Widows by the Thousand: The Civil War Letters of Theophilus and Harriet Perry, 1862-1864 (review)

Widows by the Thousands is the fourth volume in the Civil War in the West series. Although the universe of Civil War publications seems boundless, this series makes it more manageable by limiting its scope to the war in the western states and territories. In this volume the military and social effects of the war on the Trans-Mississippi region are revealed through the correspondence between Theophilus Perry and his wife, Harriet. Theophilus Perry was a twenty-eight-year-old lawyer when Texas seceded from the Union. One year later, after the Confederate government passed the conscription act, Perry enlisted in the 28th Texas Cavalry (dismounted), later known as "Walker's Greyhounds." As he and his wife began to correspond, Harriet warned him "don't throw my letters around so any one could see them, be careful with them or destroy them." Fortunately, these letters and others to the Perrys' extended family survived and provide us with a moving account of the impact of the war on one family.

Perry began the war as a detached officer in Arkansas in the winter of 1862-63, and his first letters discuss camp life, his opinion as to the purpose of the war, and his growing confidence in his ability as an officer. In July 1863 Perry assumed command of Company F, and for the first time he writes of his willingness to fight (although Walker's division traveled almost 1,200 miles during the Vicksburg campaign, Perry never saw active combat during this period). He also became somewhat obsessed with his debts and wrote Harriet detailed instructions concerning their finances. He predicted that Confederate currency would soon be worthless and that the value of "our Negro property will be rendered very insecure and precarious." Perry was wise to put his affairs in order because he finally experienced combat during the Red River campaign. He was mortally wounded at the battle of Pleasant Hill and died April 17, 1864, fulfilling Harriet's prediction that "war makes its widows by the thousand."

While Perry's letters detail a military experience spent on the border areas of the Confederacy, Harriet's letters are bursting with the details of everyday life. As an elite slave-owning woman, Harriet faced the challenge of managing the family's estate and business affairs. She wrote of shortages, inflated prices, and hiring out slaves. She gave birth to a son and buried a daughter, and her letters are unusually explicit when discussing her pregnancy, nursing, and her hope to have no more children. Both husband and wife wrote of their desperate loneliness, and Harriet's detailed description of the war-torn world around her helped Theophilus appreciate her sacrifice. Despite her anxiety over his fate and depression caused by their separation, Harriet never encouraged her husband to resign his commission.

Widows by the Thousands reminds us of how important letters were in the past in maintaining family bonds, and how significant they are today in giving readers a sense of immediacy. The context of the letters is enhanced by the inclusion of an introduction, chapter summaries, notes, and maps. The editor and press are to be commended for a worthy production of how one couple, at home and in combat, experienced the war.