1862 April 5 Hampton, Va.

Camp near Hampton Virginia April 5th 1862
My Dear Father--As there is no prospect of our moveing to day I will occupy
my time in writing you A little longer letter than I wrote this morning we have
ordered to get ready at once but the roads are so blocked up with Artilery & comissary
waggons that it will be impossible for us to move untill tomorrow we are not at all
sorry for this being the last place we will have tents we of course wish to enjoy
them as long as we can you have read in papers of the moveing of large Armies
the papers may attempt to describe it, but you must see it if you want to know
what it is there is A tremendous number here & troops are continually arriving
Heintzelman & Porters Divisions are here & I dont know[how] many others the papers
are not allowed to publish any thing about the our movements yet the Rebels seem
to be posted the first attact I suppose will be on YorkTown Genl. Mclellan is in comm
and so you will see that the grand Army transfered we are in sykes Brigade
(Regulars) this Brigade and seventeen batteries of regular Artilery form the reserve
I am glad we are in Camp once more it is much better than being cooped up in
barracks the first night we had no tents & had to bivouac on the ground the
officers are no better or than the rest they are allowed nothing but what they
can take themselves yesterday we had no bread, we have been having pretty good
time so far now we have to see hard times we have one consolation it is warm
weather most of the regiments would have had no tents for A long time, the
Rebel Batteries on Sewels & city point throw away their shott trying to do some
dammage to the Fleet the Moniter is ready when called on

[letter will continue on April 15]


Letters from George Leavitt and his brother Joseph Leavitt were copied into a ledger by their father John Leavitt in October 1865: "because they are of value to me and I was fearful that they might get mislaid." Both boys were mortally wounded in the war, George at Second Bull Run, August 30, 1862, and Joseph at Spotsylvania, May 18, 1864.

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