The soldier wrote a letter home, telling of the various duties he held, about his encampment, the love for his mom her and how he would have written more if there had been more time.
And, although it was written almost 250 years ago and the vernacular is a little different than today, much of the sentiment would be recognizable in missives of modern-day soldiers.
This letter, written by Sgt. James Grubb, to his cousin, Father Cloud, was penned during the Revolutionary War and is house at the Delaware County Historical Society Museum, Library & Research Center.
On Nov. 26, 1776, Grubb wrote he was living in tents with his fellow soldiers “opposite York.”
“To be or not to be a Soldier is (the question) when Soldiers live so well,” he wrote in beautiful, flowing script, as he continued to describe York as a beautiful country with “fine buildings but the streets are badly laid out.”
However, he explained he didn’t have a lot of free time, as they had “very strict rules” in his regiment and he had to wait until the other companies arrived.
Grubb told of his duties as a sentry standing on the shore, with boats having to come within “musket shot of us.”
He explained he was in good health and thanked God for that.
Yet, he said, “I just came out of church, my hand was cold, I could hardly hold the pen.”
Grubb asked his cousin to “let my mother know my situation. I remember my love to her.”
And, of course, he asks about other family members and “inquiring friends,” saying, “I would have wrote … had time (permitted).”
The Revolutionary War letter is part of the collection at the Delaware County Historical Society Museum, Library & Research Center. The museum is open to the public from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday and Friday; 1 to 6:30 p.m. Thursday; and 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday. The museum’s telephone number is 610-872-0502. Parking is free on the society lot behind the building or across the street in the municipal lot.
Membership in the Delaware County Historical Society ranges from $10 for students, $27 for individuals to $250 at the patron level. It includes free admission to the society’s Chester museum and library at 408 Avenue of the States, the society newsletter and preferred reservations and discounts for lectures and events. To join, please visit www.padelcohistory.org or call 610-359-0832.
The gorgeous penmanship of the Revolutionary War soldier can be seen in his letter home stored at the Delaware County Historical Society Museum, Library & Research Center.