Stonewall Jackson papers, 1844/1915

Access and use

Location of collection:
Virginia Military Institute Archives
Preston Library
Virginia Military Institute
345 Letcher Ave.
Lexington, VA 24450-0304
Contact for questions and access:
POC: Jeffrey S. Kozak
Phone: (540) 464-7516
Phone: (540) 464-7566
Fax: (540) 464-7089
Restrictions:

The collection is open to research, but there are special conditions governing use.

Terms of access:

Researchers are required to use photocopies or online versions of the Stonewall Jackson documents.

Manuscript collections in the VMI Archives are made available for educational and research use. The VMI Archives should be cited as the source. The user assumes all responsibility for identifying and satisfying any copyright holders. Materials from our collections may not be redistributed, published or reproduced without permission from the VMI Archives. Contact the VMI Archives for additional information.

Preferred citation:

Stonewall Jackson papers, 1844-1915. MS 0102. VMI Archives, Virginia Military Institute, Lexington, Virginia.

Summary

Extent:
3 Linear Feet
Creator:
Jackson, Stonewall, 1824-1863, Jackson, Mary Anna, 1831-1915, Hill, Daniel Harvey, 1821-1899, Preston, Margaret Junkin, 1820-1897, and Johnston, Joseph E. (Joseph Eggleston), 1807-1891
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

Stonewall Jackson papers, 1844-1915. MS 0102. VMI Archives, Virginia Military Institute, Lexington, Virginia.

Background

Scope and content:

The Stonewall Jackson papers consist primarily of the personal papers of Civil War General Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson (1824-1863). The bulk of the letters date from the pre-Civil War period and concern professional, personal, and domestic matters, including many in which Jackson writes about his religious faith, his concerns about health and diet, and his family.

The papers provide insight into Jackson's personality and philosophy, and present a portrait of the man as he was in the years before he gained national fame as a wartime military leader. A small percentage of the documents date from the Civil War period and are directly related to Jackson's Confederate Army service.

The papers include approximately 160 items of Jackson's outgoing correspondence (dated 1844 to 1863) spanning his cadetship at West Point, his service in the United States Army (1846 to 1851), including his participation in the Mexican War, his years as a faculty member at the VMI (1851 to 1861), and his career in the Confederate States Army. The bulk of the correspondence is addressed to his sister, Laura Ann Arnold (Jackson). Other correspondents include Margaret Junkin Preston, and Confederate Generals Joseph E. Johnston and Daniel Harvey Hill.

Other series include incoming correspondence, Civil War reports, orders, dispatches, and documents associated with Jackson.

In addition to Jackson's personal papers, this collection contains the allied papers of Jackson's second wife, Mary Anna Jackson (Morrison) (approximately 143 items), his daughter Julia Jackson Christian (approximately 10 items), and his sister Laura Ann Arnold (Jackson)(approximately 115 items).

Biographical / historical:

Thomas Jonathan Jackson was born on January 21, 1824 in western Virginia (now West Virginia) to Julia Neale Jackson and Jonathan Jackson. Jackson was orphaned at a young age and he was raised by extended members of his father's family, mainly his uncle, Cummins Jackson.

Jackson graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in June 1846 and subsequently served in the United States Army, during which time he fought in the Mexican War. Jackson resigned his commission in 1851, after he was appointed Professor of Natural and Experimental Philosophy at VMI. He moved to Lexington, Virginia and settled into life as a civilian.

In April 1861, Jackson rode off to war. Following the first Battle of Manassas (Virginia), he became widely known by the nickname "Stonewall" and earned lasting fame for his leadership of Confederate forces, especially during the Valley Campaign of 1862.

Jackson died on May 10, 1863 as a result of complications from wounds received at Chancellorsville, Virginia along with pneumonia. His body was brought back to Lexington for burial in a cemetery on the south edge of town.

Physical location:
Manuscripts stacks and Oversized Case 2