The Impact of the Civil War on Horatio Nelson Taft The American Civil War remains today to be the

deadliest battle in American history with the death of 620,000 soldiers.1 Most historians who write about the Civil War tend to focus on the South and less on the North. One author made this observation, It has been too easy for some historians to overlook the fact that there were two sides in the war. Students of the Confederacy in particular have tended to insist that all problems of the South can and must be explained purely from within the Confederacy2 This is the story of Horatio Nelson Taft who was a fifty-two year old patent worker in Washington D.C. during the period of the Civil War. This paper will show that the Civil War affected Horatio Nelson Taft by causing him to have fear, anxiety, labor problems, and loss of confidence in both the Union and the war. The fear that Horatio Nelson Taft felt can be separated into two main categories fear before the war and fear during the war. The fear that he feels before the Civil War actually starts in April of 1861 comes from tree different directionsfear of Confederate invasion, fear of proSouth mobs within the city, and fear of crooks who are committing burglary and larceny. The fear of a Confederate is shown not only by Horatio but also by the people in Washington D.C. as a whole. Three months before the Civil War begins (January of 1861) Horatio writes in his journal these words It is reported tonightthat a collision has occured [sic] at Charleston. U. S. troops have been ordered to this City [Washington] to defend it if necessary.3 The fear of a Confederate attack on Washington is very real to Horatio and cannot be ignored. Day after day as the war grows closer he more and more troops come to Washington ready to defend the city.

John Huddleston, Killing Ground: Photographs of the Civil War and the Changing American Landscape (Maryland: John Hopkins University Press, 2002), 3. 2 Peter J. Parish, The North and the Nation in the Era of the Civil War, ed. Adam I. P. Smith and Susan-Mary Grant, The North's Civil War 25 (New York: Fordham University Press, 2003), 150. 3 Horatio Nelson Taft, The Diary of Horatio Nelson Taft, 1861 -1865, http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/tafthtml/diary.html (accessed April 27, 2011), January 8, 1861.

In April of 1861, six days before the war starts, he writes again about the city being threatened. The City is again threatened, he writes, a "Coup d'Etat" may be attempted in a few days.4 From these words we can see that the city of Washington was threatened multiple times by both Confederates and the Pro-Southerners in the city. Either the Coup dEtat, or overthrow of the government, that he speaks of could refer to a Confederate attack on the city or the Pro-Southern mobs taking over the city, the later is more likely. This fear of the Pro-Southerners is supported through these words This City is threatened and the Citizens do fear that a Mob will have possession of it unless measures are taken to defend it; incendiary fires occur every night and we feel very unsafe.5 The mob that Horatio refers to is most likely the Pro-Southerners who existed not only Washington D.C. but also in Maryland and many other Northern states, especially the border states. The Baltimore Riot of 1861 is a prime example of the threat that the Pro-Southerners were to the Union. When Lincoln called for armies to come to the Washington the Massachusetts regiment were the first to respond, but In order to get to Washington D.C. they had to go through Baltimore Maryland. One author described what happened next An angry crowd of secessionists tried to keep the regiment from reaching Washington, blocking several of the transports, breaking windowsforcing the soldiers to get out and march through the streets.6 The author goes on to say that the mob surrounded and jeered the regiment, then started throwing bricks and stones.7 Attacks like this on Unionist were prevalent before the war and escalated after the attack on Fort Sumter. This statement reveals that the fear of attack was not only felt by him alone, but also by the other citizens in the city. Even though once troops

Horatio Nelson Taft, The Diary of Horatio Nelson Taft, 1861 -1865, http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/tafthtml/diary.html (accessed April 27, 2011), April 6, 1861. 5 Taft, January 5, 1861. 6 Baltimore Riot (April 19 1861), Shotgun's Home of the American Civil War,http://www.civilwarhome.com/baltimoreriot.htm (accessed July 9, 2011). 7 Ibid.

started to arrive in Washington his fears subsided, he still had some fear but felt more protected. The fear for his life is clearly seen in his words Fires and Burglaries occur every night. I sleep with a loaded revolver within reach.8 These two sentences show not only the dangers that he was in even before the war actually started, but they also show how great his fear was. The fact that he states that he slept with a loaded revolver within reach shows that he was so scared that he wanted to have protection on hand. Horatio Nelson Taft also had some fear for his family before the war. This is evident three days before war is declared (April 9, 1861) when he speaks of cleaning his revolver. The action of cleaning his revolver shows that he wants to make sure that his protection is in good shape in case it ever needs to be used. His fear for family is more evident two days after the Civil War starts when says these words Think[ing] of sending my family out of the City immediately.9 Even though later on he decides they should stay, the thought of getting his family out of the city shows just how fearful he was for his family. Horatio also shows some fear for Washington during the war as he frequently mention and the beginning of the war that there is a possible attack on Washington from Virginia. His fear for the city seems to be not as strong as it was before the war. This lack of fear is due to the fact that troops have gathered in Washington ready to fight off any attack on the city that might happen. One author has described Civil War as as a duel or an epic struggle between confidence and anxiety in America calling the North the side with confidence and the South the side with anxiety.10 This was simply not the case with Horatio Nelson Taft. Both before and during the war Horatio shows anxiety in different forms. Before the war, Horatio shows his anxiety over the

8 9

Taft, January 9, 1861. Ibid. April 14, 1861. 10 Peter J. Parish, The and the Nation in the Era of the Civil War, ed. Adam I. P. Smith and Susan-Mary Grant, The North's Civil War 25 (New York: Fordham University Press, 2003), 9.

South seceding and begins to worry that a war is going to break out. Even days before the war he begins to be anxious, along with others, about the troops who are leaving for the South. This anxiety is expressed in these words Much anxiety is felt on account of the fleet which for two or three days past has been leaving NY with troops [etc.] for the South.11 The main reasons for this anxiety that was felt can be seen in his next words Many are fearing an attack upon the City now, as it is thought that a War is about commencing.12 This statement not only tells us that the citizens were anxious that a war was starting, but it also reveals to us their concern about an attack on Washington. Horatio feels the same forms of anxiety that he felt before the war. He constantly is anxious about the results of the battle. Every day that there is a battle he calls it an exciting day which words can have a double meaning. One reason he uses the word exciting is that he hears of a Union victory, which shows a sign of patriotism in him. Another reason for using the word exciting could be that he is anxious to find out the results of the battle. The anxiety he feels about the battles is also shown throughout his diary during the years of the war. He constantly speaks of how he hears rumors, how the news cannot be trusted, and at one point he says the newspapers cannot report on the battles. These three factorsthe rumors, the lack of trust, and the lack of informationcontribute a lot to his anxiety over the battles. Later in the war on Horatio Nelson Tafts anxiety over the results of the battles is expressed in some detail. One Sunday after a battle happens he writes, A painful suspense have we all been left in today in reference to the "great Battle" reported in Tennessee. The "Sunday Morning Chronicle" has nothing definite as to the result. This Silence is rather ominous of evil, good news travels faster than that over the wires. But the wires may be down.13 These words not only

11

Horatio Nelson Taft, The Diary of Horatio Nelson Taft, 1861 -1865, http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/tafthtml/diary.html (accessed April 27, 2011), April 9, 1861. 12 Ibid. 13 Taft, January 4, 1863.

describe the anxiety he and the other citizens feel when they cannot know the result of a battle, but they also show an attempt on his part to comfort himself. He speaks of how usually silence means that something bad happened, but instead of worrying, he attempts to comfort himself with the words But the wires may be down. This attempt to comfort himself can be seen on other occasions as well. I will use two more examples to help illustrate my point. On the anniversary of the Battle of New Orleans, after lamenting over the need for people like Jackson, Horatio says, Well, we must wait and suffer still. In Gods[sic] own time the black clouds of War will clear away and we shall behold again the sun of peace and National prosperity.14 And at another time he says, Well, the War must Continue for a long while yet.15 Statements like these seem to appear more towards the end of the Civil War when he begins to lose confidence in the war. Nevertheless, these statements show that although he has this anxiety about him he still attempts to find hope. During the period of the Civil War labor problems occurred throughout the North. The labor problems that occurred in the North during this period were due to workers being overworked and receiving a small amount of wages for it. One Philadelphia Newspaper says these words on the issue In New York this demand is more general then any other city. In Boston the principle movement is among the employees of the National Government. In Washington, it is of the same naturea demand for more money and less labor.16 The low wages compared to the high rice was the root cause of the labor problems in the North. In 1863 the price of eggs rose from $.15 in1861 to .25 per dozen, cheese .08 per pound to .18, potatoes 1.50 per bushel to 2.25 per bushel; prices rose 60 to 75 and sometimes 100 percent for all of the
14

Horatio Nelson Taft, The Diary of Horatio Nelson Taft, 1861 -1865, http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/tafthtml/diary.html (accessed April 27, 2011), January 8, 1863. 15 Ibid. January 14, 1863. 16 George Winston Smith, Life in the North during the Civil War a Source History (Albuquerque: The University of New Mexico Press, 1966), 218.

other necessities of life as well.17 Horatio Nelson Taft was not immune to these labor problems in. Even before the war begins the paten office began to remove people from there offices. Speaking of the patent offices removing workers he says Many in the office are fearing the "ax" but I am quite indifferent about being removed.18 This shows that before the war Horatio is confident that he will not get axed, but, like many workers during the time of the Civil War, he is still concerned about his wages. Says he Am tempted to resign if my salary is not increased to $2500 [and] think I shall.19 He never does resign but the fact that he considered it shows that he was concerned about the amount of money we was making. Later on the war Horatio reveals that he does lose his job for some period by mentioning the fact that he tries to get his post back. Even though he eventually did get his job at the patent office back, the fact that he lost it during the war shows that even a patent worker in Washington was not immune to the labor problems of the time. Just like many other Northerners during the Civil War, Horatio begins to lose confidence not only in the war, but in the Union as well. At the beginning of the war the Union had a huge amount of confidence in the cause. Horatio speaks of this confidence when he says, News from the south looks favorable and in fact we are looking for favorable news from our forces everywhere. Our troops are now begining[sic] to be in earnest.20 This statement not only shows the confidence in the soldiers but it also tells us the cause of this confidence. Part of the reason for the confidence that the soldiers experienced is because the battles were in their favor. In 1863

17

Emerson David Fite, Social and Industrial Conditions in the North during the Civil War (New York: The Macmillan Company, 1910), 184. 18 Horatio Nelson Taft, The Diary of Horatio Nelson Taft, 1861 -1865, http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/tafthtml/diary.html (accessed April 27, 2011), January 1, 1861. 19 Ibid. 20 Horatio Nelson Taft, The Diary of Horatio Nelson Taft, 1861 -1865, http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/tafthtml/diary.html (accessed April 27, 2011), November 29, 1861.

Horatio begins to lament in his diary and his lamenting Horatio reveals his lack of confidence in the Civil War. He writes: When we look into the future for our Country Dark days were those, and it looks dark now for the preservation of our Union. People are tired and sick of the war, and now the Political leaders say, and the mass of the people believe, that the object of the war is now not what it was (to preserve the Union). But, to free the Negroes (an abolition War) and they hate abolitionists as well as the Negroes. Under present circumstances no Union or re-construction can take place. Nothing in fact but crushing the rebels, entirely subdueing [sic] them, can bring Peace.21 These words show that this lack of confidence in the war was felt by the majority of Northerners in the last year of the war. This lack of confidence was not just a lack of confidence in the war itself but it was a lack of confidence in the Union cause. According to Lincoln, the Union cause in fighting the war was to preserve the Union. Towards the end of the war, according to Horatio, this cause seems to disappear. At the beginning of the war the cause was to preserve the Union, but towards the end it seemed to change from preserving the Union to freeing the Negros.22 Even though not all Northerners were supportive of the draft, the majority of the people were will to fight for the original cause. However, now that the cause of the war changes on them the people began to lose their confidence in the war. Horatio shows us this lack of confidence in his words following his lamenting, Nothing in fact but crushing the rebels, entirely subdueing [sic] them, can bring Peace. It dont now look as though we were able to do that, and in any case the South say they will accept No Terms short of their Independence.23 From these words we see that Horatio feels that the only way to end the Civil War is to destroy the rebels, something he feels cannot be done. This lack of confidence in the Unions fighting ability does not mean that he was not committed to the war, but that they just

21 22

Taft, January 14 1863. Ibid. 23 Horatio Nelson Taft, The Diary of Horatio Nelson Taft, 1861 -1865, http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/tafthtml/diary.html (accessed April 27, 2011), January 14, 1863.

were ready to fight for a cause they did not believe in themselves. On author calls the Civil War the peoples war and says Popular commitment to the cause, or at least popular acceptance of the war, was essential to a conflict of this kind24 For this very reason the people remained committed to the war, but were not willing to fight to free the slavesa cause that the war seemed to be at the end of the war. The lack of support for the war can be seen in these words as well O that his [Jacksons] old mantle and white hat were still in the "White House." The present times require his energy, his fire and resolution. The Country has been calling for "Jacksons" to Lead our armies but as yet none has appeared.25 From these words, we can see that men were not as willing to fight the war as they were at the beginning. The reason for this change in support was not due to the opposition of the draft, but also it was because the cause seemed to have change. Even though the majority of the Northerners were against slavery they still had prejudices against blacks thus they were not willing to fight for a people they hated.

Bibliography Primary Source

24

Peter J. Parish, The and the Nation in the Era of the Civil War, ed. Adam I. P. Smith and Susan-Mary Grant, The North's Civil War 25 (New York: Fordham University Press, 2003), 151. 25 Taft, January 8, 1863.

Taft, Horatio Nelson. The Diary of Horatio Nelson Taft. http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/tafthtml/diary.html(accessed April 27, 2011). Secondary Sources Balcells, L. "Behind the frontlines: Identity, competition, and violence in civil wars". Ph.D. diss., Yale University ,2010. In Dissertations & Theses: Full Text [database on-line]; available from http://www.proquest.com (publication number AAT 3414960; accessed May 29, 2011). Fite, Emerson David. Social and Industrial Conditions in the North during the Civil War. New York: The Macmillan Company, 1910. Fredrickson, George M. The Inner Civil War: Northern Intellectuals and the Crisis of the Union. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1993. Grow, Matthew J. 2003. "The Shadow of the Civil War: A Historiography of Civil War Memory." American Nineteenth Century History 4, no. 2: 77-103. America: History & Life, EBSCOhost (accessed June 1, 2011). Nelson, Scott Reynolds, and Carol Sheriff. A People at War: Civilians and Soldiers in America's Civil War. New York: Oxford University Press, 2007. Paludan, Phillip Shaw. A People's Contest: The Union and Civil War, 1861-1865. The New American Nation Series. New York: Harper & Row, 1988. Parish, Peter J. The North and the Nation in the Era of the Civil War. Edited by Adam I. P. Smith and Susan-Mary Grant. The North's Civil War 25. New York: Fordham University Press, 2003. Smith, George Winston. Life in the North during the Civil War a Source History. Albuquerque: The University of New Mexico Press, 1966. Traphagen, S. "Our wounded, our wounds: Disruption, ideological permeability and transference of agony in Louisa May Alcott's "Hospital Sketches" and Walt Whitman's "Memoranda during the War" and "The Wound-Dresser"". M.A. diss., State University of New York at Buffalo ,2010. In Dissertations & Theses: Full Text [database on-line]; available from http://www.proquest.com (publication number AAT 1474188; accessed May 29, 2011). VandeCreek, Drew E. Religion and Culture in Illinois and the North During the Civil War. Illinois During the Civil War. http://dig.lib.niu.edu/civilwar/religionculture.html (accessed May 1, 2011). Woodworth, Steven E. This Great Struggle: America's Civil War. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., 2011.