Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use

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Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

Preferred Citation

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], G. Lyman Dwight Correspondence, Ms1989-101, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Source of Acquisition

The G. Lyman Dwight Letters were purchased by Special Collections and University Archives in 1989.

Processing Information

The processing and description of the G. Lyman Dwight Letters commenced and was completed in February 2022.

Biographical Note

Gamaliel Lyman Dwight Jr., son of Gamaliel L. and Catherine Henshaw Jones Dwight, was born on February 3, 1841. A student at the outbreak of the American Civil War, Dwight enlisted as a private in Battery A, 1st Rhode Island Light Artillery. He rose through the ranks and on November 29, 1861 was promoted to second lieutenant and transferred to Battery B. On November 4, 1862, Dwight was promoted to 1st lieutenant and transferred back to Battery A, and was later promoted to captain and given command of the battery. Dwight mustered out of the service on July 17, 1864. Following his military service, he returned to school, graduating from Brown and from Harvard Medical School. He appears in the 1870 federal census as a medical student living in Boston. Dwight married Anne Ives Carrington (1849-1904) in 1871; the couple had one daughter. Gamaliel Lyman Dwight died on January 19, 1875, and was buried in North Burial Ground, Providence (Providence County), Rhode Island.

Scope and Content

This collection contains three letters written by Gamaliel Lyman Dwight Jr. of batteries A and B, 1st Rhode Island Light Artillery during the American Civil War. The letters are written from Muddy Branch Camp (Montgomery County, Maryland), November 16, 1861; outpost near Conrad's Ferry [Maryland], January 15, 1862; and camp near Falmouth, Virginia, April 12, 1863. Two of the letters are addressed to "St. Helena" (Dwight's pet name for close friend Mrs. Sarah Helen Whitman, one-time fiance of Edgar Allan Poe). The third is simply addressed to "My dear Saint." Dwight writes of art, literature, poetry, photography, and nature, often mentioning mutual acquaintances, chiefly "St. Emma" and "St. Anna." On November 16, 1861, he describes the local fall foliage, noting that it suffers in comparison to that of New England, and mentions a pair of horseshoe charms that he keeps with him. On April 12, 1863, Dwight reports being in charge of his battery.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• Civil War
• United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865

Rights Statement for Archival Description

The guide to the G. Lyman Dwight Correspondence by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 ( https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc0/ ).