Letters, 1842-1845

Twenty-five ALS (three of which are manuscript copies) written by Barna N. Upton to his father Nehemiah, his brother Elias, his sister Susan, and other family members and friends, dating from July 7, 1842 to August 7, 1847. With the exception of his first letter, which was written to his family while he was working as a farmhand in Williamsburg, Massachusetts, Upton's letters document his experiences as a soldier in Company E of the 3rd Regiment U.S. Infantry before and during the Mexican War. The letters describe his enlistment in the army and camp life on Governors Island, New York, early in 1845; his voyage from New York to New Orleans that spring; camp life at Fort Jesup, Louisiana, Corpus Christi, Texas, Matamoros, Camargo, Veracruz, and Jalapa, Mexico; and battles in which he fought including Palo Alto, Resaca de la Palma, Monterey, and Cerro Gordo. His last letter was written from Puebla as he prepared to march to Mexico City.