Camden Evans letters

Collection Description

Camden Evans (1838?-1864) enlisted in the 45th Alabama  Volunteers, Company C, Confederate army 1862 and served during the Civil War. He married Susan Emma Laney in 1861, daughter of Robert P. Laney of Russell County (Ala.), and they had a son Bobbie and a daughter Daisy. Evans died of a wound received on July 20, 1864 near Atlanta (Ga.)

The collection consists of letters Camden Evans wrote to his wife and her father in Columbus (Ga.) from 1862-1864. He wrote from numerous camps in towns including Tupelo (Miss.), Murfreesboro (Tenn.), and Ringgold and Dalton (Ga.). In his letters he complained about how badly privates were treated and the lack of food and clothing. He asked Mr. Laney to bring him a boy to wash his clothes and forage for food, and he constantly tried to arrange for a furlough or a substitute. He gave his opinions of Generals Grant, Johnson, Bragg and Hardee. By May 22, 1864 he was near Atlanta and described having no clean clothes for three weeks, and being on picket duty for 24 hours without relief. By July 12, 1864 he had learned of his son Bobbie's death. His last letter is dated July 17, 1864. There is one letter from Emma to her husband and several letters from her after the war to her mother. In these she mentioned her second husband Steve Smith, her daughter Daisy, and a move to Birmingham (Ala.)

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Camden Evans letters, ms3756, Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Library, The University of Georgia Libraries.

Portions of this collection have been digitized and are available online as part of America's Turning Point: Documenting the Civil War Experience in Georgia.

Related Materials and Subjects

Confederate States of America. Army. Alabama Volunteer Infantry Regiment, 45th.

Soldiers -- Alabama .