The Diary was brought into the Archives in the 1990s by Andrew Keith Houk, Jr., a gift from his father, Andrew Keith Houk, Sr. The latter was an alumnus of the College, class of 1937, and is now deceased. In a cover letter for the diary, Keith Houk, Jr., writes that the diary was written by Thomas Asbury Gossett, whose daughter Pearl married Andrew K. Houk.
It also notes that Thomas had been a member of Co. I – 7th Regiment, Indiana Volunteers, during the Civil War. Both families lived in Hendricks County, Indiana and Thomas writes often of his longing for his Indiana home. Thomas Gossett also notes in the diary that he is writing twenty years after the end of the War, that is in July 1885.
Research on other Andersonville diaries reveals that they were often written after the experience and that there was a tendency for authors to exaggerate the horrors they experienced so the diaries would sell better. They also tended not to describe the positive acts of southerners towards Federal troops. The Gossett diary seems to be fairly balanced between detailed accounts of the extreme hardships he endured and the kindnesses of the "enemy," when they occurred. It is rich in descriptions of daily life in several Confederated prisons where Gossett was held, as well as the various means of transportation used to convey troops, the varied landscapes he inhabited or passed through, and the variety of men he met or observed (such as Lee).
The diary is written in pen on red-lined notebook type paper which has yellowed, but otherwise is in very good, legible condition. Unfortunately, a later hand numbered the pages (104 in all, most written back and front) and somehow managed to scramble the content over the last fifteen or so pages. An effort has been made to rearrange those last pages, but more work needs to be done with the order of the text.
Johanna Herring
September 2005
Sections from
ANDERSONVILLE,
OR FIFTEEN MONTHS IN REBEL PRISONS
Written by
Thomas Asbury Gossett, July 1885
It is well enough that Providence has arranged that we cannot see our future. Should we see what is in store for us we would worry our lives out. Especially would this be the case with some natures. I am of such a temperament that I am certain that it would be the case with me. In childhood could I have seen my future life, no one would have killed me, but not knowing this & living in hopes for something better I have been enabled to pull through to the present time. My life so far has been spent in an age of important events & it has been an eventful one. This is the case with any man who served three years & over in one of the greatest wars of modern times. Added to this my experience in Southern prisons & my life as a teacher I can truly say my life has been an eventful one & God has continually directed me in all I have done. To him will I ever ascribe the praise for my protection in battle & while in prison.
The period in which I have lived has witnessed some of the most important inventions & some of the most important social events of modern times. Slavery, that giant wrong has been entirely eliminated from our racial system. And our banner now waves over a free people from the Atlantic to the Pacific. No age in the world’s history has produced such a great amount of invention as the present and no people have done more than the American people have done. In all things they have fought to win & have won. May they continue to advance in all that is right, is the wish of every true citizen, be he ever so humble. It was my privilege to spend my happy boyhood days near that staid Quaker village Plainfield, Ind. That community was noted for its intelligence, love of good morals & especially for its hatred of slavery. No citizens were more patriotic than my father’s neighbors in Washington tp. Children growing up in such an air of patriotism & good morals were bound to imbibe such ideas from their seniors. These people so taught patriotism, that when the time came in which the old flag needed to be defended, the boys of Plainfield & vicinity enlisted almost to a man.
Some of her soldiers were in almost every engagement from Bull Run to Appomattox. In political times this vicinity was noted for the monster(?) meetings which they could get up for the party opposing the extension of slavery. This question was agitated at almost every election for years. Lincoln was finally elected on a platform opposed to the extension of slavery. The slogan of war was sounded by the South. Ft. Sumter was fired upon. Lincoln called for 75,000. Nobly did the North respond. In less than three days the call was filled. Numbers of young men were too late to enlist. It was thought by them that the war would be closed ere they had a chance to take part in the affray. How short sighted we all were! Who at that time had peered into the future & descried the terrible carnage to be enacted in the next four years. Who among the wisest had foreseen a Bull Run, a Fredericksburg, an Antietam, a Gettysburg or an Appomattox? Who could foretell the terrible battles & scenes that would be enacted in the West from Donaldson to Sherman’s March to the sea? The boast of the South was that "one Southerner could whip three Yankees" & to the North "it was to be but a breakfast spell." How fearfully each side was mistaken, the desperate fighting & terrible scenes enacted show us.
But the war went on, the Unionist(sic) gain a few unimportant victories, the time of the three months volunteers is nearly up. Then was a demand by the people of the North that the army should move on Beauregard’s position about Bull Run & close the war. The attempt was made, a magnificent army was moved against this Rebel stronghold. The Union army was defeated. The North aroused to the fact that the contemplated breakfast spell would extend beyond noon. Mr. Lincoln calls for 300,000 troops for three years. We now have a chance to go. We enlist with some of our schoolmates & old comrades. But little did we anticipate then the length & cost of the war. Although we enlisted for three years we little dreamed of staying one year.
We recollect that after enlisting. our captain has angered us telling us that we would be back by next spring to plant corn, but three springs came ere that sanguinary conflict ended. But events were passing swiftly. We had done much hard marching, had fought the battle of Winchester, the beautiful days of June 1862 had rolled round. We found ourselves at Port Republic Va. The army was compelled to retreat [and] in retreating I was run over by a cavalryman & so much hurt that I was unable to get away. I soon found myself in the hands of the rebels & being carried in an ambulance to Jackson’s headquarters. Here I had a chance to see that celebrated general. I shall never forget his calm dignified look, his courtesy to me & kindness to his men. I was from here taken to the Central Va. R. R. & thence to Lynchburg Va. Here we were placed in the fair grounds, were furnished shelter & fair food though not enough. One day I found myself itching from some cause when on the removal of my clothes I found myself covered with body lice, these were the first I had ever seen. It then became a daily business with us to catch these pests.
The day after the battle in which I was taken prisoner brought about the second day’s fight at Port Republic; in this our troops under Shields were terribly defeated, a great number being killed & many wounded, a great many of the latter being taken prisoners. Among this no., Thos. J. Cofer who had seen one years service in the 12th Indiana. He had been an old schoolmate at Danville & when his one year was up, and he had not seen a rebel, he concluded, before returning home, to visit the 7th to see the boys & also to see if he could not have the privilege of seeing a fight. In this latter he was accommodated. He took a gun & went in to the midst of the affray, but was desperately wounded & taken prisoner. After recovering enough to travel he was sent to Lynchburg & placed in a tent with me. I waited on him to the best of my ability & finally saw him well. In this battle of Port Republic one of the Ohio regiments lost its flag & while marching from the battle field & to the R. R. on one night they placed the captured men in an old barn & threw the flag on the mow. Harry Fisk, one of the boys of the 7th, tore the flag off the staff, wound it around his body & thus carried it to Lynchburg. The rebels made diligent search but were unable to find it. Harry made his escape from Lynchburg & carried the flag back to its regiment. For his gallant conduct in this, he was promoted to a Lieutenancy. Our stay in Lynchburg was of short duration, nearly two months.
While here, we were visited by Gov. Letcher & other dignitaries. We were now removed to Belle Island, a small island in the James & just above Richmond. Our fare and treatment were not near so good as they had been at Lynchburg. Also the health here was poor, a great many having the chronic diarrhea. It was here that Cofer & I conceived a plan for escape. There was a strong guard around the camp, at one point the guard line ran near a fence with room enough between them to make a good pass way. This was used by the rebels in passing from one port of the island to another. Now we thought if we could only get a rebel uniform we could slip out between the guards & pass ourselves off for rebels.
The first thing to be done was to secure the uniform. This we did by trading with rebels, piece at a time until we had our outfit, or at least enough to disguise us. We were now ready to make the attempt, the evening is set, but just before the time for carrying it into execution, they came & took me out. Here was the first time I ever recollect of seeing the notorious Capt. Werz. He seemed to be bossing our removal from Belle Island. Many poor boys suffered terrible here from chronic diarrhea, as the sink was placed at such a great distance from our quarters. It would take a large history to record the events that have taken place on that small island.
But we are now leaving it never to be confined there again. We pass over the same bridge on which we enter the island. We pass through Manchester and then cross to Richmond. Here we are marched along Canal St. & by the celebrated Liffy, but we pay but slight attention to the city as we are on the road to freedom & at that time we little dreamed of another visit to Richmond under such circumstances. While on Belle Island we had a chance to see Col. Michael Corcoran who had been captured at the first Bull Run. But we digress, we are now marched S.E. of Richmond, where we are paroled at a point a little below Ft. Darling. We go aboard an U.S. transport & are off down the James. It is near night & we sit on the hurricane deck & view the grand scenery.