1864 LOT OF TWO [2] HANDWRITTEN CIVIL WAR ERA MANUSCRIPT DIARIES BY A RYE NEW HAMPSHIRE MAN BUSY WITH THE PORTSMOUTH NAVAL YARD

On offer are two [2] original 1864 Civil War era handwritten diaries kept by Charles E. Sleeper of Rye New Hampshire. Interesting and enigmatic, Mr. Sleeper kept the two books, one being sporadic with blocks of time missing while the other having been shared it seems by Mr. Sleeper and an unidentified partner. The shared book is almost fully written while the former is perhaps 50% written. Both include daily weather, election news, local news, yellow fever deaths, specified local events and a great deal about the Navy Yard where Mr. Sleeper spent a great deal of time. [While the name of the naval yard is never specified it appears from other references to be Portsmouth and not Boston many mile further south.] Mr. Sleeper also by example includes entries such as; 2 companies of soldiers made a raid at a store in Hampton and done mischief, Col Pierce barn burnt down, Fort Stevens near Washington attacked by rebels, great fire at Portsmouth, another fire at Penhallow St., Elkins Shannon Auctions, going to Singing School, James H. Dow dead at 38, Judge Bellows of Concord NH trial, Patrick Dayes dead at 46 in a Navy Yard accident and many, many more. Many hundreds of contacts, co-workers and visits are named fully. VG.; Manuscript; 32mo - over 4" - 5" tall; HANDWRITTEN, MANUSCRIPT, DOCUMENT, LETTER, AUTOGRAPH, KEEPSAKE, WRITER, HAND WRITTEN, DOCUMENTS, SIGNED, LETTERS, MANUSCRIPTS, HISTORICAL, HOLOGRAPH, WRITERS, AUTOGRAPHS, PERSONAL, MEMOIR, MEMORIAL, PERSONAL HISTORY, AMERICANA, ALS, ARCHIVE, DIARY, DIARIES, CIVIL WAR ERA, WAR BETWEEN THE STATES, ANTIQUITÉ, CONTRAT, VÉLIN, MANUSCRIT, PAPIER ANTIKE, BRIEF, PERGAMENT, DOKUMENT, NEW HAMPSHIRE, NH, HOMEFRONT, GENEALOGY, NAVY YARD