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Failes, Horace (Civil War correspondence)
2017.516.w.r
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Table of contents
Contributing Institution:
Center for American War Letters Archives
Title: Horace Failes Civil War correspondence
source:
Peruzzi née Fales, Susan
Creator:
Failes, Horace, Sergeant, b. 1836
Identifier/Call Number: 2017.516.w.r
Physical Description:
.03 Linear Feet
(1 folder)
Date (bulk): 1861 September 3 - 1865 March 19
Date (inclusive): 1861 September 3 - 1972 February 17
Abstract: This collection contains correspondence from Sgt. Horace Failes to his sister Elepsia Spencer during the American Civil War.
Language of Material:
English
.
Container: Civil War 1
Container: 24
Container: 1
This collection is open for research.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Susan Peruzzi, on behalf of the Fales family.
This collection is arranged in chronological order, with corresponding transcriptions behind each letter.
Sergeant Horace Failes, First Pennsylvania Reserve Cavalry, Company G was born around 1836 in either Pennsylvania or New York.
According to the letter from Harold Fales, the grandson of Sgt. Failes, and Ancestry.com, Horace was mostly from Pennsylvania
and married Margaret Emaline Moore in 1870. Sgt. Failes enlisted in the three eleventh service and served his time, then
enlisting on August 28, 1861 in the First Pennsylvania Cavalry according to the First Pennsylvania regimental history. He
mentions in his letters that he fought in the Battle of Fredericksburg, and approached Richmond. However, he was also involved
in many if not all of the action that included the First Penn Cavalry including the Second Battle of Bull Run, Gettysburg,
and the Appomattox surrender of General Robert E. Lee and his Army. According to the unit history, as found cited on Ancestry.com,
Sgt. Failes was promoted to Sergeant during that time and mustered out of service June20, 1865. He passed away in 1880 in
Montgomery, PA.
Horace spells his name "Failes," the family later changed the name to "Fales."
[Item title / description; Box "n" / Folder "n"], Horace Failes Civil War correspondence (2017.516.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.
This collection contains seven correspondence from Sgt. Horace Failes to his sister Elepsia Spencer during the American Civil
War. Horace wrote about joining the service in defense of his country with the First Pennsylvania Reserve Cavalry, Company
G. Later he mentions the sadness after the Battle of Fredericksburgh, and being held beyond his three years until the end
of the war, and then his own reenlistment for another three years.
Of particular note is Sgt. Failes' reenlistment in February 1864. He describes the low pay for the first three years and
not wanting to miss the higher pay that the new soldiers would receive. However, his motives are more set on the fact that
two-thirds of his regiment reenlisted and he could not leave them behind until the war is over, he has "too much pride" for
his country.
In April 1864, Sgt. Failes' letter mentions the guerillas near his camp in Virginia and the newspapers discouraging those
at home, stating that the next Union loss would be the loss of the country. He dispels this and says the sun never shone
on a better army, and "we must conquer those vile traters."
In June 1864, Sgt. Failes alludes to the horrors of war after fighting for thirty days and losing men. He also says he is
encamped ten miles outside of Richmond, the Confederate capital. His final letter of March 1865 speaks of duty to fight, for
his country and for God, and contains a very moving passage on God's will if he should fall.
The collection also contains one letter to a Mr. Brooke from a Mr. Clyde explaining the death of Mr. Brooke's son, and one
letter from Failes' grandson Harold Failes with more information about the collection, dated 1972.
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
Correspondence -- American Civil War
United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865
United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- letters and diaries
War -- Death notification
Peruzzi née Fales, Susan