Conditions Governing Use

Manuscript collections in the VMI Archives are made available for educational and research use. The VMI Archives should be cited as the source. The user assumes all responsibility for identifying and satisfying any copyright holders. Materials from our collections may not be redistributed, published or reproduced without permission from the VMI Archives.Contact the VMI Archives for additional information.

Conditions Governing Access

There are no restrictions

Preferred Citation

John H. Shields letters, 1862-1864. MS 0045. VMI Archives, Virginia Military Institute, Lexington, Virginia.

Biographical / Historical

John Hardy Shields was born in 1846 in Lynchburg, Virginia. He graduated VMI in 1867 and was a New Market cadet. After the Civil War, Shields was a businessman in Richmond, Virginia. He died in 1876 in a railroad accident.

Scope and Contents

The John H. Shields letters consist of three letters written by Shields to his parents while he was a cadet at VMI. Two letters are dated March 24 and April 7, 1864, and one letter is an undated fragment. In addition to routine matters, the letter of March 24 mentions faculty member Thomas H. Williamson going to Panther's Gap to "survey the land, and make arrangements for throwing up fortifications and breastworks," and discusses how cadets coped with the rationing of food.

Also included is an unrelated document field dispatch (dated July 31, 1862) from A.P. Mason to Brigadier General Charles S. Winder that mentions General Robert E. Lee.

Addition 2009 April: A photocopy of a letter dated February 14, 1863. The letter regards family news, a visit from Shields' father, and cadet life.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• Correspondence
• Lee, Robert E. (Robert Edward), 1807-1870
• New Market Cadets
• Virginia Military Institute—Cadet life—1860-1869
• Virginia Military Institute—Class of 1867
• Williamson, Thomas H. (Thomas Hoomes), 1813-1888