American Historical Ephemera & Photography

Approximately 135 letters spanning 1836-1865 (bulk 1857-1864), including more than 80 war-date letters, most with original covers. Letters primarily written by Dr. Thomas W. Gordon to his wife Minerva Scoville Gordon (1818-1869) while serving as a surgeon with the 97th OVI. In addition to description of the 97th OVI, Gordon writes regularly regarding the Ohio 59th in which his oldest son, Dr. Sidney Corwin Gordon (1840-1924) served as a surgeon. Archive contents reference the 1862 Defenses of Cincinnati, as well as  engagements at the Battles of Perryville, Second Battle of Murfreesboro, Chattanooga, Missionary Ridge, and the Battle of Resaca.

Thomas W. Gordon's early letters (approx. 45) date to 1849-1859. Gordon writes to his wife from medical society gatherings in Columbus and Louisville, and while in Cincinnati teaching and lecturing at Cincinnati College of Medicine. Most interesting, however, are his letters written from a legislative session of the 34th US Congress in Washington, D.C. in 1856 and 1857. The Journal of the Senate of the United States of America, records on Thursday July 17, 1856, that Gordon was there as a representative of the American Medical Association, "praying Congress to make an appropriation and to appoint a committee for the purpose of investigating the etiology and pathology of epidemic cholera; which was referred to the Committee on Patents and the Patent Office." Gordon's letters describe, in part, his work with the Military Committee chaired by Mexican-War hero General John A. Quitman, a visit with the US Surgeon General, and a White House visit. A regular visitor to the Capitol while lobbying in Washington, DC. for the appropriation, Gordon is a witness to tumultuous events unfolding in the years leading up to the Civil War. He also reveals impressions on meeting notables such as on 3 February 1857, "I became acquainted with General [Sam] Houston of Texas today. He is a most affable, real whole hearted appearing western man." 

Dr. Thomas Gordon enlisted on 8/19/1862 as a Surgeon and was commissioned into Field & Staff Ohio 97th Infantry. His first war-date letter is written from Cincinnati on 2 September 1862 as he makes requisitions for medical stores and preparations to join his regiment. Gordon's letters in the coming days convey urgency and anxiety as the city of Cincinnati prepares for possible invasion by  Confederate forces under General Kirby Smith, while detailing the military mobilization taking place in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky to protect the city. On September 4th he writes: "The Rebels are within 4 or 5 miles of Covington [KY] now (12 o'clock) we shall probably be into it before night...." September 7th: "We are still in anxiety about affairs across the River...[we] thought we heard three distinct reports of cannon across the River, we hurried to the gunboat (foot of Broadway) which was has two enormous Dahlgrens one weighing 15900 lbs. the other 15772 lbs each eleven inch bore. / The citizen soldiers ere crossing all evening, and a company is just passing the house now." September 11th: "I piled up my Hospital Stores as well as possible on yesterday while the men were digging entrenchments along our whole front....I had my stores moved down the hill apiece to save them from shells.... There has been skirmishing along the line where we encamped the other day, with but few casualties...." Later that month on 29 September 1862 while at Camp Louisville, he writes about the death of Union General William "Bull" Nelson: "General Nelson was killed here this morning by Genl. Jeff C. Davis. They were in the Galt House, and some altercation occurred in which Nelson called Davis a Damd cowardly Son of a b_tch and slapped him in the face, I expect he deserved all he got."

The 97th was soon engaged at the 8 October 1862 Battle of Perryville, and Gordon describes to his wife that day the sights and sounds of the battle: ""the cannons booming in my front and far to the right and left, our regiment has just marched down to the line, the shells are bursting  at a short distance, and volley's of musketry are waving along a line of three or four miles. The rebels hold a spring and we must have it, for we are famished for water. 12 o'clock at night have just been cutting off Rebel legs & cutting out balls &c only one of the balls from our men." As the regiment moves towards Tennessee Gordon writes regularly with details of camp life, including a hand-drawn map of camp at Rock Castle Creek, with news of Confederate raider General John Hunt Morgan, and of visits with his son Dr. Sidney Gordon who served with the Ohio 57th. Six days after the Battle of Stones River, Gordon writes from Hospital No. 18 in Nashville: "I suppose Sidney is safe as I have heard of some of his amputations since the fight commenced. we have fought an awful - a terrific battle - Six days in opperations[sic].... We have here 197 of the wounded in the late battle...." Moving deeper into Tennessee as part of the Tullahoma Campaign, the 97th participates in an attack on Chattanooga on 9 September. Writing from Chattanooga on 27 September 1863 Gordon writes a lengthy letter indicating casualties of men from Ohio regiments who fought at the September 18-20 Battle of Chickamauga, in which his son's regiment was engaged.  The preliminary volleys of the Battle of Missionary Ridge are described in a letter of 22 November, though few battle details are offered in later correspondence likely due to the fact that Gordon was wounded during the engagement. 

By January 1864 Gordon is contemplating resigning his position due to his increasingly poor health, though he remains with his regiment throughout the spring during the Atlanta Campaign. On 5 May 1864 he writes his wife from Catoosa Springs, Georgia, beginning a series of correspondence in which he describes the lead-up to the Battle of Resaca. On May 13-15th he writes a letter which includes description of the ongoing engagement. HDS indicates that Gordon resigned and was discharged on account of wounds on 5/31/1864. His last letter in the archive, dated 2 March 1865, is written to his son Sidney regarding opportunities for commissioning into the 189th OVI.

[With:] A group of three Thomas W. Gordon military appointments: appointment as Brigade Surgeon with the rank of Captain, 1st Brigade 5th Division Ohio Militia & Ohio Volunteer Militia, signed by Ohio Governor William Dennison, 27 April 1861;  appointment as Surgeon in 97th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, signed by Ohio Governor David Tod, 25 August 1862; commission as Military Surgeon for Brown County, with the rank of Major, signed by Ohio Governor John Brough, 8 June 1865.

[Also with:] Diploma granting membership to Thomas W. Gordon in the Ohio State Medical Society, 6 June 1849. -- Certificate of letters from the Society of Medicine and Science of the Cincinnati College of Medicine and Surgery, 1858. -- Drafts of two addresses, one delivered to the State Medical Society of Ohio regarding charges against a professor Wood, and another a "Lecture on Geology Delivered before Brown County Teachers Institute." 

Thomas Winslow Gordon was born at Warren, Trumbull County, Ohio, in 1819. He graduated from Cleveland Medical College in 1846, and embarked upon an impressive medical career that included both practicing medicine and surgery, and a professorship at the Cincinnati College of Medicine and Surgery. Gordon was a man of wide interests and seemingly great intellect. The Biographical Encyclopedia of Ohio (1876) records this about Gordon:  "He has delivered several popular lectures, which have been highly extolled.... He has written many articles on literary and scientific subjects, which have been published in various papers and magazines. Over various nom de plumes (chiefly that of Orion), he has published many poems. He was for several years the President of a literary club formed by writers of Brown and Clermont counties, bearing the name 'Poetical Union.' He was a member of the first meteorological society formed in the West--if not the first in the United States--and was made its temporary chairman. He was the first President of the Brown County Academy of Medicine. He has contributed many articles of acknowledged ability to prominent medical journals. His essays, read before the Ohio State Medical Society, on 'Cholera,' 'Scarlatina,' etc., deserve special mention as reports of very careful investigation and value. In 1874 he was a candidate for Congress on the Republican ticket in the district composed of the counties of Ross, Pike, Highland, Adams and Brown...."