Michigan in the Civil War
Browse by Name: Davis, Ferdinand
Davis, Ferdinand, b. 1840
Personal recollections of service in the Civil War, written in 1904. Davis was a lieutenant in Company C, 7th New Hampshire Infantry, 1861-1864, on detached service during the last year. He describes camp life in St. Augustine, Fla.; execution of deserters; a murder and a hanging; the hospital at Beaufort, S. C.; battles and skirmishes which include the siege of Fort Wagner, firing on Charleston, the attack on Olustee, the battle of Drury's Bluff, action in the trenches before Petersburg with an account of the colored troops and their band, and on the road to Richmond. He defines "Swamp Angel." Letters of Ferdinand Davis are found in the papers of R. C. Davis.
Davis, R. C. (Raymond Cazallis), b. 1836
The papers of this librarian at the University of Michigan include three letters (Sept. 1861-May 1862) from Ferdinand Davis, giving his reason for enlisting and speaking of the pay and bounties to be received. The letters mention the activities of his regiment (7th New Hampshire Infantry) at Fort Jefferson, describing heavy artillery practice, and enclose a manuscript "Bird's Eye View" of Fort Jefferson.
The collection also includes a letter (June 15, 1862) written by George A. Flanders from Fort Macomb, La., to Raymond Davis, telling of the voyage from Boston to Ship Island and of the possible movements of his regiment. Flanders was in Company F, 8th New Hampshire Infantry.