| Tell the Children I'll Be Home When the Peaches Get Ripe Letters Home From Lt. Robert Gaines Haile, Jr., Essex Sharpshooters, 55th Va., 1862 Compiled and Edited by Robert M. Tombes |
Robert and Mollie had been married five years in May 1861 when he left Beavers Hill
plantation for good and reported for duty at Tappahannock. His youngest daughter, Betty,
was only three months old. During the next year, while stationed along the Rappahannock
and around Fredericksburg and Richmond, Haile escorted Mrs. Robert E. Lee back from
behind enemy lines, watched Prof. Lowe spy from his balloon, shot at Yankee sentinels,
and shared coffee and whiskey with Union officers. He watched men die, bemoaned
cowardice, and lamented the loss of a friend from Essex, William Latane. Haile expressed
insightful opinions about fighting for the Confederate Army, but above all, his letters were
filled with affection and concern for his wife and three daughters back on the farm.
Robert M. Tombes, Haile's great-great-grandson and professor at Virginia
Commonwealth University, compiled and edited these letters and documents -- along the
way re-discovering his own Virginia heritage.
plantation for good and reported for duty at Tappahannock. His youngest daughter, Betty,
was only three months old. During the next year, while stationed along the Rappahannock
and around Fredericksburg and Richmond, Haile escorted Mrs. Robert E. Lee back from
behind enemy lines, watched Prof. Lowe spy from his balloon, shot at Yankee sentinels,
and shared coffee and whiskey with Union officers. He watched men die, bemoaned
cowardice, and lamented the loss of a friend from Essex, William Latane. Haile expressed
insightful opinions about fighting for the Confederate Army, but above all, his letters were
filled with affection and concern for his wife and three daughters back on the farm.
Robert M. Tombes, Haile's great-great-grandson and professor at Virginia
Commonwealth University, compiled and edited these letters and documents -- along the
way re-discovering his own Virginia heritage.
| This books is available for sale at the Essex County Museum in Tappahannock. Explore their web site at essexmuseum.org. Visit the Essex Inn (essexinnva.com), a beautiful, historic bed and breakfast located just a block from the museum. |