Below is a letter written July 29, 1862.

This letter was found by my father-in-law, the late Jacob I Young, in the family Bible of his parents, William and Ruth Moore Young.

The Bible had been in the hands of several of the young children and misplaced for several years. When it was given to Mr Young, a few years prior to his death in 1951, by a neighbor who had come into possession of it, it contained the letter.

Mr Young had no knowledge of the writer, but as there was a David Parker in the county about the turn of the century, perhaps someone seeing the letter printed will recognize the name.

The letter was written on a small, frayed sheet of paper, evidently torn from a small pocket notebook.

To me, the letter is a tender gesture of a husband to ease the worry and heartache of the wife of a soldier, who was like wives through the ages standing behind the soldiers of all wars with troubled hearts and prayerful lips.

The letter follows with the spelling reproduced as it appears in the old manuscript:

"July 29, 1862

Dear Wife

This is to sertifie that I am well this morning. I stated in my letter on yesterday that it was expected that we would have to fight fourth with but I can say to you that our Colonel had returned from down towards Newburn and he says that the Yankees are going back towards Newburn and he says that we don't think we will have any fighting now. The Yankees have only taken one Company of our Cavilry. I wrote this morning and have my letter to brake open to put it in. So no more.

"David Parker"