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Size | 0.5 feet of linear shelf space (approximately 300 items) |
Abstract | The Hilliard family owned land and property in Warren County, N.C., as of the 1850's and apparently farmed tobacco. The Hilliard Family Papers consist chiefly of family letters written during the 1860s to Eugenia Hilliard by her husband, Thomas D. Hilliard; his brother, John Hilliard; and several female cousins. Letters document family and neighborhood news, especially health, social visits, and marriages, and the Hilliard brothers' war time experiences, especially camp life, morale, and the battle of Spotsylvania Court House. Other materials include receipts and genealogical research. |
Creator | Hilliard family (Warren County, N.C.) |
Curatorial Unit | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection. |
Language | English |
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The Hilliard family owned land and property in Warren County, N.C., as of the 1850's and apparently farmed tobacco. Thomas D. Hilliard was married to Eugenia Hilliard and with her had a son, Henry Hilliard. Thomas D. Hilliard taught school at some point before the Civil War. He and his brother John Hilliard enlisted in 1862 as privates into Company C, 12th North Carolina Infantry. John Hilliard survived the war and was part of the surrender on 9 April 1865 at Appomattox Court House, Va. Thomas D. Hilliard was injured in 1862 and sent home. He worked for the quartermaster at the government stables in Clarksville, Va., but was conscripted in 1864 back into Company C, 12th North Carolina Infantry. He was killed a few months later in the battle at Spotsylvania Court House, Va.
Back to TopThe Hilliard Family Papers consist chiefly of family letters written during the 1860s to Eugenia Hilliard by her husband, Thomas D. Hilliard; his brother, John Hilliard; and several of her female cousins. Letters sought news of the well-being of Eugenia and Thomas D. Hilliard's young son, Henry Hilliard, and of the neighborhood, especially social visits and marriages. There are occasional references to family members teaching or attending school and to freedmen. The Hilliard brothers, privates in Company C, 12th North Carolina Infantry, wrote about their experiences in Confederate war camps in Richmond, Va., Halifax, Va., and Taylorsville, Va. Thomas D. Hilliard's letters written in 1862 when he enlisted the first time describe soldiers' shanties, personal supplies, and morale. His letters after he was sent to work for the quartermaster at the government stables in Clarksville, Va., express his internal conflict over continued separation from family due to his position, which he stayed on at to minimize the risk of being drafted again. When conscription law forced him to reenlist in 1864, he wrote about camp life; an address by Governor Zebulon Vance to the North Carolina troops on ending the war and desertion; his thoughts on war, death, and afterlife; and the battle of Spotsylvania. John Hilliard's letters are few and all are written from camp. Of particular note are a February 1863 letter about orders to shoot a substitute in the regiment and a June 1864 letter describing the circumstances of Thomas D. Hilliard's death in battle at Spotsylvania. Other materials include receipts documenting purchase of household and farm goods, tax payments, tobacco sales, and slave ownership; genealogical correspondence; a handwritten copy of Thomas Hilliard Jr.'s 1829 will; and photocopies of a family Revolutionary pension claim, Confederate military service record, and Warren County, N.C., teacher's certificate.
Back to TopArrangement: chronological.
The Hilliard Family Papers consist chiefly of family letters written during the 1860s to Eugenia Hilliard by her husband, Thomas D. Hilliard; his brother, John Hilliard; and several of her female cousins. Letters sought news of the well-being of Eugenia and Thomas D. Hilliard's young son, Henry Hilliard, and of the neighborhood, especially social visits and marriages. There are occasional references to family members teaching or attending school and to freedmen. The Hilliard brothers, privates in Company C, 12th North Carolina Infantry, wrote about their experiences in Confederate war camps in Richmond, Va., Halifax, Va., and Taylorsville, Va. Thomas D. Hilliard's letters written in 1862 when he enlisted the first time describe soldiers' shanties, personal supplies, and morale. His letters after he was sent to work for the quartermaster at the government stables in Clarksville, Va., express his internal conflict over continued separation from family due to his position, which he stayed on at to minimize the risk of being drafted again. When conscription law forced him to reenlist in 1864, he wrote about camp life; an address by Governor Zebulon Vance to the North Carolina troops on ending the war and desertion; his thoughts on war, death, and afterlife; and the battle of Spotsylvania. John Hilliard's letters are few and all are written from camp. Of particular note are a February 1863 letter about orders to shoot a substitute in the regiment and a June 1864 letter describing the circumstances of Thomas D. Hilliard's death in battle at Spotsylvania. Other materials include receipts documenting purchase of household and farm goods, tax payments, tobacco sales, and slave ownership; genealogical correspondence; a handwritten copy of Thomas Hilliard Jr.'s 1829 will; and photocopies of a family Revolutionary pension claim, Confederate military service record, and Warren County, N.C., teacher's certificate.
Folder 1 |
1836-1859Chiefly receipts for household and farm goods, tobacco sales; payments for corn, room and board; letter of recommendation; An Appeal to the Young by Reverend James M'Gready, published by the Evangelical Tract Society. |
Folder 2 |
1860-1861Chiefly receipts for household goods, livestock, tobacco sales; also includes a teaching contract. |
Folder 3 |
1862Letters home from Thomas D. Hilliard in camp near Taylorsville, Va.; receipts and communications that indicate that Thomas D. Hilliard later worked for the quartermaster at government stables in Clarksville, Va.; treatment for jaundice. |
Folder 4 |
Circa 1862-1864Letters home from Thomas D. Hilliard, describing soldier's shanties, morale, and personal supplies, including rifles. |
Folder 5 |
1863Letters from John Hilliard to family about his illnesses, orders to shoot a substitute in the regiment; letters from Thomas D. Hilliard revealing his indecision over leaving his position at the government stables in Clarksville, Va., to return home, concerns over whether or not he would be drafted if Congress passed the conscription resolution being considered; receipts, some indicating ownership of slaves. |
Folder 6 |
1864Letters from Thomas D. Hilliard describe the draft; camp life; an address by Governor Zebulon Vance to the North Carolina troops about the fallacy of trying to make peace with the Yankees by separate state conventions and desertion; having a daguerreotype taken and sent home; health; thoughts on war, death and afterlife; troop movements; skirmishing; and the battle of Spotsylvania. Letters home from John Hilliard report the circumstances of Thomas D. Hilliard's death in battle. |
Folder 7 |
1867Family letters, chiefly from female cousins, express concern for Henry Hilliard, inquiring about or reporting neighborhood news, including hiring of freedmen and teaching school. |
Folder 8 |
1868Family letters, chiefly from female cousins, reconciling to Henry Hilliard's affliction; inquiring about or reporting neighborhood news, especially marriages. |
Folder 9 |
1869Family letters, chiefly from female cousins, inquiring about or reporting neighborhood news. |
Folder 10 |
1860s: undatedLetters and parital letters written by female cousins, inquiring about or reporting neighborhood news, including schooling. There are some poems. |
Folder 11 |
1886Deed of land. |
Folder 12 |
1925-1929Genealogical correspondence. |
Folder 13 |
Envelopes |
Folder 14 |
PhotocopiesRevolutionary pension claim, Confederate military service record, and Warren County, N.C., teacher's certificate. Also includes a handwritten copy of Thomas Hilliard Jr.'s 1829 will. |