Essick, John E.

Diary, 1861 April 20-June 19; July 15-25

Essick, John E.
Rank:	Private
Regiment:	4th Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment. Co. B (1861)
Service:	1861 April 20-July 27

Background note:

The 4th Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment was recruited in mid-April, 1861, in response to the secession crisis and bombardment of Fort Sumter. Originating in the 1st Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 2nd Division of the State Militia, it consisted of six companies raised in Norristown, Montgomery County. Among its recruits were John E. Essick of Norristown, Pa., who enlisted for three months duty.

The 4th Pennsylvania Infantry was one of the earliest northern regiments to enter Maryland, taking possession of Perryville, Md., on April 21st, and moving on to Annapolis the next day and to Washington, D.C., on May 8. The regiment had been rushed into service with such alacrity that they did not even receive uniforms or proper equipment until well into June. Like many of the soldiers in the regiment, Essick was stricken with illness under the poor camp conditions, and spent four weeks of his short enlistment on the sick list.

The regiment served for the remainder of its enlistment in the vicinity of Washington, quartered at first in the city, and later in Bladensburg, Alexandria, and on Shuter's Hill. On June 30, they experienced their only engagement when three pickets of the 4th confronted a small party of Confederates. All three suffered injuries, one man dying of his wounds.

Scope and Contents:

There was never a regimental history written for the 4th Pennsylvania Infantry, perhaps because they did so little of military note. This little diary covers the regiment's entire service, except for four weeks when Essick was ill. It is mundane and unexciting, and is no doubt an accurate reflection of Essick's experiences, which included a succession of drills and parades, punctuated by the doldrums of camp life and army food. A continuing thread of the diary is the topic of uniforms: the lengthy battle to get them and somewhat profuse description of how nice they looked once on soldiers' backs.

M-1898
Cat. 10/96 rsc

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