Guide to the Mandeville Family Papers 1861-1863 MG 1663

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Descriptive Summary
Biographical Note:
Scope and Content Note
Access Points
Administrative Information

Container List

Letters

Finding aid encoded by Julia Telonidis. August 2006. Production of the EAD 2002 version of this finding aid was made possible by a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.Finding aid written in English.

Biographical Note:

Cornelius Mandeville of Bergen, NJ, was a Union soldier in the Civil War from 1861 to 1863. He enrolled in Company A, 2nd Regiment Militia, on April 26, 1861; the regiment was mustered in on May 1, 1861. The 2nd Regiment occupied Arlington Heights, VA, on May 24 and was a Reserve unit in the Battle of Bull Run on July 21 before being mustered out at Trenton, NJ, on July 31, 1861.

On August 28, 1862, Mandeville enrolled in Company C, 21st Regiment Infantry, which was mustered in on September 15, 1862. The 21st joined the Army of the Potomac on the battlefield of Antietam on September 18. It was on duty at Hagerstown, MD, until October 29, when it moved on to Falmouth, VA. It fought in the Battle of Fredericksburg from December 11-15, 1862, the Chancellorsville Campaign from April 27-May 16, 1863, and the Battle of Marves Heights on May 3. The regiment was mustered out at Trenton, NJ, on June 19, 1863.

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Scope and Content Note

The collection consists of six pieces of correspondence written between Cornelius Mandeville, a Union soldier in the Civil War, and his parents (1861-1863). Five of these letters are from Cornelius Mandeville to his father or both parents, and one is to Cornelius from his father, Henry Mandeville. The letter from Henry Mandeville is undated.

Cornelius’s letters, written from Union camps near Hagerstown, MD, Bell Plains, VA, and Falmouth, VA, allude to aspects of camp life including personal health, provisions, mail delivery, arguments, harsh weather, and impassable roads. They chronicle the soldier’s varying moods and opinions as he evaluates the Union’s chances of success, lightly critiques his congressmen, reasserts his commitment to the Union cause, and calls upon his religious faith. The latest letter includes a brief description of the effects of the war upon a Virginia civilian. The letter to Cornelius from his father, Henry, exemplifies an encouraging home front spirit.

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

This collection should be cited as: Manuscript Group 1663, Mandeville Family Papers, The New Jersey Historical Society.

Acquisition Information

Donated by Theodore S. Mandeville, Jr., 2006.

Processing Information:

While these papers are not very brittle, they have previously been folded and are therefore worn along the folds. In some cases, the sheets of paper have torn along the folds. Due to this frailness, all items have been placed in plastic sleeves.

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Container List

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