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Table of contents What's This?
  • Conditions Governing Access
  • Immediate Source of Acquisition
  • Arrangement
  • Biographical / Historical
  • Preferred Citation
  • Content Description
  • Conditions Governing Use

  • Contributing Institution: Center for American War Letters Archives
    Title: Temple Family correspondence
    source: Byron, Carl R.
    Creator: Temple, Charles W., First Sergeant, 1838-1908
    Creator: Temple, Albert H., 1832-1920
    Creator: Brigham née Temple, Helen
    Identifier/Call Number: 2021.037.w.r
    Physical Description: 0.05 Linear Feet (2 folders)
    Date (inclusive): 1857 August 16 - 1924 February 5
    Abstract: This collection contains 18 correspondence between members of the Temple family from 1857 to 1924, including correspondence from Charles W. Temple while serving during the Philippine-American War.
    Language of Material: English .
    Container: Philippine American War 1
    Container: 4-5
    Container: 1-2

    Conditions Governing Access

    This collection is open for research.

    Immediate Source of Acquisition

    Gift of Carl R. Byron.

    Arrangement

    This collection is arranged by chronology and material type.

    Biographical / Historical

    First Sergeant Charles W. Temple, United States Army (3/7/1838 - 9/8/1908) was born in Manchester, Vermont to Jabez Temple and had seven siblings, including Albert H. Temple (wife Ellen) and Helen "Nellie" Temple Brigham who was a prominent inspirational speaker in New York at the end of the nineteenth century. In 1861, for reasons unknown, Charles joined to fight in the Civil War for the Confederate Army; with conflicting reports that he either served with the 1st Mississippi Brigade or the 1st Louisiana Regiment, though he is reported to have served under several prominent generals and incurred injuries at the Second Battle of Bull Run.
    Later, Charles enlisted with the United States Army in 1875 under the alias Austin Park and served in various locations, including Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Missouri, and the Dakotas predominantly in Army actions against smugglers, thieves, and actions against Native Americans. He left on furlough several times, and particularly in 1896 for several months to help his brother Albert build a homestead in Colrain, Massachusetts; a home that stayed in the family into the late twentieth century and was the home of the donor at birth and later in life.
    In 1898 his regiment left for Cuba to fight in the Spanish-American War while he was on detachment and did not deploy with them. In 1899, he deployed with his regiment to the Philippines to fight in the Philippine-American War. After falling ill, he returned to the States to a convalescent hospital in San Francisco aboard the USS Sherman before returning with his unit to serve out his enlistment aboard the USAT Meade. He reenlisted once more at the age of 60 before retiring at Fort Leavenworth on October 18, 1904. While mustering out, Helen convinced Charles to correct the record of his name with the Army by officially changing his name from Austin Park to Charles W. Temple. He lived with his nephew Clarence, his sister Helen's son, and suffered from cancer until his death in 1908.

    Preferred Citation

    [Item title / description; Box "n" / Folder "n"], Temple Family correspondence (2021.037.w.r), Center for American War Letters Archives, Chapman University, CA.
    For the benefit of current and future researchers, please cite any additional information about sources consulted in this collection, including permanent URLs, item or folder descriptions, and box/folder locations.

    Content Description

    This collection contains 18 correspondence between members of the Temple family from 1857 to 1924, including correspondence from Charles W. Temple while serving during the Philippine-American War. Other authors include his brother Albert H. Temple, his sister Helen Temple Brigham, and various unknown or unrelated authors. Also included in the collection are one small typed biography of Charles Temple written by the donor, his great-great-grand-nephew, a timeline of his military service, and photocopied documents relating to his service as alias Austin Park, including his name change back to Charles W. Temple.
    Of note are letters written by Charles while serving in the Army during the Philippine-American War; two from Honolulu, Hawaii and two from a convalescent hospital in San Francisco. His descriptions of Hawaii were very colorful and he admired the people and landscape very much. From the convalescent hospital, he first discussed his illness, which was apparently bad enough for him to be sent to the States from the Philippine front, and his later letter discussed standing guard and hoping to return to the Philippines rather than finish his enlistment at the hospital.
    • "I have never thought that there was such a perfectly lovely spot upon the great earth which we inhabit – as this most beautiful island it is of no use for me to attempt to describe it. The wildest flights of the most beatific dream would never do an iota of justice to this most perfect of Gods handiwork, if the Lords Angels enjoy a more beautiful resting place than this paradise then they are blessed indeed, and I have an intense longing to share their blessing even if I cannot be an angel, and if an inexorable fate decrees that I cannot go to heaven then I shall implore the savior to let me go to Honolulu."
    • "It touches my heart to see the many flag draped coffins that pass my ward every day, poor fellows from the Phillipines [sic] how little people know (here) of the number of killed and dead of disease that are yet to come, the people here understand it but I believe the press is muzzled. Don't for your life have any part of my letters published."
    • "As soon as I have been at duty another month I intend making application to be sent back to the Phillipines [sic] to finish my present enlistment which will amount to a year and four months. A letter from Luzon informs me that the conditions where my regiment is stationed along the Rio Grande are the same as when I left the insurecto's [sic] taking pot-shots at the Boys every time that they get a chance."
    • "About 50 miles out we passed near the Island Molokaii [sic][crossed out] of the unclean, leppers (Molokai) is its name it is a large Island some 18 by 28 miles in area (so I am told). Nobody visits it except a government boat which lands supplies for the unfortunate people and then sails away to repeat its visits from time to time as the occasion requires. Their lot seems a hard one isolated from the world. The only change for them is that which starts them on the voyage to the unknown, where the weary are at rest.___almost as gloomy a prospect as going to Luzon."

    Inventory of letters:

    • August 16, 1857: unknown author to cousin Esther, from Madison (Wisconsin?)
    • July 12, 1874: N.B. Chidester to "Aunt," from Chicago
    • June 18, 1879: Mr. Wallace to Auntie Thompson in Colrain
    • January 14, 1891: unknown (illegible) to Mrs. Temple (presumably Ellen)
    • July 1, 1895: one medical receipt for "Mr. Temple"
    • December 26, 1897: Helen Temple Brigham to Albert H. Temple
    • February 10, 1899: Charles to Helen, from Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands
    • February 2, 1901: Charles to Helen, from hospital in San Francisco
    • June 23, 1901: Charles to Helen, from hospital in San Francisco
    • August 27, 1901: Charles to Helen, from Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands
    • November 30, 1906: Helen to Albert and Ellen
    • February 30, 1907: Charles to Albert, from skin and cancer hopsital in New York
    • March 14, 1907: J.A. Ives to Ellen and Albert
    • September 18, 1907: unknown (possibly Helen) to "Brother and Sister," from Manchester, Vermont
    • December 8, 1914: Mary and Cyrus Ives to Albert (Mary is Albert's niece)
    • December 22, 1914: Note to Albert from Mary informing him of George's passing
    • May 1917: Helen to Albert
    • December 12, 1922: Helen to Ellen
    • February 5, 1924: unknown to "Aunt Ellen"

    Conditions Governing Use

    There are no restrictions on the use of this material except where previously copyrighted material is concerned. It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain all permissions.

    Subjects and Indexing Terms

    Spanish-American War, 1898
    Philippines -- History -- Philippine American War, 1899-1902
    Byron, Carl R.