Simeon B. Gibbons Letter, 1861, Ms.2015.046

Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech

Special Collections and University Archives, University Libraries (0434)
560 Drillfield Drive
Newman Library, Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, Virginia 24061
Business Number: 540-231-6308
specref@vt.edu
URL: http://spec.lib.vt.edu

Kira A. Dietz, Archivist

Administrative Information

Use Restrictions

Permission to publish material from Simeon B. Gibbons Letter must be obtained from Special Collections, Virginia Tech.

Access Restrictions

Collection is open for research.

Preferred Citation

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: Simeon B. Gibbons Letter, Ms2015-046, Special Collections, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Acquisition Information

The collection was purchased by Special Collections in 2015.

Processing Information

The processing, arrangement, and description of the Simeon B. Gibbons Letter was completed in September 2015.

Biographical Note

Simeon Beauford Gibbons was born in Page County, Virginia, in 1833, to Samuel and Christina (Miller) Gibbons. He attended and graduated from Virginia Military Institute (VMI) in 1852, later serving on the school's Board of Visitors. He was the Colonel 4th Virginia Volunteers (Militia) from 1859-1860. On April 18, 1861, he enlisted and was commissioned Colonel of the 10th Regiment Virginia Infantry. One company, the Valley Guards, was organized before the John Brown raid at Harper's Ferry with Gibbons as captain. Gibbons was promoted to Colonel prior to his death in action at McDowell, Virginia, May 8, 1862. Gibbons is buried in Woodbine Cemetery, Harrisonburg, Virginia.

Samuel Gibbons was born in 1806 in Virginia. Some time after the Civil War, he moved to Georgia, where he was living in 1870, according to census records.

Sources: Murphy, Terrance V. 10th Virginia Infantry . Lynchburg, VA: H. E. Howard, Inc., 1989. " Col Simeon Beauford Gibbons " on Find A Grave. Ancestry Library Edition.

Scope and Content

The collection consists of a letter from Simeon B. Gibbons, written at Harrisonburg, Virgina, to his father on April 8, 1861. The letter includes details of family members and business, both financial and personal, as well as news about the activities of Gibbon's regiment. Gibbon's letter also provides his father with contact information for a man looking to sell two slaves.