157 years ago, a Hoosier from Monroe County wrote about fighting for the Union in the Civil War in a diary he kept almost daily. Peter Thomas Matthews was 20 years old when he enlisted in the army and served as a drummer in the 19th Indiana Regimental Band.
Follow along as we publish his diary entries in real-time on the day they were written.
Read the first entry here. Learn more about Matthews and read all former and future entries here.
Editor's note: We have left Matthews' words as he recorded them, which means spelling and punctuation may not conform to modern standards.
December 29, 1861
The Regt. Goes out on Picket this morning Them were at another sham Battle yesterday at Baleys X Roads we got excused from this trip and left as Part of Camp Guard in name but we don’t ave enething to do this as Been a very Beautiful Day
Check back for the next entry on December 30.
Diary entries provided by the Monroe County History Center.
