections and University Archives, University Libraries (0434)
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Newman Library, Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, Virginia 24061
Business Number: 540-231-6308
specref@vt.edu
URL: http://spec.lib.vt.edu

Original 2000 web version of the finding aid funded in part by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Laura Katz Smith, Archivist

Repository
Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech
Identification
Ms.1991.073
Title
Henry Goddard Thomas Letters and Memoirs 1868-1889
Quantity
0.1 Cubic Feet, 1 folder
Creator
Thomas, Henry Goddard, 1837-1897
Language
The materials in the collection are in English.
Abstract
Henry Goddard Thomas was born in Maine and entered the American Civil War as a private yet rose to the rank of brigadier general by the war's end. After 1862 he was involved with the recruitment and organization of Black troops in the Union Army. He commissioned several troops, in particular the 79th and 19th U.S. Colored Infantries. He remained in the U. S. Army after the war and retired in 1891. His collection consists of twenty-two letters to Thomas from friends and relatives. Many of the letters refer to the Freedmen's Bureau and the newly freed slaves' attempts to establish schools and churches.

Administrative Information

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Conditions Governing Access

The collection is without restrictions.

Preferred Citation

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], Henry Goddard Thomas Letters and Memoirs, Ms1991-073, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Source of Acquisition

The collection was purchased by Special Collections and University Archives in October 1991 and November 1992.

Processing Information

The processing, arrangement, and description of the Henry Goddard Thomas Letters and Memoirs was completed in 1993.


Biographical Note

Henry Goddard Thomas was born in Portland, Maine, on April 4, 1837. At the age of twenty-one he graduated from Amherst and then studied law and was admitted to the Maine bar. He was enlisted in the 5th Maine as a private in April 1861 and was commissioned captain in June. This command fought at the battle of First Manassas, after which, on August 5, 1861, Thomas accepted a commission as a captain in the newly authorized 11th U.S. Infantry. He was on recruiting duty until the summer of 1862 and did not join his regiment until autumn.

Thomas's principle contribution to the war effort was the recruitment and organization of Black troops, with whom he was associated with until the end of the war. He was commissioned colonel first of the 79th U.S. Colored Infantry and then of the 19th Colored Infantry, taking command of the latter on January 16, 1864. Thomas is said to have been the first officer of the Regular Army to accept a colonelcy of Black troops. (681) He was assigned to Ferrero's IX Corps's division of Black troops at the beginning of U.S. Grant's Overland campaign and was present during all of the battles incident thereto, including the battle of The Crater. On November 30, 1864, Thomas was made a brigadier general of volunteers and transferred to Benjamin F. Butler's Army of the James, where he commanded a brigade of four Black regiments in the XXV Corps.

At the end of the war, Thomas was brevetted through all ranks to that of brigadier general, U.S. Army and major general of volunteers, but he was mustered out of volunteer service in January 1886, as a captain of the 11th infantry, a grade which he occupied for the next decade. He became major of the 4th Infantry in 1876 and two years later transferred to the paymaster's department with the same rank. On July 2, 1891, he went on the retired list.

Henry Goddard Thomas was also a man of considerable social standing as he had ties with the Virginia Governor Shelby, and his father and brother also appear to be quite active in the North in the same activities as Thomas. In politics the General was a member of the Grant and Colfax Club.

On January 23, 1897, Thomas died in Oklahoma City. His remains were returned to Portland for burial.

Scope and Content

From the letters to Henry Goddard Thomas one can gather that the General was a respected individual for his involvement with the Black community. As an activist Thomas received various letters from individuals seeking to help educate people recently emancipated. Thomas was particularly active in the construction of churches for the Black community as well as instruction for Black ministers. Louis Hensen writes to thank the General for money for the construction of a Methodist church and informs him of the construction progress. A letter from Byron Greenough updates the progress of one such organization, the Institute for the Instruction of Colored Ministers in Virginia and Southern States. A letter from Rev. Commodore D. Hurt commends the work that government has done for the education of Black people and updates the General on the status of a Black school in Russell County, Virginia.

Some letters also express the frustration of Thomas's peers over the treatment of Black people. The letter from P. S. Reeves dated June 17, 1868, relates a story involving "Regulators" and a Black school teacher in Danville. An interesting letter from G.R. Rosselton, dated December 24, 1869, includes a brief synopsis of slavery in America.

Arrangement

This collection is arranged by type, then chronologically.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

  • Civil War
  • Local/Regional History and Appalachian South
  • United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865

Rights Statement for Archival Description

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

Container List

Letters
folder 1 1868-1869, 1871, 1873, 1878-1880, 1884, 1889
  • Williams at Ft. Wood, NY, to Henry Goddard Thomas
    February 10, 1868
    1
  • P.S. Reeves in Danville, KY, to Henry Goddard Thomas
    June 17, 1868
    2
  • P.S. Reeves in Danville, KY, to Henry Goddard Thomas
    June 18, 1868
    3
  • Edward Hillipp in Lebanon, KY, to Henry Goddard Thomas
    June 19, 1868
    4
  • P.S. Reeves in Danville, KY, to Henry Goddard Thomas
    June 28, 1868
    5
  • Benjamin H. Osborn in Danville, KY, Henry Goddard Thomas
    September, 1868
    6
  • P.S. Reeves in Paducah, KY, to Henry Goddard Thomas
    September 7, 1868
    7
  • Thomas' Brother Bill in Portland, ME to Henry Goddard Thomas
    September 17, 1868
    8
  • S.A. Nesbith in Wytheville, to Henry Goddard Thomas
    September 25, 1868
    9
  • Brian Greenough in Portland, ME, to Henry Goddard Thomas
    December 25, 1868
    10
  • R.L. Lacy in Lynchburg, VA, at the Bureau of Refugees, Freedman, and Abandoned Lands, to Henry Goddard Thomas
    January 27, 1869
    11
  • Reverend Commodore D. Hurt, Russell County, VA, to Henry Goddard Thomas
    April 7, 1869
    12
  • R.B. Moorman, Salem, VA, to Henry Goddard Thomas in Dakota Territory
    August 4, 1869
    13
  • L.C. Henson in Wytheville, VA, to Henry Goddard Thomas in Dakota Territory
    August 4, 1869
    14
  • G.R. Rossitor in Marietta, OH, to Henry Goddard Thomas
    December 24, 1869
    15
  • Eliza Roach in Scotland, to Henry Goddard Thomas
    October 4, 1871
    16
  • Professor Rossitor in Marietta, OH, to Henry Goddard Thomas
    February 15, 1873
    17
  • From Rudolph Tucker in Wytheville, VA, to Henry Goddard Thomas
    December 4, 1878
    18
  • MLD of Columbus, MD, to Henry Goddard Thomas
    March 14, 1879
    19
  • Receipt from Kinsburg and Draper, St. Paul, MN, to Henry Goddard Thomas
    September 18, 1879
    20
  • E.F. Huntington in Boston, MA, to Henry Goddard Thoma
    September 6, 1880
    21
  • F.C. Young in Denver, CO, to Henry Goddard Thomas
    January 26, 1880
    22
  • Receipt for Thomas' subscription to the Army and Naval Journal
    January 1884
    23
  • Henry William Clifford in Portland, ME, to Henry Goddard Thomas
    January 30, 1889
    24
  • Invitation from E.F. Trouy in Manchester, NH, to Henry Goddard Thomas
    February 1, 1889
    25
  • John Deering of Saco, ME, to Henry Goddard Thomas
    March 26, 1889
    26
Henry Goddard Thomas Memoirs
folder 1
Scope and Content

Twelve handwritten pages of Thomas' early war experiences in the 11th U.S. Infantry. Most incidents concern Captain Cooley and Lieutenants Head and Huntington.