As the donator of these letters to The Unofficial Visitor's Guide to Gettysburg, I publicly would like to thank Ralph Tartaglia. Without his support, encouragement, and effort in preparing these Web pages, my grandmother's legacy would not now be available for all to share.

The text of these Union letters was given me by my dad, George Boyer Kadel, in 1984, after he had made a project of translating and typing the hand written originals. He obtained the originals from his mother, a daughter of John N. Boyer. It is hard enough, interpreting unfamiliar handwriting; however, dad was additionally burdened by being only a "two finger" typist, and having a personal obsession for proper linguistics and spelling. Although I wasn't there, I'm sure he agonized out loud as he faithfully recorded the grammar.

1) Samuel T. Cassatt served in the Army of the Potomac and wrote regularly to his friend John N. Boyer who was, at that time, home on his farm near Gettysburg. These letters are all very interesting as they describe a soldier's equipment, regimen, weather, cost of food, and many other things. Notable is the reported cost of a Colonel's (ceremonial) sword in letter-3, a solicited opinion on Gen. McClellan matching historical accounts in letter-7, and a vivid description of how deserters received punishment in letter-9. Also, in a number of letters, there is the "saga of Hen Werts", a local Gettysburg youth who initially fought for the South but after the Battle of Gettysburg changed sides. Click Here for The Samuel T. Cassatt Letters

2) John Nickolaus Boyer served in the Army of the Potomac as a 1st Lieutenant for only a period of six months. He was about 32 yrs old when he enlisted with a company of local (Adam's county, PA) boys. Prior to this, John lived on his farm with his wife Anna, and two children, little Anna, 6 and Willie (William). Probably due to his age, and maturity John was elected 1st Lieutenant. He was shot through the chest Sep. 27, 1864, during the seige of Petersburg, only ten days after enlisting. Although he recovered sufficiently to return to his company during the winter months, John continues to be incapacitated by the effects of his wound (collapsed lung). Being an honorable man and extremely patriotic, he feels it his "duty" to remain with his company. Among the many things to note are: the speed of troop ships in letter-2, the first sign of peace in letter-9, warning concerning traitors at his home in letter-13, an uncomplimentary photo remark in letter-14, an apology to his wife in letter-15, and the amount of John's pension in the letter from the Department of the Interior.
Click Here for The John Nickolaus Boyer Letters