1863 January 19 Camp Winder, Caroline County

    Camp Winder, Caroline Co. Va
                      January 19th 1863 
Dear Friend, 

           I have seated my self
for the purpose of writing you
a few lines to inform you
of our wharabouts my health
is very good & hope theese
fiew lines may find you
enjoying the blessings of health
and happines I have been
waiting in suspence for some
time for a letter from you
I have come to the conclusion
that my letter never came to
hand I wrote soon after I
came down, you can well
inmagin how lonsome I have
been in looking for a fiew lines
from you I will now send out
the second arrow hoping it may 

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find it's destination Jake told
me yesterday eavning that you
had never hurd from me since
my return to camp I had in
writing yesterday put
I thought I would wait and
send this by Mr Carson as the
other failed by mail I have no
news of importance to write
We ware on pickett last week
had a very easy tour of it,
I could not see any yankees across
the river I think the grater portion
of thare army has gon South
& some twenty or thirty thousand
of our army has gon to meet
them we have orders to keep one
days rations in our haversacks
untill further orders Some thinks
we are going to South Carlina
I havent but one objection to
going It would be so seldom




[page 3]
that we could hear from
home I would like to See the
country & then we would be on
the cost whare we could get
plenty of oysters we hafto pay
six dollars a gallon for them
here & no butter then to eat with
them, well I got a letter the
other day from the mill; I tell
you that it had Sams name
in more than one line
I had to laughf at several of
her conclusions of the hearafter
we have a large Co. now for duty
some sixty odd, the largest in the
brigade we have got our tents
at last the boys are busy building
chimmies to them, I hope we
may camp hear all winter
We have plenty of wood and tolerable
good water, and are enjoying all
the sweets of camp life, and
you know they are fiew at best


[page 4]

I hardly know what to write
to interrest you I hope you have
recieved my other letter before this
time I wish I was whare I would'nt
have to write for it is a grate deal
more pleasure to me to talk to you
than to write I have often been
near you in my dreams since
I last seen you, but alas what
are dreams they vanish in a moment
from our sight & are gon forever
I hope the time may soon come
when I may fondly encircle thee
in my arms & call thee mine
oh Kate forget the I never can &
would not be forgot for the gold
of opher, I hope your path may
be strune with flowers and if
I can not make you happy some
other may I ask an interest in
your prayers excuse this uninterresting
letter I will try and do better next time let
no one see this my respects to all & my love
to you

from your true friend
                                       W.F.B.

William Francis Brand to his future wife Amanda Catherine Armentrout


[transcript by the etext center University of Virginia Library]

MSS 11332