37 letters.
This archive consists mainly of war-date letters to and from Mrs. Annie C. Thomas, wife of Dr. John Hanson Thomas (1813-1881), of the famous Thomas family of Maryland. Bank president and pro-Confederate Maryland state legislator, Dr. Thomas and ten like-minded comrades were arrested in a raid by Union forces to prevent them from voting for Maryland’s secession. Dr. Thomas and the others were held POW for six months in various Union forts, before agreeing to parole conditions and being freed.
Mrs. Thomas’ efforts on behalf of her husband soon expanded to include aid to others held by the Union as prisoners of war. She became the “go-to” person for many who were desperate for news of loved ones captured on the battlefield, and in one case, was written to by General James Barnes, asking her help in finding a Rebel POW on behalf of a family in Norfolk, VA.
The Thomases were notable members of Baltimore society, as Dr. Thomas was a long-time bank president, and had served on the city council, as well as representing the city in the State House. Mrs. Thomas used her extensive social contacts to make requests on behalf of Confederate POWs, even writing to Secretary of War Stanton’s office. What is remarkable in these letters is the politeness and courtesy of all Union officers and officials she corresponded with. Many went out of their way to help her, even as two of her three surviving sons were serving on the staffs of Confederate generals (the third son, 16 year-old Theodore, was captured trying to cross into Virginia to join the Confederate Army).
In addition to trying to communicate with her husband and the other captive legislators, Mrs. Thomas also sought the help of high-ranking Union officers to get clothing and aid across the battle lines to her relatives in Fredericksburg, who had lost their home and all their belongings in the battle.
Notable items in this archive include a 1905 typewritten letter from Douglas H. Thomas to Col. John Cassels that establishes provenance for this lot. Douglas had been going through his late mother’s belongings, and found “hundreds” of letters from people asking for assistance regarding family members captured by the Union. Many of the letters were to or from Cassels, as provost marshal of Fortress Monroe.
Other items include a September 1861 warning to Thomas that the men repeatedly demanding entry to a friends house to “search” it were not police, but rather thieves, and to take appropriate precautions. A September 19, 1861 letter on Baltimore Police Department letterhead and Provost Marshal cover from George R. Dodge, assures Thomas that there are no plans to search her home. General Banks appointed Dodge Marshal of Police in the aftermath of the Baltimore riots.
Other letters to Mrs. Thomas are signed by Lt. John V. Bouvier, ADC to Provost General of the Army of the Potomac, and great grandfather of First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy; John Potts, Chief Clerk of the War Department; Brigadier General Alexander S. Webb, awarded the Medal of Honor for bravery defending against Pickett’s Charge at Gettysburg; Major General Gilman Marston, WIA 1st Bull Run, as commander of Point Lookout POW Camp; Capt. Joab Patterson, WIA Gettysburg, brevet Brigadier General; Assistant Surgeon General Charles R Greenleaf; and Major General Christopher Augur, severely wounded at Cedar Mountain, and commander of Banks’ left wing at Port Hudson.
Most of the letters are from brevet Brigadier General William W. Morris, commander at Ft. McHenry, and a friend of the Thomases before the war. Morris was brevetted Major General in 1865, shortly before his death.
Mrs. Thomas was in almost constant contact with Morris, concerning POWs held at Ft. McHenry. One of the letters is a pass for Mrs. Thomas to bring a trunk of clothing to send her son Raleigh, who was held prisoner at Ft. McHenry before being exiled to the Confederacy. Another is a daily pass for Thomas to visit Confederate POWs at Ft. McHenry in the course of her humanitarian work. Yet another document is a partially printed pass for Dr. Whitradge of Baltimore to call on patients.