Biographical/Historical Sketch
Processed by
AJ Salkoski
18 February 2004
Manuscript and Visual Collections Department
William Henry Smith Memorial Library
Indiana Historical Society
450 West Ohio Street
Indianapolis, IN 46202-3269
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VOLUME OF |
1 document case, 1 photograph folder, 1 publication |
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COLLECTION |
1864-2003 (bulk 1864-65) |
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PROVENANCE: |
Doris G. Brett, Tombstone, AZ 85638, 8 August 2003 |
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RESTRICTIONS: |
None |
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COPYRIGHT: |
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REPRODUCTION |
Permission to reproduce or publish material in this collection must be obtained from the Indiana Historical Society. |
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ALTERNATE |
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RELATED |
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ACCESSION |
2003.0498; 2004.0134 |
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NOTES: |
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Alfred Allen was born in Argus (Argos), Indiana, on 17 Sept. 1839. He enlisted in the Civil War just before his twenty-second birthday on the side of the Union and fought in the Ninth Regiment Indiana Infantry, Company D. This unit was known as the “Bloody Ninth” from its ability to defend their ground in battle even when greatly outnumbered. During his first two years of war, Allen was wounded in battle, but remained with his regiment through the healing process.
In 1863, the Indiana Ninth Infantry was reorganized as a veteran unit, fighting in West Virginia and parts of Maryland, later moving to Tennessee and Georgia during Gen. Sherman’s March to the Sea. As the war came to a close, the regiment was moved into Louisiana and Texas. It was mustered out in September 1865. During his stint in the army, Alfred Allen moved up in rank from private, to corporal, to sergeant, to first sergeant, and finally to second lieutenant.
After the war, Allen came home to marry his sweetheart, Mary Alice Hand. She died at the early age of twenty-four after bearing two children, Polly and John Wesley. Alfred married Melinda Baldwin in 1874, and they moved to California. They had two children, Alice Estelle and William Alfred.
Allen sent a letter in 1922 from Alhambra, California, to the National Tribune in Washington, D.C., describing his service during the latter half of the war; the letter was published in the newspaper. He died four years later in Penryn, California.
Sources:
American Civil War Research Database. Soldier History (www.civilwardata.com), accessed 28 Jan 2004
Ancestry Plus (www.ancestry.com/main.aspx), accessed 28 Jan 2004
Brett, Doris. The Civil War Letters & Chronical of Lt. Alfred Allen & Mary Alice Hand. Brett: Tombstone, Arizona, 2003. General Collection: E506.5 9th .A54 2003
Union Indiana Volunteers (www.idt.nps.gov), accessed 28 Jan 2004
The collection contains Civil War papers of Alfred Allen and a few later items. It includes 29 letters from the last two years of the war, 1864-65; a printed circular from Brigadier General T.G. Pitcher (1865); a fragmentary newspaper clipping (1922) and a later typed transcription of it; a California court document (1926) dealing with Allen’s estate; and two undated photographs of Alfred Allen and his first wife Mary Alice Hand.
Folder 1 is made up of letters Alfred Allen sent home to Mollie (Mary Alice) Hand. These letters were written between February and June 1864, while Allen was serving in Tennessee and parts of Georgia. They illustrate his homesickness, describe how soldiers were transported, and mention a new appreciation for nature during war. The pursuit of Rebel forces in Georgia is an ongoing theme.
Folder 2 has letters from Allen to Hand sent between August and November 1864. They are from the period the Ninth Indiana Infantry moved out of Georgia and back into Tennessee. These letters mention the overall good morale of the soldiers and the siege and capture of Atlanta.
Folder 3 contains letters sent home from Alfred to his future wife as his regiment remained in Huntsville, Alabama, in January and February 1865. These letters begin with responses to what is happening back home, but turn toward how he and the other soldiers stay busy in camp. At the end of this group of letters, he notes that the morale of the soldiers has dropped, possibly out of boredom.
Folder 4 contains letters that Alfred wrote to Mary between May and August 1865, while the Ninth Indiana Infantry was stationed in Tennessee, Louisiana, and Texas. Alfred began writing home more often once the fighting had settled, and he expressed longing to come home because he saw no more purpose in being in the army in a time of peace.
Folder 5 contains a letter (12 April 1865) that Allen received from Melinda Baldwin explaining the social situation at home and apparently rejecting his interest in more than friendship.
Folder 6 contains letters are from Mary Alice Hand to Alfred, May and July 1865. These letters mainly deal with social events back home and each of their families, but there is mention in one of the assassination of Lincoln. There are also pleas for Alfred to resign and come home right away.
Folder 7 contains letters to Mollie from her sister Jennie. Jennie appears eager to once again see her sister and wants to know all that is happening in her old home. She also wants to know when her flirty sister is going to find a man.
Folder 8 contains a letter from Alfred’s sister Mattie to Alfred in June 1865. There is mention that Alfred may be in some financial trouble, and Mattie can spare no money to help him out.
Folder 9 contains a circular stating a blanket was stolen while in New Orleans and must be paid by the officers in the Ninth Indiana Infantry.
The next two folders contain materials from the 1920s. Folder 10 contains a newspaper article that Allen wrote and sent to Washington to have published. There is a typed copy and some original clippings from the paper. Folder 11 contains a document from a court in California dealing with Allen’s estate in 1926, shortly after his death.
Two photographs, one each of Alfred and Mollie, are part of the collection. Alfred’s photograph was taken in uniform and Mollie is wearing a dark dress. Doris Gabrielle Brett’s volume on her ancestor, Alfred Allen, is also part of the collection.
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CONTENTS |
CONTAINER |
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Letters, Alfred Allen to Mollie Hand, Feb.–June 1864 |
Folder 1 |
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Letters, Alfred Allen to Mollie Hand, Aug.–Nov. 1864 |
Folder 2 |
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Letters, Alfred Allen to Mollie Hand, Jan.–Feb. 1865 |
Folder 3 |
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Letters, Alfred Allen to Mollie Hand, May–Aug. 1865 |
Folder 4 |
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Letter, Melinda Baldwin to Alfred Allen, 12 April 1865 |
Folder 5 |
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Letters, Mollie Hand to Alfred Allen, May and July 1865 |
Folder 6 |
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Letters, Jennie to Mollie Hand, 1865 |
Folder 7 |
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Letter, Mattie to Alfred Allen, 1 June 1865 |
Folder 8 |
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Circular from Brigadier Gen. T.G. Pitcher, 30 Nov. 1865 |
Folder 9 |
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Photographs, Alfred Allen (1) and Mary Alice Hand (1) |
Visual Collections: Photographs, Folder 1 |
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“The Ninth Indiana at Shiloh.” The National Tribune, 2 Nov. 1922 |
Folder 10 |
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California Court Document, 12 August 1926 |
Folder 11 |
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Allen, Alfred. The Civil War Letters & Chronical of Lt. Alfred Allen & Mary Alice Hand, 1864-1865. Tombstone, Ariz.: Doris Gabrielle Brett, 2003 |
Printed Collections: E506.5 9th .A54 2003 |
For additional information on this collection, including a list of subject headings that may lead you to related materials:
1. Go to the Indiana Historical Society's online catalog: http://157.91.92.2/
2. Click on the "Basic Search" icon.
3. Select "Call Number" from the "Search In:" box.
4. Search for the collection by its basic call number (in this case, M 0810).
5. When you find the collection, go to the "Full Record" screen for a list of headings that can be searched for related materials.