Letter From B. F. Burke to His Parents

Dear Father and Mother:

I have this opportunity of sending you a few lines by Tate as he is going home, it being the only way to get a letter to you now. I am happy to say that I am quite well at this time though have just got over the mumps. We are now in the edge of Tennessee near Chattanooga in a mountainous country. The Yankees can't [ell] us a dodge here, we slip out to the river every day or two and take a look at the old Yaks across the river and sometimes exchange a few shot with them across the river. The Yanks have been at Chattanooga on the opposite side of the river for some time but have left in the last few days. Our force here is very weak now we have not more than four or five thousand men here, mostly cavalry. We are under Gen. Stephens. Our regiment just returned off a scout on the other side of Tennessee. They were up as fare as Fayettevill & Winchester. They were chased by the Yankees pretty near all the time they were over there. They were over in [ ?? ] country about 3 weeks and never had but one little fight. About a hundred of our regiment and Kentuckians got drunk one day and ran up into the town Winchester and ran about a thousand Yankees out of town, took several prisoners, and killed two or three. That's all the engagement they had while out. I was not with them while over there. I remained with wagons at Courtland, Alabama.

We have an awful rough country to scout over. We have communication from most all parts of the Southern Confederacy this side of the Mississippi river here at Chattanooga. I have a great many things to write but have to cut my note short as the scout will start pretty.

I would like very much to here from you all as I have not heard from you in over four months. Col. Wharton is acting as Brig. General at present. He says he is going to apply for a transfer of our regiment over the Miss. river into Arkansas which I think will succeed and if that is the case we can get letters from each other.

Give my best love to all.

Your affectionate son,

B. F. Burke

Heard, Jessie Burke, ed. Terry Ranger Writes Home: Letters of Pvt. Benjamin F. Burke Written While in Terry's Texas Rangers 1861-1864. No Place, No Publisher, 1965. (Available in the University of Houston Library.)

 

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