Timeline extended for launch of Wilson Library facilities work.

Collection Number: 05276

Collection Title: John H. Crowder Papers, 1862-1873

This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held in the Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in our reading room, and not digitally available through the World Wide Web. See the Duplication Policy section for more information.


expand/collapse Expand/collapse Collection Overview

Size 12 items
Abstract John H. Crowder, a 16-year-old African American lieutenant who fought in the United States Army during the Civil War, was born in 1846 in Louisville, Ky., to free parents. After being abandoned by her husband, Crowder's mother, Martha Ann Stars, moved with her son to New Orleans, La. During the Civil War, from 1862 to 1863, Crowder served in the 1st Regiment of the Louisiana Native Guard under the command of Major General Benjamin F. Butler. The Louisiana Native Guard was one of the first regiments of people of color to serve in the Union Army. Crowder was killed in action at the battle of Port Hudson in 1863. The collection contains eleven photocopied letters, dated November 1862 to May 1863, from John H. Crowder while he was serving in the 1st Regiment of the Louisiana Native Guards in the United States Army. Ten of the letters are addressed to his mother, Martha Ann Stars, and one to his sister. Crowder wrote from positions in Louisiana including Camp Bivouac at Lafourche Crossing, Camp Lookout at Bayou Louis, Camp Houston and the headquarters of the 1st Regiment of the Lousiana Native Guards in Baton Rouge. In the letters, Crowder discussed his life as a soldier, troop movements, and his wages and expenses. He also wrote to refute rumors that he was arrested and that he had married; to request his mother to send items, such as an engineering book and a talisman, and to thank her for items already sent; and to urge her not to tell anyone of his true age for fear he would be expelled from the army for being too young. The last letter, dated 5 May 1863, contains an itemized list of the expenses he deducted from his wages and the remaining amount he sent to his mother. The collection also includes 48 photocopied pages of deposition of Martha Ann Stars and friends relating to Stars's attempt to obtain her son's military pension.
Creator Crowder, John H., 1846-1863.
Curatorial Unit University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection.
Language English
Back to Top

expand/collapse Expand/collapse Information For Users

Restrictions to Access
No restrictions. Open for research.
Copyright Notice
Copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], in the John H. Crowder Papers #5276, Southern Historical Collection, The Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Alternate Form of Material
Original manuscript documents are housed at the National Archives.
Acquisitions Information
Gift of Joseph T. Glatthaar, April 2006 (Acc. 100394).
Sensitive Materials Statement
Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, the North Carolina Public Records Act (N.C.G.S. § 132 1 et seq.), and Article 7 of the North Carolina State Personnel Act (Privacy of State Employee Personnel Records, N.C.G.S. § 126-22 et seq.). Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals represented in this collection without the consent of those individuals may have legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under common law for invasion of privacy may arise if facts concerning an individual's private life are published that would be deemed highly offensive to a reasonable person) for which the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill assumes no responsibility.
Back to Top

expand/collapse Expand/collapse Processing Information

Processed by: Margaret Dickson, July 2007

Encoded by: Margaret Dickson, July 2007

Back to Top

expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subject Headings

The following terms from Library of Congress Subject Headings suggest topics, persons, geography, etc. interspersed through the entire collection; the terms do not usually represent discrete and easily identifiable portions of the collection--such as folders or items.

Clicking on a subject heading below will take you into the University Library's online catalog.

Back to Top

expand/collapse Expand/collapse Biographical Information

John H. Crowder, a 16-year-old African American lieutenant who fought in the United States Army during the Civil War, was born in 1846 in Louisville, Ky., to free parents. After being abandoned by her husband, Crowder's mother, Martha Ann Stars, moved with her son to New Orleans, La. During the Civil War, from 1862 to 1863, Crowder served in the 1st Regiment of the Louisiana Native Guard under the command of Major General Benjamin F. Butler. The Louisiana Native Guard was one of the first regiments of people of color to serve in the Union Army. Crowder was killed in action at the battle of Port Hudson in 1863.

Back to Top

expand/collapse Expand/collapse Scope and Content

The collection contains eleven photocopied letters, dated November 1862 to May 1863, from African American soldier John H. Crowder while he was serving in the 1st Regiment of the Louisiana Native Guards in the United States Army during the Civil War. Ten of the letters are addressed to his mother, Martha Ann Stars, and one to his sister. Crowder wrote from positions in Louisiana including Camp Bivouac at Lafourche Crossing, Camp Lookout at Bayou Louis, Camp Houston and the headquarters of the 1st Regiment of the Lousiana Native Guards in Baton Rouge. In the letters, Crowder discussed his life as a soldier, troop movements, and his wages and expenses. He also wrote to refute rumors that he was arrested and that he had married; to request his mother to send items, such as an engineering book and a talisman, and to thank her for items already sent; and to urge her not to tell anyone of his true age for fear he would be expelled from the army for being too young. The last letter, dated 5 May 1863, contains an itemized list of the expenses he deducted from his wages and the remaining amount he sent to his mother. The collection also includes 48 photocopied pages of deposition of Martha Ann Stars and friends relating to Stars's attempt to obtain her son's military pension.

Back to Top

Contents list

expand/collapse Expand/collapse Papers, 1862-1873.

12 items.
Folder 1

Photocopied letters

Folder 2

Photocopied deposition

Back to Top