Rice (Manley Ebenezer) Papers, 1858-1882, bulk 1863-1865

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Summary

Title:
Manley Ebenezer Rice papers
Dates:
1858-1882, bulk 1863-1865
Creators:
Rice, Manley Ebenezer, 1833-1922
Abstract:
A collection of material related to Manley Ebenezer Rice, American Civil War soldier.
Extent:
2.50 Linear Feet (2 boxes)
Language:
Materials are in English.
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item]. Manley Ebenezer Rice papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Background

Scope and content:

The largest part of the collection is the letters that Manley E. Rice wrote to his wife Elizabeth Jane Day Rice from Camp Randall, Madison, Wisconsin, New Orleans, Brownsville and Fort Brown, Texas, Fort Morgan and Fort Gaines, Alabama. The letters posted at Camp Randall describe the training and drills, or rather the lack thereof, veterans of the Vicksburg campaign returning from the battlefield, and former enslaved persons working at the camp. Rice also registered his unhappiness with the state legislators who had failed to appropriate more funds for medical help. The letters then follow Rice's journey from Wisconsin to Texas and Alabama, providing detailed accounts of camp life, his concerns for his family struggling to survive back home, eager anticipations of the "end of this Fratricidal Strife," description of the occupied country, war news, including the evacuation of Fort Brown, John Salmon Ford's operations at Fort Brownsville in the summer of 1864 and other operations in southern Texas, the battle for Mobile, Alabama, the peace negotiations, the Fourth of July, the first anniversary of the fall of Vicksburg celebration at Brownsville, and the hospital at Fort Gaines, including former enslaved persons employed there. Rice vividly describes the shock of the news of Lincoln's assassination that found him in New Orleans, noting that there were "several shot for rejoicing over the death of the President" and the shooting was "mostly done by Colored Troops." He also cited very tangible threats made against Confederate prisoners held at Fort Gaines. Also included are letters that George W. Day wrote to his sister describing the stay at Benton Barracks, the march to Springfield, Missouri, an expedition to Cross Hollows over Boston Mountains, the siege of Vicksburg, and duty at Navy Cove, near Fort Morgan, Alabama. Day recounted war news and rumors, his combat experience and camp life, including his courtship of "a negro girl" in Mississippi whom he intended to marry. Also included are letters by Frank Rice from Monticello, Iowa, San Francisco, Placerville, Carson City, and a few letters by Elizabeth Jane Day Rice, her sisters and in-laws, and other family members. The letters of William Sinks, Rice's brother-in-law, describe his farm in Wellington, Monroe County, Wisconsin. Also in the collection are miscellaneous manuscripts, including sundry recipes, a resolution of the Temple of Honor and Temperance, Boscobel, Wisconsin, on the passing of George M. Rice (1878), a "War Song of the 18th Regiment of Wisconsin Volunteers," by Emma Day, and a copy of the New Testament presented to M.E. Rice by David Black of Belltown, Wisconsin, February 27, 1864.

Biographical / historical:

Manley Ebenezer Rice (1833-1922), a schoolteacher from Monticello, Iowa, joined the 20th Regiment of Wisconsin Volunteers, Company I, in February 1864. His brother-in-law, George W. Day, was serving in the same company, having enlisted in September of 1862 and fought in the Vicksburg Campaign. Rice joined the regiment at Fort Brown, Texas, where it was posted on garrison duty in November 1863. In August 1864, the regiment was moved to Fort Morgan, Alabama, and in the spring of 1865 took part in the campaign against Mobile. In June of 1865, the men were ordered to Galveston, Texas, where they remained until mustered out on July 14, 1865. In November of 1864, Rice was admitted to the General Hospital at Fort Gaines, Dauphine Island, Mobile Bay, Alabama, and remained there, as a convalescent nurse, for the remainder of his service. After the war, Manley Rice and his family moved to Sioux City, Iowa where he worked as a contractor. He died in Council Bluffs, Iowa in 1922. Manley's brother Frank Rice (1837-1916) moved to California in the late 1850s to mine for gold and eventually settled in Placerville. His other brother, James Rice, remained at Monticello, tending to the family farm.

Acquisition information:
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Roy Stevens, April 2006.
Processing information:

Processed by Olga Tsapina in 2007; in May 2026, Gayle M. Richardson created the finding aid.

Arrangement:

Arranged chronologically.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Gayle M. Richardson
Date Encoded:
This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2026-05-18 08:19:16 -0700 .

Access and use

Restrictions:

Open for use by qualified researchers and by appointment. Please contact Reader Services at the Huntington Library for more information.

Terms of access:

The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such activities. The responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and obtaining necessary permissions rests with the researcher.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item]. Manley Ebenezer Rice papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Location of this collection:
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108, US
Contact:
(626) 405-2191
reference@huntington.org
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