*Any reproduction or use of the Amos Mount Letters must list the Oldham County Historical Society as credit/source
Lucretia Davenport donated a collection of artifacts to the Oldham County History Center that belonged to her late husband, John McRoberts Mount, Jr. Mr. Mount inherited “Grandma Railey’s Box”, a collection of letters and documents from his great grandparents, James and Amanda Railey Mount. James and Amanda Railey Mount were the original owners of the house where our J.C. Barnett Archives and offices are located.
The box contained, among many items, a set of letters written by Amos G. Mount to his Aunt Amanda and Uncle James, describing events during his service as a Union soldier in Company B of the 6th Kentucky Volunteer Infantry U.S. during the Civil War. Uncle James had been appointed guardian of his nephew Amos after Amos’ father died.
These letters were written from several different camps and battlefields including Camp Andrew Jackson, Camp Wickliffe, Camp Sigel, a camp near Murfreesboro, TN., Camp Nichols’ Ford, Camp Morton, a camp near Corinth, Miss., and others.
The 6th Kentucky saw action at Stones River, Shiloh, Woodbury, Browns Ferry, Orchard Knob, Missionary Ridge, Chickamauga and Perryville among others. Mount was seriously wounded at Woodbury but recovered. He returned home to La Grange, KY for a short time before moving permanently to Missouri after discharge from the army on November 2, 1864. Read Mount’s descriptions of the dead and wounded at Shiloh as well as the weather and conditions endured by the army below.
Click to open one of the 39 artifacts and see both a copy of the original letter and a transcription.
