Table of Contents
Descriptive Summary
Administrative Information
Access Restrictions
Biographical Note
Scope and Content Note
Selected Search Terms
Related Materials
Arrangement

Detailed Contents List

Questions? Ask Special Collections

Last modified: July 30, 2012

Fulton, Edward A.

Edward A. Fulton collection

1860-1877

(bulk dates 1860-1863)

Descriptive Summary

Identification: MSS 218

Creator: Fulton, Edward A.

Title: Edward A. Fulton collection

Inclusive Dates: 1860-1877

Bulk Dates: 1860-1863

Extent: .3 linear ft. (43 items)

Abstract: This collection of correspondence consists of thirty-nine letters written primarily between 1860 and 1863. The majority of the letters were written by Edward A. Fulton to his mother, Mary Fulton, of Wilmington, Delaware.

Language: Materials entirely in English.

Administrative Information

Citation

MSS 218, Edward A. Fulton collection, Special Collections, University of Delaware Library, Newark, Delaware.

Shelving Summary

Box 1: Shelved in SPEC MSS manuscript boxes (1 inch)

Location

Special Collections Department, University of Delaware Library / Newark, Delaware 19717-5267 / Phone: 302-831-2229 / Fax: 302-831-6003 / URL: http://www.lib.udel.edu/ud/spec/

Source

Purchase, 1985.

Processing

Processed by Tim Murray and Wendy Van Wyck, 1990-1991.

Materials Available in Alternative Format

Access to digitized versions of the Edward A. Fulton collection is available at http://fletcher.lib.udel.edu/. Transcriptions of the letters on the digital site were produced by the staff of the University of Delaware Library Preservation Department.

Jack F. Fallin also produced lightly annotated transcripts of several letters for his article, " A Family War," published in the Journal of the Maryland Genealogical Society, August 2011, pp. 229-291.

Access Restrictions

The collection is open for research.

Terms Governing Use and Reproduction

Use of materials from this collection beyond the exceptions provided for in the Fair Use and Educational Use clauses of the U.S. Copyright Law may violate federal law. Permission to publish or reproduce is required from the copyright holder. Please contact Special Collections Department, University of Delaware Library, http://www.lib.udel.edu/cgi-bin/askspec.cgi

Biographical Note

Edward A. Fulton served in the Union Army from 1861 to 1863.

After traveling through Europe, Fulton joined the 1st Delaware Volunteer Regiment. In 1861, the regiment traveled to Aberdeen, Maryland, where they were assigned to guard the railroad bridges over the Susquehanna River. In 1862, Fulton joined the 72nd Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteers. Fulton's background in engineering and topography led to his assignment to travel around and become acquainted with the "Location of Batteries and the roads to and from Them" (Letter, May 1, 1862). Fulton subsequently became responsible for guiding reinforcement troops to the batteries in need of support.

In 1862, Fulton was injured and spent the following six months in a military hospital in Sharpsburg, Maryland. After recuperating from injuries which nearly cost him his leg, Fulton was discharged on a Surgeon's Certificate on May 1, 1863. Fulton's mother Mary and sisters Sarah and Anna were residents of Wilmington, Delaware, during Fulton's period of service. The location of Fulton's other sister, Sade Fulton Wright, is not known.

Sources:

Biographical information derived from the collection.

Scope and Content Note

This collection of correspondence consists of thirty-nine letters written primarily between 1860 and 1863. The majority of the letters were written by Edward A. Fulton to his mother, Mary Fulton, of Wilmington, Delaware, during the Civil War.

This correspondence began in 1860 when Fulton was traveling through Europe. Later, in 1862, Fulton enlisted in the Union Army and joined the 72nd Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteers. He wrote to his mother from various camps in Virginia, describing battles fought near Harper's Ferry and Winchester. Also included are letters Fulton wrote in 1862 and 1863, when he spent over six months in a military hospital in Sharpsburg, Maryland, after injuring and almost losing his leg. In addition to Edward Fulton's letters to his mother, the collection also includes letters to Edward from his sisters, Anna Fulton and Sarah Fulton, with two with poems by Sarah. Several letters from the 1870s were written by Sade Fulton Wright to her mother, Mary Fulton. The collection contains a few incidental items, such as a poem written after the assassination of Abraham Lincoln and two certificates from the Improved Order of Red Men, Wilmington, Delaware.

Selected Search Terms

Personal Names

Fulton, Edward A.--Correspondence.

Fulton, Anna--Correspondence.

Fulton, Mary--Correspondence.

Fulton, Sarah--Correspondence.

Wright, Sade--Correspondence.

Corporate Names

United States. Army. Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment, 72nd (1861-1865)

United States. Army. Delaware Infantry Regiment, 1st (1861-1865)

Topical Terms

Harpers Ferry, Battle of, Harpers Ferry, W. Va., 1862.

Kernstown, 1st Battle of, Winchester, Va., 1862.

Soldiers--Correspondence.

Geographic Names

Maryland--History--Civil War, 1861-1865--Sources.

United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865--Sources.

Virginia--History--Civil War, 1861-1865--Sources.

West Virginia--History--Civil War, 1861-1865--Sources.

Form/Genre Terms

Letters (correspondence)

Occupation

Soldiers.

Personal Contributors

Fulton, Anna, correspondent.

Fulton, Mary, correspondent.

Fulton, Sarah, correspondent.

Wright, Sade, correspondent.

Related Materials in This Repository

MSS 219 David N. Lilley letters

MSS 295 Thomas M. Reynolds letters to Louisa J. Seward

Arrangement

Letters are arranged in chronological order.

Detailed Contents List

Letter to Mary Fulton, [1860] February 27 [Box 1 F1]

3 p.; with envelope

Autograph letter signed. From Washington, D.C. Fulton describes President Buchanan's dedication to the statue of Washington. Written on stationery with a "View of Washington City."