Do They Miss Me at Home? : The Civil War Letters of William McKnight, Seventh Ohio Volunteer Cavalry

Donald C Maness
Ohio University Press
 9780821419144
0-8214-1914-5

William McKnight was a member of the Seventh Ohio Volunteer Cavalry from September 1862 until his death in June of 1864. During his time of service, McKnight penned dozens of emotion-filled letters, primarily.

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to his wife, Samaria, revealing the struggles of an entire family both before and during the war.This collection of more than one hundred letters provides in-depth accounts of several battles in Kentucky and Tennessee, such as the Cumberland Gap and Knoxville campaigns that were pivotal events in the Western Theater. The letters also vividly respond to General John Hunt Morgans raid through Ohio and correct claims previously published that McKnight was part of the forces chasing Morgan. By all accounts Morgan did stay for a period of time at McKnights home in Langsville during his raid through Ohio, much to McKnights horror and humiliation, but McKnight was in Kentucky at the time. Tragically, McKnight was killed in action nearly a year later during an engagement with Morgans men near Cynthiana, Kentucky.