| It might be considered somewhat ironic that James, born a few miles from the Atlantic Ocean in South Scituate, Massachusetts, who spent his childhood in its refreshing waves, was employed in the lifetime occupation of shipbuilder in the business of his father and grandfather, who spent a year in the United States Navy, should be confined for the last year of his life in the hot and dirty environment of five Confederate prisons. |
To read a different profile of Frederic Augustus James, click one of the items below:
Riding the Rails
Frederic Augustus James' journey from one Confederate Prison to another...
|
"I was captured at Fort Sumter upon the night of Sept. 8th 1863, having landed there as one of a storming party from the U.S.S. Blockading Fleet off Charleston. Said expedition was unsuccessful, only less than one fifth of the force effecting a landing." |
|
1 "Was held in "Charleston Jail" until Monday Sept 14th, with the exception of Wednesday the 9th which we spent in Fort Sumter."
2 Upon the 14th we were sent to Columbia S.C. by rail, where we were quartered in barracks at the Richland "district" Jailyard, until the 14th of Nov."
3 Left Columbia upon the cars on Nov 14th, & arrived in Richmond on Monday the 16th, & were quartered in "Crew's Building" nearly opposite the old "Libby", where we remained until Dec. 28th, when 15 of us were selected to be held as hostages as before mentioned, & were quartered for the night in the "Libby".
|
 |
|
4 "At 5 o'clock the next morning we started for Salisbury, N.C., Capts. Kendall, Chase & Litchfield of the army being sent with us. Arrived at Salisbury on the 30th [December]" 5 "We were informed about noon that we were to start for Ga., this evening [May 27]. We started at about 4 p.m. in a train of box cars. Arrived at Charlotte at about midnight. Distance from Salisbury 42 miles. We slept in the cars all night, very comfortably. Saturday 28th Pleasant until 4 p.m. when it began to rain quite hard. We left the cars in which we came from Salisbury early in the morning & marched about a mile & a half to a railroad junction in the woods where we camped until 4 p.m. when a train of box cars backed down from the depot & we started for Columbia S.C."
|
|
|
"We started anew at 4 p.m. in company with the newcomers from Columbia & arrived there at about ten a.m. on Monday 30th. " "We left Columbia at 1 p.m. for Augusta, Ga., having first cooked and eaten our dinners & bathed in a stream that ran along the R.R. We arrived at Augusta at about 8 a.m. on Tuesday 31st. At Augusta we were transferred to a yard between two cotton sheds where we had a chance to wash, cook & eat, & had two days rations issued to us (eight large square hardtack & a good ration of nice bacon). At 1:40 p.m. we were marched 3/4 of a mile to the So. Western R.R. station. We left in a train of boxcars for Camp Sumter, Andersonville at 3 p.m. where we arrived the next day Wednesday June 1st at 11 a.m." |
The Chebang - Frederic James' Prison Hut
|
1864 |
at Andersonville Prison |
| June 1 |
"We began our career at Camp Sumter, Andersonville, Ga. We had a thunder shower to usher us in but it cleared off before night. R. L. Tinker & myself took up our quarters with some of our old shipmates & chums. The hut or "Chebang" as our fellows call it, in which we live is roofed with four blankets & with logs for walls at the sides. Our "Chebang mates" are Martin Bannon, Jos. Conneton [Connaton], John Foley, Thos. McCarthy, N. K. Suydam [not identified], Alexander Clark, besides Tinker & myself. We are located upon a hillside sloping to the south. A small brook runs through the center of the lot from west to east, & another hillside sloping to the north forms the other side of the enclosure. The lot contains 18 acres & is fenced in with a solid stockade of hard pine logs about 10 or 12 feet high. A light railing runs around inside, 20 feet from the stockade fence. It is called the dead line, & any one who ventures into the forbidden space is liable to be shot by the sentries. Between 19 & 20,000 prisoners are now here, which comprises about all of the prisoners held by the Sesesh [Confederate Government], except officers who are confined at Macon. The rations here are of corn bread & bacon with now & then a few beans & some wood. Five 2nd Mass.Heavy Artillery men, captured at Plymouth N.C. April 20th occupy an extension of our "Chebang" built on to the east end thereof. It is roofed with a couple of blankets & makes the whole length of our establishment three blankets, or about 20 feet." |
| June 3 |
"Pleasant a.m. Thunder shower p.m. We partially rebuilt our "Chebang" in the morning, so that we have not much to fear from the rain in future." |
| June 21 |
"Hewed a lot of firewood off a large log that forms a part of the lower side of our "Chebang". |
| June 26 |
"Pleasant. Began to mess by myself today." |
| July 30 |
"J.Commerfort [not identified] & Geofrey Sparks came in to fill up the "Chebang". |
Enlarging the Stockade
|
1864 |
at Andersonville Prison |
| June 20 | "We had no roll call yesterday nor today& it is said that we are to have none until the enlargement of the stockade is completed." |
| July 1 | "The enlargement of the stockade was completed today and all detachments from 49 up, were marched into the new lot. It is on the north side of the old lot & contains about as much room as is occupied in it. We had a chance to get a supply of firewood from the old stockade fence. I did not move [James was in the 69th detachment] as my present quarters are very good & quite near the line." |
When it rains, it pours!
| 1864 | at Andersonville Prison |
| August 9 | "Cloudy most of the forenoon and in the afternoon we had a tremendous shower, which flooded the camp, & made quite a river of our swamp, & also washed down five large gaps in the stockade, two on the east side & three on the west side. Our rations were not served out on account of the rain." |
To read a different profile of Frederic Augustus James, click one of the items below: