We owe a debt of gratitude to Greeley
Veal, the grandson of Asa Lott Warren Veal, and his daughter,
Elizabeth Veal Amigo, the great-granddaughter of Asa for preserving
these 3 beautiful letters and for passing them on to Jimmy Veal
of Valdosta, GA, who passed them on to me and now they belong
to all of us.
The letters were written from Madison
Springs, Madison County, GA to Asa Veal who was living in Limestone,
Texas, where he joined the Texas Cavalry. It is believed he
went to Texas to be with his mother’s brother, his uncle,
Lott Lequin Godfrey. Asa’s mother was Sarah Jane Godfrey
Veal. Madison Springs was the largest hotel in the south and
it drew guests from the north as well as the south. The University
of GA held their grand balls there each year. Sadly, it burned
in 1871.
The beauty of the letters is the
amount of genealogical information found within them. One of
the letters settles the question once and for all, the middle
name of Capt. James W. [Woodson] Daniel, Jr. At the end of the
letters I will supply some information about some of the men
I’m familiar with.
Charlotte
Collins Bond
Madison Springs, Ga.
January the 13th. , 1862
Dear son,
I received your letter the 7th. of this
month and was glad to hear from you one time more and to see
your likeness too. It is a great satisfaction to us but not
so much as you would be to us to see.
We are all well as common at present
except bad colds. I hope when these lines comes to hand they
may find you well and doing well, as you are in the army. You
are in a tight place. I want you to do the best you can and
obey your officers for I know something about it myself. The
better you do the better it will be for you.
You stated that you wanted to know who
of the boys was gone to the army. Jack Bond, James Bond, Jesse
Page, Henry Deen, Ben Owens, Bill Bryant, James Bryan, Jef Scott,
George Daniel, John N. Montgomery is captain, Woodson Daniel,
1st. Lieutenant and Briton Saunders, 2nd. Lieutenant. All gone
to Virginia. James Gholston made a company and is gone too.
Both in Cobb’s regiment.
I want you to write to me as soon as
you get this letter and write oftener and write and write how
long you have to serve, and if you live to be discharged I want
you to come and see us. Your uncle James and Edward Veal is
gone from hall [Hall county]. I heard Wat Owens is at his mother’s
wounded. He was wounded at the Leesberg fight. He was at the
Manasses fight, too. Fayet Bond and John Owens was in it too.
Come clear, not hurt. John King come home with one hand shot
off, and Bill King come home sick. I must close the war news,
so turn over.
You stated in a letter writ last July
that you wanted to know where I was living. We are living at
the ferry yet and will stay this year. I think I wrote you a
letter the first of last August and I never heard one word from
him, Lott, nor you since till this the 7th. Of January, near
six months. I want you to write oftner than that and let me
hear how you are making out.
The times is the hardest here that I
ever saw in life. No money, and everything is high. Salt nine
dollars per bushel, and pork from 15 to 20 cts. pound. Everything
high in proportion. Write how it is there.
You will be surprised when I tell you
that Caroline is married to Joseph Crider and they was married
the 10th of last November, and he has built near his father
and moved to himself.
The children all wants to see you and
we all want to see you. We all send howdy to you. Our baby’s
name is Nancy Adeline, 8 months old. You must pardon my bad
writing for it was done in a hurry and in the night and on my
knee at that. So I must close so no more, only we remain your
loving father and mother.
Alexander Veal
Sarah I. Veal
N B When you write state the post
office and county and everything so I can send my letters so
you can get them.
A. V.
Georgia, Madison County
June the 1st. 1868
Dear Son,
I seat my self to drop you a few lines
to inform you that we are all well as common at present. Hopeing
these few lines may find you all well and doing well. I received
your kind letter a few days since and was glad to hear that
you was well. I had begun to think that I never would hear of
you alive again. I recived a letter from you last February,
was one year ago, and I answered it immediately and I never
received no answer so I thought that you was dead but I am glad
to hear that you are living. I would of wrote more but I thought
it useless. Usely I have but little news to wright of any interest
that is good. Caroline and Jo are getting along as well as could
be expected in this county. Jo’s health has been very bad
for three years but is improving some. Caroline has a fine boy.
He is 18 months old and is as large a child as I ever seen to
his age. His name is John William. John O. Veal was married
the fifth of December last. He married Jane Lively. Jack Bond
is married. He got the daughter of preacher Powers of Elbert.
The boys wants you to wright what your weight is. Bud ways 140
pounds. He is some larger than John or James and the all are
very stout to there size and the think the are stout enough
for any boddy for the will not take nothing from no boddy. There
is no back out in them. We are living at our old place and I
has cleard a large new ground in the big bottom down the river
and has got it planted. We have corn waist high. The people
are very backward aplanting on the account of the wet weather.
We had the most rain I ever seen, I think, at the time of the
year. There has been ten days now and only one shower in the
time and I fear that we will want rain before we get it. We
need rain now. Wheat crops looked as well as I ever seen them
but the rust has struck the wheat and a great deal is very bad
hurt all redy. I think the wheat crop will be very short. We
have had bad wheat crops for nine year in succession. Last year
there was very fare crops of wheat made. We had nine bad crop
years for corn and wheat one after the other and we have had
hard times by it. The people had to hall there corn from Athens
and pay two dollars per bushel and glad to get it at that and
bacon from 18 to 25 and 30 cts. per pound. Corn is worth one
dollar now. Flower 8 and 10 cts. Everything is high and money
scarce. Poor people scarcely can pay there taxes. I think I
said a plenty about hard times.
I want you to wright something about
Lott_______-where he is and what he is doing. I want you to
wright me a full history of Texas. The boys want to hear all
about the country. They may come out there if I never do. The
say the will not stay here if the can find a better country
and its depend upon what you say about Texas whether you ever
see them or not. You said that you was in hopes that we had
not forgot you. Oh no, there is but few days passes over our
heads but there is something said about Asa______Oh no, there
is but few days passes over our heads but there is something
said about Asa___I want to see Asa, I wish he would come so
I could see him one time more so I would no whether he looks
like ???[he wants?] us to look.
Our baby is five years old. Your grandma
was well about two months ago. The connection is well as common
when I heard from them last except your grandpa Godfrey he is
dead. Your grand pah Veal is dead too. I wrote to you about
his death but do not no whether you got the letter of not. You
said something about your wife having a baby. Wright something
about it and be sure to wright as soon as you get this letter
and direct your letter to the Madison Springs. So I must close
by saying we remain you affectionate father and mother till
death separate us.
Alexander Veal
Sarah J. Veal to
A. L. W. Veal
Madison County,
Ga.
Oct. the 3, 1875
Dear brother
and family,
It is with pleasure I seat my self to
write you a few lines to let you now that we ar all well at
this time and doing the best we can. I hav but little nuse to
write to you. The times is very hard hear and money is very
schearse. The people has turnd nearly all thear attintion to
cotton in this country and that makes provition schearse and
hye. Times has changed very mutch since you left this country.
If I could see you I could tell you a great many things that
I can’t write. We all want to see you and your famley very
bad and would like for you to come and see us all. I will sa
to you that we have four children……one girl and three
boys. The oldest is a girl and is going to school. Her mane
is Sarah Molita. The oldest boy is named Binjamon Asa. The 2
is Arthur Lee. The 3 has no name yet. He is 3 months old and
is a fine big boy. Par and Mar is both living and is tolerable
stout. Tha have but 4 children with them….3 girls and 1
boy. He is about groan and manages business very well. He sees
a fine time riding about among the girls. When one mule gets
tiard, he will leave that at home and ketch up another one and
start out again. James is not maried yet. He is practicing mederson
[medicine] and is giting a good practis now and is making money
very fast and knows how to keep it. Bud is married and is doing
very well. He has but one child and it is a boy. Emmer is married
and has two children… one boy and one girl. Martha is married.
None of the rest, I don’t think, has any notion of marring.
Par received your letter that you rote May the 2. I don’t
think tha hav ancerd your letter yet. Par is getting old and
is very cerless, tho I think tha ar going to write soon for
I heard Minda sa that she was going to write soon. I hav nothing
more to write to you at this time more than I want you to write
as soon as you can and I want you to write often for we want
to hear from you as often as we can. So good bye, Asa. I remain
your brother until Death.
John O. Veal
To A.L.W. Veal
Royston, Ga.
Dec. 1st, [18]99
Mr.
W. A. Veal
Decatur, Tex.
Dear Sir:
Your letter rec'd. and will send you
the addresses of the parties you are looking for. I am
a brother of A. L. W. Veal and the other Veals you will get
the address are your father's brothers and sisters.
John O. Veal, Clinton, S.C.
James D. Veal, Royston, Ga.
Alec. F. Veal was heard of last in
Fla.
Caroline Crider, my oldest sister,
has not been heard of in several years
Matie McGarity died 1892
Emma Carter, Ayersville, Ga.
Armendy Compton, Toccoa, Georgia
Addie Davis, Toccoa, Georgia
Maggie Ficqwitt, Elberton, Georgia
These are all the brothers and sisters
of your father's. The names come down on this list, commencing
with the older first and on down, the last mentioned being the
youngest of us.
There are a lot of Veals in Georgia,
though they are distant relatives of ours. If you know
the address of Alec Veal you will oblige me by letting me know
where he is.
Write and let me know what sort of a
place Texas is in the part you live in and tell me about stock
raising and stock farms and ranches, and tell me all about your
brothers and sister and how many are married, and what you all
do in Texas, and do you think it would be a good place for a
fellow to move to with a family, and what a good farm could
be bought for, something like two or three hundred acres.
Write soon and all the news.
Respt. yours,
M. L. Veal
Royston, Ga. 12/1/99
Genealogical
Information on some of the people mentioned in the letters
Asa Lott Warren Veal was the son
of Alexander Veal and Sarah Jane Godfrey of Madison County.
The family tradition on Asa is that he carried some corn to
Crowders Mill over in Franklin County, GA across the Broad River
from the home place in Madison County to have it ground.
The man ground the corn and tried to charge Asa for twice the
weight that was ground. They apparently got into an arguement
and a fight broke out. Asa hit the man and thought he
had killed him and fled out west. The man recovered.
This tale has been passed down and Pa Veal (James Mote Veal)
told me this several times.
Jan 13, 1862, Alexander
and Sarah Jane Veal write a letter to Asa
in Texas, telling him about the conditions there in Madison
County, GA and advising him to be careful since he is in the
war. The letter asks why they have gotten only the one
letter dated Jan 7, 1862 within a 6 month period from "Lot
nor you." Asa's mother, Sarah Jane Godfrey, apparently
had a brother that lived in Texas. Lot Legwin Godrey was
born in Clarke County, GA on May 7, 1823 and moved out to Limestone
County, TX in 1846 because of some trouble he got into.
This is probably the reason Asa ended up in Limestone County.
Alexander and Sarah were trying to hear from either their son
or Sarah's brother.
See
obituary for Sarah Jane Veal, wife of Alexander Veal.
She died 17 Mar 1882.
James Veal, brother of Asa, practiced
medicine in Royston, Ga. He received his training at the Atlanta
Medical college, now Emory.
Jack Bond was actually John H. Bond
b. 6-14-1840 & d. 4-11-1918. He was the son of John Rowsey
Bond and Milly Smith. His first wife was Margaret Power. She
died in childbirth. He married second, Cynthia McEwen. He was
in the Danielsville, Guards, Co. D, 16th. Regiment.
James [Gilmore] Bond b. 1841 was the
son of James B. Bond and Elizabeth Powell. He was the Grandson
of John Rowsey Bond. He was also with the Danielsville, Guards.
Henry Deen [Dean] was the son of James
M. Deen & Prudence Beard. He joined the Danielsville Guards
on August 5, 1861. He was killed at Spotsylvania, VA on May
12, 1864.
George C. Daniel. He was a well known
and greatly loved doctor in Danielsville after the war. For
more information on him click here.
John N. [Newton] Montgomery, Capt.
Joined the Danilesville Guards 8-5-1861. He was captured at
Gettysburg, PA on 7-02-1863 and released at Cox’s Wharf,
James River, Va. 3-22-1865.
James W. [Woodson] Daniel, Jr., 2nd.
Lieutenant, August 5, 1861. Danielsville Guards. Resigned with
a disability, July 23, 1861. He was b. 8-11-1827. He married
Harriett E. Hurley July 27, 1850. He was the son of Capt. James
W. Daniel, Sr. and Elizabeth Jones. The 1870 Madison County
census shows this family living next door to Alexander Veal,
the author of two of the letters.
Britton Sanders was the son of Hardy
T. and Mary Ware Sanders. He was a Methodist Clergyman. He married
Sarah E. Daniel on 11-6-1862. She was the daughter of the James
Daniel, Jr. and Narcissa A. Borum.
James Gholston, Capt. Born 1811.
He married Polly Daniel 12-13-1833. He was the Capt. Of the
Madison Co. Greys, Co. A. 16th Regiment. On 7-11-1861. He was
elected Major 02-06-1862 and Lt. Colonel on 08-16-1864. He retired
to an invalid core. on 08-24-1864. He was captured and paroled
in Athens, Ga. March 8, 1865.
Contributed
by
Jimmy Veal via
Charlotte Collins Bond
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