1862 July 4 Harrison's Landing, Va.

[ from the war journal of George Hazen Dana of the 32nd Massachusetts as compiled by him from letters and diary entries] 
                                                 Harrison’s Point – July 4th 1862.
We arrived here yesterday, and found the mud positively
three feet deep, and the toughest and stickiest mud you
ever heard of.          Ninety three of our men actually had
their boots pulled off by it in marching, and could not
dig them out again.          Tell Aunt M.* that I’ll
never find fault with her Port mud and dust again.
It is positively dry compared to this, on your muddiest
day.          McClellan’s head quarters are
about quarter of a mile from us.          We are in Gen.
Porter’s Army Corps, Morrell’s Division, Griffin’s Brigade,
all of which you must put on letters addressed to me,
as also Washington, D. C.      By this, I shall receive
letters much more speedily than by any other address.
*Mrs. Washington Allston [this name inserted in another handwriting]

The fighting which has been going on for more than a
week, ceased on the day of our arrival, so we have had
no share yet; trust to soon, but I fear not, as McClellan’s
continuous falling back, though we were every where vic-
torious (of this there is no doubt) proved that there is
something on the tape’s – probably McClellan decoying
the rebel Army here – twenty miles from Richmond –
while Gen. Pope, with his large force, marches into the
city, and quietly occupies it -          At all events, some-
thing rich is at hand.          I trust, that if the above
supposition proves correct, we shall be able to cut the
Rebel Army up.          I hope my next will describe an
engagement of our regiment with the rebels.
We are camped in the woods, no tents now, with
thousands of troops in our vicinity, and have orders to
sleep on our arms tonight -            I have been writing
on the stump of a tree, with a candle stuck in a
knot hole.          I have been informed that a few miles
further along, the walking is even worse than here; at
our place, for instance, they send sounders (as they are
called) ahead to sound the mud, and see that no other
regiments are underneath – (This is a ‘joak”.)

[transcript by Mary Roy Dawson Edwards]


MSS 5130