Personal War Sketches

This Personal war Sketches book is a commemorative ledger book containing handwritten entries on printed pages.  Gilt edges, gold stamp on front cover and spine.  Back cover is blind stamped.  This bound volume contains the “Personal War Sketches” of Civil War veterans belonging to GAR William L. Baker Post 86 of Northampton Massachusetts.  

Per the preface: “This volume is designed to contain the record of the war services (1861-1865) of the living and deceased members of this Post; the living to certify to the statement of their services, and the facts relating to the dead to be certified by the Post Historian.”

While the book is incomplete it does contain some very sueful documentation of the lives of individual soldiers who later became members of G.A.R. Post No. 86. It is divided as such:

  • Page 1: Index
  • Page 3: Historical Sketch of the Post
  • Pages 5-9: Biographical Personal Sketches (Alfred Theodore Lilly and Chauncey H. Pierce)
  • Pages 11-309: Personal War Sketches (blank forms exist between completed war sketches, as well as a larger swath at the end)
  • Pages 311-347: Supplementary 
  • Pages 349-369: Post Resolutions Upon the Death of Comrades
  • Pages 371-373

Excerpts from sketches are included in the individual biographies of many soldiers in this exhibit.

Personal War Sketches