John Wesley Culpepper
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Notes of the Travels of the Echols Guards In the War of 1861 with the Old United States of America

By
John Wesley Culpepper

Forward

The pages that follow are from the early entries of the Civil War diary of John Wesley Culpepper of Lone Oak, Meriwether County, Georgia. He documented with youthful enthusiasm the daily occurrences in the lives of the "Echols Guards," officially known as the 8th Volunteer Regiment of Georgia, Confederate States of America.

His diary details his unit’s journey to the seat of conflict in the American Civil War. Beginning by boarding a train at Grantville, Georgia, the available portion of the diary stops just short of the war’s first pitched battle on July 21, 1861 at Manassas Junction, Virginia. The 8th Georgia found itself in a key role at this battle, later called "First Manassas" by the South and "First Bull Run" by the Union Army. The 8th Georgia served until the Confederate surrender at Appomattox Court House, Virginia in April 1865.

This annotated version of the diary entries has been edited for modern spelling conventions; however, it should be noted that during the nineteenth century, the ability to spell the same word in several different ways was an accepted sign of education.

Although some may find the racial tone of a few passages unpalatable and patronizing by today’s standards, it is important to preserve them in context for future generations.

This document is actually a transcription of an earlier transcription of the original diary by an unknown copyist at an unknown date. The original transcript is actually only a partial document in itself of a much longer original text. Every effort has been made to be accurate and true to the previous transcription, but certain formatting decisions have been made in an effort to improve the readability of the document. In most cases, grammar and syntax have been left as originally transcribed, except where clarification was deemed necessary. Editor’s comments and corrections are clearly identified by the use of words within {brackets}, e.g. {sic} and {colloq}, which are used to identify modern misspellings and errors in grammar, or the use of colloquial speech, and quotations {"} have also been added to indicate text that was recorded as having been spoken by another individual.

The original transcript was provided to the editor by Mr. John William Culpepper of Lindside, West Virginia, for the sole purpose of continued Culpepper family genealogical research on the part of the editor. This document is the result of the editor’s wish to clarify the activities of the diarist and to identify the persons and places he mentioned.

Permission to reprint this document in whole or in part for any purpose, commercial or otherwise, other than for genealogical research, or research surrounding the 8th Georgia regiment, must be obtained from the editor. Additions, corrections or comments are welcome, and should be submitted to the editor.

Capos Conley (Chip) Culpepper II, E-mail
21 Iviers Drive, Little Rock, Arkansas 72223


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Other Culpeppers referenced within John Wesley Culpepper's diary are listed below. Use the Search Engine to find references for them in the diary and elsewhere on Culpepper Connections!

  • George Washington Culpepper
  • Homer Lee Culpepper
  • James Culpepper
  • Noah Culpepper
  • Pitts Culpepper
  • Simeon Fletcher Culpepper

    Last Revised: 02 Jan 2015

Copyright 1997, Capos Conley Culpepper II. All Rights Reserved.

 

 
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