The Thirty-sixth Regiment Infantry, N.Y.S.V., or "Washington Volunteers," was organized at Union Hall, corner Sixteenth Street and Eighth Avenue, New York City. The unit was mustered in on June 17, 1861 and Mustered out, July 15, 1863. J. Townsend Daniel was Captain of Company D, accepted May 13^th 1861 and mustered in on June 17^th, 1861.

The first letter is undated but clearly from May or June 1861 and is headed "Head Quarters New York, British Volunteers," indeed many of this unit's officers had seen considerable service in the British Army, including Daniel.

"My dearest Mamma,

I should have written to you before now but I have been so busy organizing my Co. in the N.Y.S.V. that I have not had time the Regt. is not yet fully organized but we are accepted by Government & expect to be ordered to Washington before very long, it takes some time to arm & cloth a Regt. ... for besides being a Cap^tn. of a Company I am a member of the Committee for forming the Regt. wh is now nearly complete. I do not think we shall be in any engagement for some time yet - ...

The English Govt. tells the British subjects in America to have nothing to do with the war that if we do we forfeit the protection of the English Govt. we don't want the protection of two Govts at once we have the protection of the American Govt. ..."

The regiment left New York City and moved to Camp Reed, on Riker's Island, where its final muster was held on July 4^th, 1861. The regiment left Camp Reed for Washington on July 12^th, via Amboy, Philadelphia and Baltimore, and arrived at its destination of the 14^th. On the 21^st it encamped on Meridian Hill and moved from there (August 6^th) to Brightwood, five miles north of Washington on the Rockville road. It was immediately employed in the construction of fortifications.

July 22, 1861 Camp Innes, Meridian Hill, Near Washington

"My dear brother Robt.,

"... There has just been a terrific battle fought about fifteen miles distant from here, with terrible loss on our side, & I'm afraid it has gone very much against us - I could hear the distant and hollow roll of the heavy cannon altho' 15 miles distant, for the day was very still, indeed there was not a breath of air, & just before rainy weather... we had to make the attack, & also to contend against many "masked batteries," which are terrible things; consequently we were driven back and a fearful panic struck our whole army. What a terrible sight it must have been ... The total loss on both sides is estimated at about twelve thousand, one or two of our Regts were entirely cut up. This account is only one day after the fight & is as complete as I can give it, No doubt it is all true as I heard the rolling of cannons all day & the wounded are being sent to Washington in great quantities.

Our Regt. is ordered to be in readiness to march to battle in a minutes notice & I expect by tomorrow or the day after, we shall be digging trenches, or fighting..."

August 26, 1861 Seat of War Camp Brightwood Washington, D.C.

"My dear Brother Bob,

"... since my last letter to you I am made the senior Cap^tn. In the Regiment by the resignation of the 1^st Capt. I think I mentioned in my last that seniority goes by date of commission, probably next time you hear from me, I shall be made Major as the Lieutenant Colonelcy is vacant now by resignation... there is only one difficulty about it and that is the American officers in this regt. are trying to get one of their men in but it is my right, and I will have it...

The strength of the Regiment is immediately going to be made up to 1041, it is now only 740, recruiting offices are now going to be opened in New York. Recruiting still goes on at a very great pace, indeed there is now nothing else for men to do - Trade of all kinds is at a stand-still. The North is becoming very bitter against England, and I'm almost afraid in a short time, we Americans may get into trouble with her - The American character is very impulsive, & they very easily take offense, at the same time they are very kind. Should England go to war with the North or at least take part with the south, she will be doing wrong, & I wouldn't resign my commission on that account, for I'm fighting on the right side..."

March 2, 1862 Camp Brightwood, Washington, D.C.

"My dear Bob,

"... We are a division held in reserve, numbering about 14,000 & should right or left wings, or the centre of the Grand Army be engaged, we should immediately receive marching orders... Never was a volunteer Army in such a perfect state of discipline as the Union Army is now in... There will most assuredly be a general engagement of the Grand Army before very long, as Govt. has taken possession of the telegraph wires for their own use & stopt the newspapers from reporting any movements of the Army, indeed everything tends to shew that very soon it must take place, but a large Army moves slowly, & that is what the Grand Army is doing now, but it is moving surely..."

March 10, 1862 Camp Brightwood, Washington, D.C.

"Dearest Papa and Mama,

"... I write in haste, we have rec^d. orders in the night & are off at 8 o'clock - We suppose to Prospect hill, Virginia Genl. Banks' Div. about 20 miles from here we march it. You may not hear from me for some little time, but take "no news" for "good news" ..."

May 16, 1862 Head Qrs. 36^th Regt. NYSV "In the Field" Almost at Richmond, Va.

"My dear Bob,

"... Now old boy it must be short & to the point as I can't tell the moment we are going to fight. We have chased the rebels from Yorktown to here (about twelve miles from Richmond) they appear to be going to make a stand at this place. ... I just came in time to see the close of the battle of Williamsburgh... The sight & smell was awful, together with the groaning all night of the wounded..."

Daniel is wounded at the Battle of Seven Pines, also known as the Battle of Fair Oaks (May 31, June 1, 1862) and when next he writes it is from the Military Hospital at Annapolis, Maryland. In a letter dated August 1, 1862 Daniel provides an engaging four page account of his regiment's part in this battle, his wound and its treatment. While recovering Governor Bradford of Maryland offers him his residence in Annapolis in which to recuperate in some comfort.

June 20, 1862 U.S. Mil. Hospital Annapolis, Md.

"My dearest Mama,

I am now considered out of danger & progressing very favourably The surgeons say I shall not be any worse in any way eventually for my wound, but I shall have to hop about on crutches for a couple of months or so - At first there were doubts as to whether or not I shd lose my leg & before the ball was extracted with regard to my life, but now thank God, all fears of this kind are at an end - ... I have ensured myself promotion & what is more, I have been promised an office for life in the military service of the U. S. - I got great credit for my conduct on the battlefield - Govr. Bradford of Maryland has offered me a Lieut. Colonelcy in one of the Maryland Regts. Should not Gov. Morgan of N.Y. reward me promptly...

P.S. I have kept up my spirits all the time - The physicians seem to think the whole affair miraculous... the ball entered below the left knee & passed all along the course of the thigh into the intestines & altho' it passed thro' the joint of the knee did not break it - I have got the ball - It is a very large one - dreadful - "

August 2, 1862 Annapolis, Maryland

"... Governor Bradford and his family have gone to their own residence near Baltimore for six weeks & have left me in charge of his (the Govt.) house... I am quite made a Hero of here by every one, but I am not the Hero of ‘Fair Oaks" by a very long chalk. There are many of higher rank than myself who bleed at that battle. -

I was nearly deafened by our own guns that were playing behind me, & every time a shot was fired, it shook us terribly on the ground. I never once felt the least afraid during the battle, I never enjoyed anything more in my life than I did the grand & sublime din of arms ... I was joking all the time up to the minute I was wounded. I did not even feel that "first shudder" that is so often talked about, but I felt it very much several nights before the battle - being close in front & hourly expecting a battle wears & tears the body & soul of the men. It is dreadfully harassing, as you don't know whether you will fall into the hands of the enemy & be cruely treated &c, or whether left wounded on the field, or what may become of you, but with me when the fight begins this is all over...Govr. Morgan is going to promote me - I was recommended for it by the General Commanding the Brigade (Chas. Devins) he was wounded at Fair Oaks just after I was ..."

November 14, 1862 Hd. Quarters Genl. Couch's Corps. Nr. Warrenton, Va.

"My dear brother Bob,

I dare say you will be surprised that I have not written to some of you before now, but I have not had time. Genl. Couch now commands Sumner's old Corps D'Armee and I have been up to the present time detailed as his Acting Asst. Adjt. Genl. And been overwhelmed with business; it is as I dare say you know a most important office, & he gave it to me until I received something better than my old position of Capt. in the 36^th Reg. NY. I am to receive an appt. in one of the new Regts of New York Volunteers..."

In April of 1863 the 36^th New York took part in the Chancellorsville campaign.

April 23, 1863 Hd. Qrs 36^th Regt. N. Y. Infantry, Rappahannock River, Fredbg., Va.

"... We are expecting to cross the Rappahannock in a day or two, and I can tell you there will be a glorious old fight, the rebels have been planting guns where they expect us to cross and the river is lined with rifle pits on the other side. We shall have hard work to shell them out of them before crossing and of course they will direct their guns on our pontoon bridges to try to prevent us going over ... the President of the U.S. has conferred upon me a Brevet Majority to date from the 31^st of May 1862 for gallant and meritorious conduct at the Battle of "Fair Oaks" I am much more proud of this than of my full majority..."

November 24, 1863 Hd. Quarters 10^th Md Infantry, Martinsburg, Va.

"...Jack & his master are not one in this country, there is as much Aristocracy here as in England - the best families will enquire with whom you visit, and who are your Antecedants & relatives before they ... make you their friend..."

In 1864 Daniel is writing from western Virginia now detached to Cole's Maryland Cavalry, part of Sigel's Corps in the Shenandoah Valley.

July 5, 1864 Head Quarters, Detachment of Cole's Maryland Cavalry, in the Field, near Charleston, Kanawha Valley, Va.

"My Dearest Brother Charles,

... After Maj. Genl. Hunter took command of the Dept. of Western Va., he immediately cut off all communication, & we lived, (or rather nearly starved) on the country thro' which we passed. In this expedition, there was no means of bringing provisions to us, as the base of supplies being so far distant, they would have been all captured in coming up to us, unless we had immensely weakened our forces by strongly guarding our wagon train, wh. would not pay.

After our reverse at New Market under Sigel, our expedition has been a very successful one. We won a very brilliant battle at Piedmont & next day pushed on to Staunton, where Crooks & Averell joined our forces and we pushed on, via Lexington & Buchanan, to about one mile off Lynchburg, where we fought a desperate battle & had the best of it, but in the Evening we heard trains whistling, bands playing, & bells ringing & could see shoals of infantry pouring into town, so next morning the Enemy found we had retreated 25 miles & continued to do so till we reached here. In a day or two we shall go to Parkersburg by water, & from there to Martinsburg by rail. The reason why we retreated was, we were out of ammunition, & could not collect supplies in the face of an Enemy superior in numbers to our own forces.

We destroyed railroads & Govt. buildings without end - value of destruction many millions of dollars. We have crossed, with our whole wagon train, five ridges of the Alleghany & Blue Ridge mountains. Such an Expedition was never before accomplished, unless it was Napoleon crossing the Alps. - We were in the saddle 24 days & 14 nights, never resting more than from 8 to 12 hours & our horses living on grass! My horses are still living & carried me thro'. - We lost upwards of 1000 horses from exhaustion... For ten days we ate literally nothing... When we met our provisions about 40 miles from here, nearly all of us were made ill, our stomachs were so weak...

Since I wrote home, I took prominent parts in the battles of Newmarket, Piedmont, & Lynchburg, besides taking the advance of the Army several times on the march, skirmishing all the way. I charged thro' the towns of Woodstock & Harrisonburg - Shenandoah Valley. At the latter place I went myself to the extreme advance Guard & with 12 men abreast charged 75 rebels out of the town.  So recklessly did we charge & so fiercely that they supposed Hunter's main body was immediately upon them. ...

Another time, I captured 12 wagons & 40 prisoners & burned a Quartermaster's Depot & was complimented in Special Orders by Genl. Hunter. I am told the papers have several times honorably mentioned me, but I haven't seen one for six weeks. Genl. Hunter said, "When Major Daniel is in the advance a few rebels won't stop the army."

September 4, 1864 Head Quarters Pleasant Valley, Md.

"My Dearest Papa,

" ... I took a prominent part in the battle of New Market. I commanded the skirmish line at the opening - reported Breckinridge advancing in three lines of battle and was detailed to take command of the Rear Guard and cover the retreat, which I did, and saw the army safe over the bridge, and crossed it myself the last man, after it was in fire and the pioneers had commenced cutting it. I was engaged more or less all day and had many narrow escapes, and the last shell fired burst one foot behind my head whch. deafened me for three days - had it burst a yard before instead of behind, I shd. have been "blown to pieces."...

Since I have been in the Cavalry, we have several times used the saber & have often charged thru the enemy, fighting "hand to hand" - I have seen men knock one another on the head with a revolver -

The cavalry service is much more dashing & brilliant than the infantry, & I enjoy a brisk charge very much...

I was detailed to capture a wagon train of "Early's" on his leaving Maryland, whch. I did effectually, capturing & burning 75 wagons..."

Daniel finishes the war with the Maryland Cavalry in West Virginia, where the unit was sent to guard the line of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. After the war Daniel continues in the military and was appointed second lieutenant in the 7^th Cavalry. But in 1868 was appointed collector of Revenue for the First District of Arkansas. The last letter in the collection is datelined Devall's Bluff, Arkansas, July 22^nd, 1868.

July 11, 1867 Washington, D.C.

"My Dearest Papa,

Since I last wrote to you from Little Rock, Ark. I have accepted an appt. as Second Lieut. in the 7^th Cavalry Army of the United States.

The appointment was made by the President of the U. S. on Oct. 18^th of last year, with rank from July 18^th, 1866, and tho' I only accepted in June (21^st), the appointment had been specially kept open for me by order of General Grant.

I came to Washington to appear before the Cavalry Examining Board and passed it "like a message on a telegraph wire"- tho' I had five stiff hours at it - ... Gen. A. J. Smith of Western fame is my colonel, and Custer is my Lieut. Col. the Regt. is one of the best in the U. S. Service (there are only ten Regts.) and is now on the Plains - Fort Riley, Kansas, is the H^d Q^rs of the Regt. - it is occupied fighting the Indians. - I shd'nt wonder if we shall soon have a war with Mexico on acc. Of the barbarous act of the people at Juarez in hanging Maximillian &c. We could then sweep the Indians into Mexico, and take care of the Mexicans - would'nt that be nice? ..."