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], George Ireland Correspondence, 1862-1863, Ms2023-084, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Source of Acquisition

The George Ireland Correspondence was purchased by Special Collections and University Archives in December 2015.

Processing Information

The processing, arrangement, and description of the George Ireland Correspondence was completed in August 2023.

Biographical Note

George Ireland served in the Union Army during the American Civil War in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Ireland has a brother named Samuel living in Clarkson, Monroe County, New York.

This person may be the George Ireland who was born in January 1834 in Clarkson to William and Martha Ireland. During the war in August 1862, he enlisted as a private into Company A of the 140th New York Infantry Regiment of the Union Army. This unit fought at Fredericksburg in December 1862. He was discharged in February 1863 for ill health.

External sources:

"George Ireland" entry in the New York, U.S., Town Clerks' Registers of Men Who Served in the Civil War, ca 1861-1865 database, Ancestry.com, https://www.ancestrylibrary.com/discoveryui-content/view/105694:1964 , accessed August 17, 2023.

"Ireland, George", National Park Service's Civil War database, https://www.nps.gov/civilwar/search-soldiers-detail.htm?soldierId=C8F09DAB-DC7A-DF11-BF36-B8AC6F5D926A , accessed August 17, 2023.

"George Ireland" entry in the U.S., Civil War Soldier Records and Profiles, 1861-1865 database, Ancestry.com, https://www.ancestrylibrary.com/discoveryui-content/view/3960532:1555 , accessed August 17, 2023.

Scope and Content

This collection includes two letters written by George Ireland from Fredericksburg, Virginia to Samuel Ireland in Monroe, County, New York. The first letter from December 1862 recounts George's battle in Fredericksburg, and the second from February 1863 is a reaction to the Emancipation Proclamation and his unwillingness to fight to free enslaved persons.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

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

Rights Statement for Archival Description

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