J. Robert Rice, Collector, Civil War Diary of Joshua Rice
Collection
Collection Number: A&M 4335
Civil War diary and other material of Joshua Rice of Greene County, Pennsylvania, documenting his experiences as a member of Company F of the 7th West Virginia Infantry. He joined the unit on 21 September 1861 and was discharged on 8 July 1865.
The diary is 6 in. x 8 in. in size. The first 24 pages document a painting business with customer records identified by name with listings of services and costs for period 1857-1858. The next 86 pages (starting with page “1”) document Rice’s experiences as a soldier in the 7th West Virginia for period 1861-1865. The final 10 pages record Rice’s experiences in the post-war era for period 1865-1881. Access to the original diary requires the permission of a curator; all researchers can use the transcript in folder 3.
The 86 page narrative regarding the Civil War was possibly written after the Civil War, based on notes taken in the field. He records with some consistency: locations correlated to dates; the names of other military units; the names of killed and wounded; and details regarding methods and conditions of travel and transportation, such as marching, railroads, status of roads and bridges, etc. There are also short narratives regarding events to be found throughout the diary. For example, he reports on: hearing speeches by Waitman Willey and others in Morgantown on 15 October 1861; his experiences the day after fighting at Antietam on 18 September 1861; his capture at the Battle of the Wilderness on 6 May 1864, incarceration at Andersonville Prison, and parole on 6 December 1864; and his visits home to Jollytown, Pennsylvania.
Other material in the collection, in addition to the original diary, includes:
folder 1, original diary (120 page document), 1857-1881;
folder 2, diary inserts (letter to future wife Henrietta Fordyce [11 March 1866], one clipping [undated], notes [undated]);
folder 3, diary transcript (64 page document), 1949;
folder 4, Andersonville narrative entitled “Sunshine in Andersonville or Prison Life of Joshua Rice” authored by Rev. F. M. Cain, ca. 1895; and
folder 5, miscellaneous (biographical information on Joshua and Henrietta Rice [undated] and on grandson J. Robert Rice [2018], photo of 7th West Virginia flag [ca. 1997], and copy of photo of Joshua Rice and family [undated]).
foldes 6-8, Digital copy of Bicentennial Edition (4 July 1976) of the newspaper "Democrat Messenger" of Waynesburg, Pennsylvania; includes 30 pages in three sections (A-C) with articles regarding the history of Greene County. (Original copies were returned to the donor.)
The lead article regards Joshua Rice;
other articles regard:
140th Pennsylvania Volunteers who fought in the Civil War,
mining,
newspapers in Greene County, Pennsylvania,
towns in Greene County (Fredericktown, Jefferson, and Rice's Landing),
townships in Greene County,
Waynesburg and Washington Railroad, and
Waynesburg College.
English
Access to the original diary requires the permission of a curator; all researchers can use the transcript in folder 3.
Researchers may access born digital and digitized materials by requesting to view the materials in person by appointment or remotely by contacting the West Virginia & Regional History Center reference department at https://westvirginia.libanswers.com/wvrhc.
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.
The 7th West Virginia Infantry was a Union Army unit that served in the American Civil War. It was a part of the "Gibraltar Brigade". The 7th served with distinction at the sunken road at Antietam, and in repulsing an attack on East Cemetery Hill at Gettysburg. It also participated in actions at Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, and the Overland Campaign.
Joshua Rice was born near Jollytown, Greene County, Pennsylvania on 3 November 1840 and died 2 May 1896. He volunteered to serve in Company F of the 7th West Virginia Infantry in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He is buried in Pleasant Hill Cemetery.
.25 Linear Feet (2 1/2 in. (1 document case))
9.79 Gigabytes (31 files, formats include .tif and .pdf)
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/
Digital content for this collection consists of copies of the diary and of the Bicentennial edition newspaper; the diary can be viewed in paper transcript form (folder 3), and the newspapers can be viewed by accessing the paper color copies (folders 6-8).
Part of the West Virginia and Regional History Center Repository