Fabricius A. Cather, Soldier, Civil War Diaries
Collection
Collection Number: A&M 3633
This collection contains seven volumes, six of which are the original diaries authored by Fabricius A. Cather, documenting the years 1860-1865; the seventh is a manuscript copy of the original 1864 and 1865 diaries (which are in the collection) that were transcribed by Thomas H. Cather, his son, in 1904. There is a minor discrepancy between the original diary and the transcript involving the entries of March 8, 9, and 10, 1865. Although the original... contains entries for each of these days, the transcript does not. All references to Helen V. Mallonee, his future wife, are in code or "cipher" in the original diaries of 1864 and 1865, perhaps due to the Confederate sympathies of her family. These coded passages are deciphered in the transcript. They were married in August, 1865.
Statistics regarding casualties, and captured arms, livestock, and military property are recorded for most of the battles. Narratives of events regarding the surrender at Appomattox and the Grand Army of the Republic passing in review in Washington D.C. close the series. Other subjects and events prominent in the diaries are: elections, secession, treason, illness and disease, family, friends, the Cather's farm, travel, church and social events, scouting, guerrillas, retaliation, and the stealing, burning, and destruction of property; locations include: Grafton, Bridgeport, Wheeling, Corricks Ford, Cheat Mountain, Martinsburg, Winchester, Cedar Creek, Front Royal, New Market, Lexington, Lynchburg, Charlottesville, Richmond, Five Forks and Saylor's Creek, among others.
Although most diary entries are one or two sentences in length, some entries in 1864 and 1865 are longer, perhaps due to Cather's full involvement in combat.
No special access restriction applies.
Permission to publish or reproduce is required from the copyright holder. For more information, please see the Permissions and Copyright page on the West Virginia and Regional History Center website.
Fabricius Augustus Cather was born on May 12, 1840 in Harrison County, Virginia, but he called Flemington, West Virginia home. His occupation was farming and raising cattle, before and after the war. Cather's style of writing and his vocabulary indicates he probably had received an education beyond the basic public school curriculum of the times. He followed his family into the political fray of the early 1860s against secession with a determination... to save the Union, and to separate from Virginia to create the state of West Virginia. Thomas Cather, F.A.'s father, was elected a state senator in 1861, representing the counties of Taylor, Monongalia, and Preston in the Restored Government of Virginia.
Political activity spilled into military action when F.A. Cather volunteered for the Grafton Guards Militia in the spring of 1861 to protect his home from the "arms of secessionists." He served with the rank of First Lieutenant of Company B as his unit was sworn into the US Army in May, 1861. After his involvement in early battles and skirmishes in western Virginia, Cather's health failed and he was forced to resign from the US Army for two years. He still remained active in local politics and the militia, dealing with Rebel cavalry and guerrilla raids. Cather reenlisted in the US Army in February 1864 and was assigned to the First West Virginia Cavalry, Company K, returning to the rank of First Lieutenant. He was soon in charge of the company and later promoted to captain. Cather and his command were engaged in the last major eastern campaigns of the war, including the Shenandoah Valley, the breaking of the siege lines at Petersburg, and the pursuit of Lee's Army to Appomattox.
F.A. Cather received an honorable discharge as a Major in July, 1865. He married Helen V. Mallonee in August 1865 and had four children. Fabricius Augustus Cather died of illness in October, 1876.
0.3 Linear Feet (3 1/2 in. (1 flat storage box); (1 rolled genealogy chart))
English
Civil War diaries authored by First Lieutenant (later Major) Fabricius A. Cather from Flemington, Taylor County, West Virginia, records his experiences in the military and political conflicts of the Civil War. The six diaries, and a transcribed copy of the original 1864 and 1865 diaries, contain entries for the years 1860 to 1865 regarding western Virginia's grassroots efforts to secede from the Confederacy and establish a new state, and of the first battles and skirmishes such as Rich Mountain and Corricks Ford. He describes campaigns involving his regiment, the First West Virginia Cavalry, including the 1864 Shenandoah Valley Campaign under Sigel, Hunter, Sheridan, and Custer against Breckenridge, Early, and Mosby's Rangers; the last battles of Petersburg as Grant broke the Rebel lines; and the continuous fighting during Lee's retreat. Although most diary entries are one or two sentences in length, some entries in 1864 and 1865 are longer, perhaps due to his full involvement in combat. The collection also contains 18 items stored in pockets inside the covers of the diaries, including headquarters passes, business cards, and a complimentary pass for Lt. Cather to attend the June, 1861 "NorthWestern Virginia Convention" in Wheeling. An Addendum includes two scans of photos of Cather, two scans of Civil War military service papers, photocopies of an 1873 Kansas Land Grant, and genealogy material documenting the Cather family.
West Virginia and Regional History Center / West Virginia University / 1549 University Avenue / P.O. Box 6069 / Morgantown, WV 26506-6069 / Phone: 304-293-3536 / Fax: 304-293-3981 / URL: https://wvrhc.lib.wvu.edu/
Part of the West Virginia and Regional History Center Repository