John J. Traub letters
Collection — Folder: S1320
Identifier: S1320
Scope and Contents
These two original Civil War letters were both written in ink to "Brother George" from John Traub. The oldest letter is dated June 7, 1863, from Murfreesboro, Tennessee. He said that he was sorry to hear William was sick, and hoped it was not small pox. He wrote: "I think if Gen. Grant succeeds in taking Vicksburg and the Army in there it will not be long in the putting down this rebellion for that is one of their main strongholds and will give our armies down there a chance to cooperate with us." ... "It is with Gen. Rosecrans something like the rat watching a mouse. He is watching Bragg with keen eye for fear he might be reinforcing the Rebbles at Vicksburg. Gen. Rosecrans keeps waking them up... and makes them believe he is coming by snatching off their picketts now and then. Our mounted Infantry and cavalry are working nobly ever since we have been here. I suppose if Old Buell had command yet, we would strike for Louisville again."
The second letter, dated December 9, 1864, was written from "Camp near Nashville" and enclosed his picture taken that day. He wrote: "The other day when part of the fourth Brigade were out with the forage train, they were surrounded by one Brigade of Rebs they having several pieces of artillery with them. They had got in between our forage train and our picket line so our men could not send in for reinforcement. So their only chance was to cut their way through. The report is that we lost 15 wagons, 2 men killed, and two men wounded in the 93 Ohio. By all appearances it seems to me as if we will have a heavy fight on hand before long. I may be mistaken. If we have to fight them here, I hope we will give them the best threshing they ever had. And the sooner the better." He compared the waiting in camp to the time before Corinth when they did not know when they would be called to march.
The second letter, dated December 9, 1864, was written from "Camp near Nashville" and enclosed his picture taken that day. He wrote: "The other day when part of the fourth Brigade were out with the forage train, they were surrounded by one Brigade of Rebs they having several pieces of artillery with them. They had got in between our forage train and our picket line so our men could not send in for reinforcement. So their only chance was to cut their way through. The report is that we lost 15 wagons, 2 men killed, and two men wounded in the 93 Ohio. By all appearances it seems to me as if we will have a heavy fight on hand before long. I may be mistaken. If we have to fight them here, I hope we will give them the best threshing they ever had. And the sooner the better." He compared the waiting in camp to the time before Corinth when they did not know when they would be called to march.
Dates
- 1863-1864
Creator
- Traub, John J., 1841-1905 (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
Legal title, copyright, and literary rights reside with Rare Books and Manuscripts, Indiana State Library, Indianapolis, IN. All requests to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted to Rare Books and Manuscripts.
Biographical Note
John Jacob Traub, born in August 1841, was the son of Jacob and Catherine (Strobel) Traub. His father Jacob came from Wittenberg, Germany, and his mother Catherine was from Prussia. He enrolled in the 29th Indiana Volunteer Infantry on October 5, 1861 in LaPorte, Indiana. John served in Company F. He was promoted to 2nd Lieutenant on June 26, 1865, and transferred to Company B as 1st Sergeant. His wife was Sarah E. Traub. In the 1880 census, his occupation was night watchman for the railroad. At that time, he and Sarah had two sons, George C. Traub, age 9, and Homer L. Traub, age 2. Mr. and Mrs. Traub were living in Wayne Township, Marion County, Indiana in 1900, when the census taker listed his occupation as farmer. John was living with his wife Sarah, age 50, and son Homer, age 22. Others living in the household were Dr. George F. Edenharter (42), his wife Marion E. (33), and their son Ralph E. (10). John died in Clermont, Indiana, on December 29, 1905.
Extent
0.01 Cubic Feet (1 folder)
Language of Materials
English
Arrangement
This collection is arranged chronologically.
Custodial History
This collection was received by Rare Books and Manuscripts as a donation from Paul Fatout on 1957/5/6.
Accruals
No further additions are expected.
Processing Information
Collection processing and finding aid completed 2017/10/26 by Nikki Stoddard Schofield.
Creator
- Traub, John J., 1841-1905 (Person)
- Title
- John J. Traub letters
- Status
- Completed
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- Undetermined
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
Repository Details
Part of the Rare Books and Manuscripts Repository
Contact:
140 North Senate Avenue
Indianapolis, Indiana 46204 U.S.A.
317-232-3671
140 North Senate Avenue
Indianapolis, Indiana 46204 U.S.A.
317-232-3671
