Charlotte Cross Wigfall to Louise Wigfall, April 11, 1861

charleston, April 11th, 1861.

. . . Your father was gone all night with Captain Hartstein, seeing to placing light boats, with fires of pine wood, in the harbor, for the purpose of detecting the approach of the enemy's boats. He has gone again to-day and will not return until evening.  . . . A demand for the surrender of the Fort was made to-day, but the answer has not yet come. In case of Anderson's refusal (of which there is little doubt), the fire of the batteries on him will open at 8 to-night. God grant the Fort may be surrendered before the arrival of the Fleet, for although I believe General Beauregard is prepared on every side, yet I should feel all danger were over if we had the Fort. It will be a night of intense excitement and although I can't help feeling shivery and nervous, yet I am not as much alarmed as I might be, and something tells me it won't be so bad after all I am going down after a while to walk with Mrs. Chesnut on the Battery and will add more when I hear the answer Anderson returns.

SOURCE: Louise Wigfall Wright, A Southern Girl in ’61, p. 37-8

Charlotte Cross Wigfall to Louise Wigfall, April 10, 1861

Charleston, April 10, 1861.

You see we are still here and it is quite impossible to say for how long a time. Your father has been with General Beauregard almost constantly since we came, until yesterday, when General Beauregard requested him to go on his staff, and since then he has been actively engaged in carrying out his orders. I suppose you know the condition of things from the papers — that the administration after their professions of peace have determined to re-inforce the Fort at all risks, and we are in hourly expectation of the arrival of the store-ship and the fleet sent to protect it. General Beauregard is only waiting for the arrival of the troops from the country to make the attack on the Fort. He is quite confident of the result, and God grant he may be right. We are all anxious enough as you may suppose.

SOURCE: Louise Wigfall Wright, A Southern Girl in ’61, p. 35-6

Charlotte Cross Wigfall to Louise Wigfall, April 2, 1861

charleston, April 2, 1861.

We arrived here yesterday morning and I find very little change in the appearance of things since we were here eighteen months ago. You meet a good many soldiers, but that is about the only difference. The people are all strongly in hopes that Fort Sumter will be evacuated very soon. Some think to-day, and that the reason why it has been put off so long was on account of the New England elections. Your father has gone down to-day to visit the fortifications and has had the Lady Davis put at his command.

SOURCE: Louise Wigfall Wright, A Southern Girl in ’61, p. 35

Charlotte Cross Wigfall to Louise Wigfall March 29, 1861

Richmond., March 29, 1861.

We got here Tuesday . . . and are staying at the Spotswood House. Mr. McCulloch is here to buy arms for Texas, and your father is assisting him in making the arrangements necessary.  . . . I see by today's paper that the Senate has adjourned and what is more is that Sumter has not yet been evacuated. I don't believe Jeff Davis will allow them to trifle with him much longer, and should not be surprised at any time to hear that he was preparing to take it.  . . . I attended the Convention yesterday.  . . . The friends of secession seem confident that Virginia will join the South, but differ about the time. We went to an elegant dinner yesterday given to us by Mr. & Mrs. Lyons. The party was composed of twenty, and among them were Mr. Tyler, Mr. McCulloch, etc. Mrs. Lyons is one of the loveliest people I have seen in a long time. Mr. Lyons told me that the people here would never allow the removal of the guns that have been ordered to be sent to Fortress Monroe. He said there were about fifty of them, and it was fully determined that the order should not be executed. I think they are some miles from this city and would have to pass through here to get to Old Point. This is a fine looking old place, and reminds me of Charleston.

SOURCE: Louise Wigfall Wright, A Southern Girl in ’61, p. 34-5

Diary of Louise Wigfall: March 24, 1861

My mother says: “Your father has gone over to-day to Alexandria to meet McCulloch. McCulloch arrived here last night and went right to Mr. Gwin's. It was deemed imprudent by his friends for him to remain in Washington on account of the part he took about the Forts in Texas, and they advised him to go to Alexandria, so your father has gone there to see him.  . . . No news has yet come of the evacuation of Fort Sumter."

SOURCE: Louise Wigfall Wright, A Southern Girl in ’61, p. 34

Diary of Mary Boykin Chesnut: December 21, 1863

Joe Johnston has been made Commander-in-chief of the Army of the West. General Lee had this done, `tis said. Miss Agnes Lee and "little Robert" (as they fondly call General Lee's youngest son in this hero-worshiping community) called. They told us the President, General Lee, and General Elzey had gone out to look at the fortifications around Richmond. My husband came home saying he had been with them, and lent General Lee his gray horse.

 Mrs. Howell, Mrs. Davis's mother, says a year ago on the cars a man said, “We want a Dictator.” She replied, “Jeff Davis will never consent to be a Dictator.” The man turned sharply toward her “And, pray, who asks him? Joe Johnston will be made Dictator by the Army of the West.” “Imperator” was suggested. Of late the Army of the West has not been in a condition to dictate to friend or foe. Certainly Jeff Davis did hate to put Joe Johnston at the head of what is left of it. Detached from General Lee, what a horrible failure is Longstreet! Oh, for a day of Albert Sidney Johnston out West! And Stonewall, could he come back to us here!

General Hood, the wounded knight, came for me to drive. I felt that I would soon find myself chaperoning some girls, but I asked no questions. He improved the time between Franklin and Cary Streets by saying, “I do like your husband so much.” “So do I,” I replied simply.

Buck was ill in bed, so William said at the door, but she recovered her health and came down for the drive in black velvet and ermine, looking queenly. And then, with the top of the landau thrown back, wrapped in furs and rugs, we had a long drive that bitter cold day.

One day as we were hieing us home from the Fair Grounds, Sam, the wounded knight, asked Brewster what are the symptoms of a man's being in love. Sam (Hood is called Sam entirely, but why I do not know) said for his part he did not know; at seventeen he had fancied himself in love, but that was “a long time ago.” Brewster spoke on the symptoms of love: “When you see her, your breath is apt to come short. If it amounts to mild strangulation, you have got it bad. You are stupidly jealous, glowering with jealousy, and have a gloomy fixed conviction that she likes every fool you meet better than she does you, especially people that you know she has a thorough contempt for; that is, you knew it before you lost your head, I mean, before you fell in love. The last stages of unmitigated spooniness, I will spare you,” said Brewster, with a giggle and a wave of the hand. “Well,” said Sam, drawing a breath of relief, “I have felt none of these things so far, and yet they say I am engaged to four young ladies, a liberal allowance, you will admit, for a man who can not walk without help.”

Another day (the Sabbath) we called on our way from church to see Mrs. Wigfall. She was ill, but Mr. Wigfall insisted upon taking me into the drawing-room to rest a while. He said Louly was there; so she was, and so was Sam Hood, the wounded knight, stretched at full length on a sofa and a rug thrown over him. Louis Wigfall said to me: “Do you know General Hood?” “Yes,” said I, and the General laughed with his eyes as I looked at him; but he did not say a word. I felt it a curious commentary upon the reports he had spoken of the day before. Louly Wigfall is a very handsome girl.

SOURCE: Mary Boykin Chesnut, Edited by Isabella D. Martin and Myrta Lockett Avary, A Diary From Dixie, p. 265-6