Lieutenant of the 28th Pennsylvania Infantry

3 pages, 7 3/4 x 10, in ink.

Bridesburg, [PA.], March 30th, 1863

Lieut. Calvin S. Hartley, Comp. "K"
28th Regt. P.V.

Dear Sir,

The undersigned residents and citizens of Bridesburg (PA.) desiring to testify in a substantial manner their appreciation of your conduct as a soldier and their pleasure at your advancement as an officer have procured for you the accompanying sword belt and sash of which we beg your acceptance as in earnest of our good feeling and our wishes that your success in [the] future may be as heretofore the reward of merit.

In times like these our country needs the help of every devoted loyal heart either in word or action or both, those who by the concurrence of circumstances are prevented from joining you in the field should do what they can to sustain the hands of the government and of the soldiers who have gone to fight our battles, and in doing these things much can be, much must be done at home. It is with the feeling that such is our duty and as one manifestation of our desire to support and encourage our gallant soldiers that we present you this slight mark of our esteem.

Deem it not unworthy of your acceptance, believe us, your friends are constantly looking for news of your actions and hail with delight every new success.

Keep this sword as a momento of us and let your heart & hand be strong to fight the battles of the right against wrong, and our prayers for your success as well as our good wishes shall be ever with you.

Below this beautiful tribute to Lieutenant Calvin S. Hartley are the names of 53 citizens of Bridesburg, Pa. who made this presentation.

Light age toning and wear. Some fold splits have been repaired with archival document tape. Neatly written with very desirable content.

This manuscript came out of the personal papers of Captain Calvin S. Hartley, 28th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry. Hartley, from Philadelphia, Pa., enlisted in the Union Army on July 20, 1861, as a private, and was mustered into Co. K, 28th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry. He was promoted to 1st Lieutenant on March 1, 1863, and Captain on August 5, 1863. He was mustered out of the service on July 18, 1865, at Washington, D.C. After the Civil War he was a member of the Abraham Lincoln, G.A.R. Post #91, in Chicago, Illinois. He died on January 26, 1905.

The 28th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry fought at Antietam, Md., on September 17, 1862, where they lost 47 killed, and 91 wounded, and 1 missing. At Chancellorsville, Va., May 1-3, 1863, they lost 15 killed, 30 wounded, and 4 captured. At Gettysburg, Pa., on July 3, 1863, the regiment had 4 killed, 8 wounded, and 1 captured. During the 1864 Atlanta, Ga. campaign, the regiment lost 17 killed, 46 wounded and 2 captured.

TRIVIA: Founded in the early 19th century, Bridesburg, Pa., is a section in the northernmost neighborhood in the River Wards section of Philadelphia. A mostly working class neighborhood, it is an historically German and Irish community, with a significant number of Polish immigrants living there too. The historic boundaries of the former borough of Bridesburg were the original course of Frankford Creek around the south and west, the Delaware River to the southeast, and Port Richmond to the southwest. Before the arrival of Europeans, the Lenni Lenape Indians inhabited the region. Explorer Henry Hudson in 1609 was the first European to set foot in this region, and based on his findings these Indians were considered to be the first inhabitants of the area. Bridesburg was incorporated as a borough on April 1, 1848. In 1854, the borough was annexed to the city of Philadelphia in the Act of Consolidation.