Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use

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Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

Existence and Location of Copies

The collection has been digitized and is available online.

Preferred Citation

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], James R. Tice Letters, Ms2003-006, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Source of Acquisition

The James R. Tice Letters were donated to Special Collections in 2001.

Processing Information

The processing, arrangement, and description of the James R. Tice Letters was completed in April 2003.

Biographical Note

James R. Tice, farm worker and Confederate soldier during the American Civil War, was born in Floyd County, Virginia, the son of Laban and Frances Webb Tice. Although census records indicate that Tice was born around 1842, family members provide March 24, 1847 as his date of birth. He was the son of Laban and Frances Webb Tice. In 1860, Tice was living in Copper Hill (Floyd County), Virginia and working as a field hand. He enlisted in Company B of the 42nd Virginia Infantry at Jacksonville (now Floyd), Virginia on May 25, 1861, with the initial rank of first corporal. Through successive promotions, he eventually attained the rank of third sergeant and was present with the company until December 1862, when he was briefly detailed to Floyd County to find absentee soldiers. Tice was wounded in the back and captured at the battle of Gettysburg. He died there from his wounds on July 6, 1863.

Company B of the 42nd Virginia Infantry was mustered into Confederate service at Lynchburg on June 11, 1861. The regiment had been recruited from counties in south central Virginia and would participate in Jackson's Shenandoah Valley campaign of 1862. The regiment later fought at Gettysburg, The Wilderness, Spotsylvania and in Early's Valley Campaign of 1864, before being assigned duty in the defense of Petersburg. The regiment was present at the surrender to Union forces in Appomattox.

Source: Chapla, John D. 42nd Virginia Infantry . Lynchburg, Va.: H. E. Howard, 1983.

Scope and Content

The correspondence of James R. Tice, a Confederate soldier in Company B, 42nd Virginia Infantry during the American Civil War, consist of three letters written to his sister (Martha A. Tice Light) and brother-in-law (Jim Light) during the war. Written from camps near Romney (January 18, 1862), Port Republic (June 15, 1862) and Guinea Station (April 21, 1863), the letters focus primarily upon personal and family matters. Brief mentions are made of the battles of Cross Keys and Port Republic, as well as the death of Turner Ashby. Tice discusses in somewhat greater detail the withdrawal of Union forces from Romney and the many provisions captured by the Confederates there. He also briefly discusses the war-time prices of various goods.

Arrangement

The collection is arranged chronologically.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

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

Rights Statement for Archival Description

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