Lot
4538 
Confederacy, Immortal "Confederate 50" - U.S.S. Dragoon, lemon cover with manuscript endorsement "T.E. Upshaw, Major, Prisoner of War" addressed to "University of Virginia, Near Charlottesville, Va.", small blue manuscript "x" at top right corner for Examined marking, cover exchanged in Charleston with "Charleston, S.C./Jul. 13, 1864" cds and manuscript "Due" with large handstamped "10" rate, included is transcript of original letter (not included) datelined "On Bd. Prison Ship, Off Hilton Head, S.C., July 7, 1864", part of the text reads, "Have been sent here with 49 other Officers of the Confederate States Army as Hostages for Safety of certain Federal Officers held by Maj. Gen. Sam Jones in Charleston, S.C., supposed to be in Danger.", flap torn, Extremely Fine. Estimate $2,000 - 3,000.
A RARE AND HISTORIC PRISONER OF WAR COVER OF WHICH ONLY FIVE EXAMPLES ARE RECORDED BY HARRISON.
This is one of the very few covers from the original "Confederate 50 Officers" who were taken from Fort Delaware to be placed under fire at Morris Island. This was done in retaliation for the fifty Union Officers confined at Charleston under fire. The Confederate Officers were on board the Prison ship "U.S.S. Dragoon" from June 29 - August 2, 1864. All 50 were exchanged before ever being placed under fire on Morris Island. .
Realized: $2,000
Lot
4539
Confederacy, Immortal "Confederate 50" Exchange Letter, letter datelined "Headquarters, Department of the South, Hilton Head, S.C., August 1st, 1864" from Union Maj. Gen. John G. Foster to Rear Admiral J. Dahlgren stating "I have the honor to inform you that the Government has give me authority to exchange the rebel prisoners of war in this Department for those of our officers confined at Charleston. Arrangements have been made to make the exchange in Charleston Harbor between Fort Moultrie and Battery Putnam at 10 o'clock on Sunday morn", a Very Fine and highly important historical letter.; signed by Foster. Estimate $2,000 - 3,000.
The Immortal 50 were Union prisoners of war confined at Charleston being used as human shields against Federal bombardment of the city. General Foster was in command of the Federal Forces at Hilton Head. Following this letter, he assembled 5 Rebel Generals, 15 Colonels, 15 Lieutenant Colonels, and 15 Majors that would be exchanged.
Lot
4540
Confederacy, Immortal "Confederate 600" - Hilton Head, S.C., turned cover addressed to "Lieut. Drury Lacy, Co. I, 23rd Va. Regt., Prisoner of War, Fort Pulaski near Savannah, Georgia" with endorsement "By Flag of Truce" & "Contains $1 Confed. ("Confed." crossed out & changed to "Va.") Treas. note" and magenta manuscript No. 141 (control number) in top left corner, cover forwarded to Hilton Head, S.C. with pencil "Ex C" examiner's marking, a stamp may be missing from the top right corner, however there are no postal markings present or perhaps the cover was handled outside the mails due to the valuable contents, the inside usage shows Confederate States 1863-64 10¢ blue (cover cut to expose adhesive) tied by "Richmond, Va." cds to Charlotte C.H., Va., Very Fine. Estimate $1,000 - 1,500.
Lieut. Lacy was captured at Spotsylvania in May of 1864 and was eventually transfer to Morris Island, as one of the "Immortal Confederate 600". Following the transfer from Morris Island to Fort Pulaski, Lacy was one of the 220 Confederate Officers transferred to Hilton Head. Lacy was finally released on April 9, 1865, the day of Lee's surrender at Appomattox.
Realized: $1,000
Lot
4541
Confederacy, Immortal "Confederate 600", Fort Pulaski (Savannah, Ga.), orange cover with endorsement by "H.C. Dickinson, Capt./2nd Va. Cav., Pris. of War" as a prisoner held at Fort Pulaski Ga. addressed to his wife in Liberty Va., postmarked with "Savannah Geo. Nov." (1864) with star circular datestamp and large "10" due handstamp, endorsed "pr. flag of truce Via Savannah", unsealed for censoring, Extremely Fine. Estimate $2,000 - 3,000.
AN EXTREMELY RARE FORT PULASKI PRISONER OF WAR COVER, ONE OF ONLY THREE RECORDED WITH A SAVANNAH GA. POSTMARK.
A fabulous Prisoner of War from one of the 600 Confederate officers who had been held in open barracks on Morris Island exposed to mortar fire from Confederate batteries -- after the stalemate, some prisoners were moved in late October to captured Fort Pulaski. Fort Pulaski prisoner-of-war covers are quite rare and there are only three known covers to have a Savannah, Ga. postmark. Since Savannah fell to Union forces on December 21, 1864, there was only a brief 60-day period that a Fort Pulaski prisoner-of-war letter could have been sent via Savannah.
There are many interesting stories of prisons and one of the most interesting is that of three Southern locations where captured Confederate officers were held by Federal forces, right in the bosom of the Confederacy itself. These three prisons were Morris Island in Charleston Harbor, SC, Hilton Head in the harbor of Port Royal, SC, and Fort Pulaski near Savannah, GA. All are interconnected with the plight of 600 Confederate officer prisoners known in Southern history as "The Immortal 600."
The story begins in June 1864 when the Confederates placed 50 high-ranking Union officer prisoners in Charleston where the Union believed they would be subject to Union artillery fire from Morris Island. The North promptly sent a similar number of Confederate officers to Morris Island to be exposed to Confederate artillery. On August 3, 1864, both sides exchanged these prisoners. Then the Confederates transferred 600 more prisoners to Charleston. On August 20, 1864, the Union retaliated by shipping 600 prisoners from Fort Delaware to Morris Island near Charleston, arriving on September 7. They were held in open barracks as "human shields" under direct shelling from Confederate forces in retaliation for Union prisoners being held in Charleston under shelling from U.S. forces.
General Grant vetoed another prisoner exchange, however, the stalemate was broken when the Union prisoners were moved from Charleston because of an outbreak of yellow fever. On October 21, 1864, the prisoners from Morris Island, who had been exposed to mortar fire from their own Confederate batteries in Charleston, were moved to Fort Pulaski at the mouth of the Savannah River, conditions were not much better there as they were forced to subsist on a near starvation diet. Shortly thereafter about 200 of them were again transferred to Hilton Head. On March 12, 1865, the prisoners at both locations were returned to Fort Delaware. Forty-four died from illness and very bad treatment, and including those that were later exchanged or had escaped, about half of the original 600 made it back to Fort Delaware.
Realized: $2,000
Lot
4542
Confederacy, Immortal "Confederate 600" - Morris Island (Charleston, S.C.), orange cover with endorsement by "Capt. H.C. Dickinson/Co. A, 2nd Va. Cavalry" as a prisoner held at Morris Island, postmarked with "Charleston, S.C./Sep. 1, 1864" cds and bold due "10" rating handstamp to Mrs. Sally J. Dickinson in Liberty Va., endorsed "pr flag of truce", unsealed for censoring; Extremely Fine. Estimate $2,000 - 3,000.
A RARE MORRIS ISLAND PRISONER OF WAR USAGE.
The "Immortal 600" was a group of 600 prisoners, all Confederate officers, moved from Fort Delaware to be sent to Morris Island in Charleston harbor in August 1864 and held in open barracks exposed to mortar fire from Confederate batteries.
This extraordinarily inhumane act was the Federal response to an equally repulsive act on the part of Confederates in Charleston, who exposed Union prisoners to bombardment from Federal forces within range of the city. This sorry chapter of the war ended in a stalemate in October 1864. Covers from Confederate prisoners imprisoned on Morris Island are very rare.
Lot
4543
Confederacy, Union 600 - Marine Hospital Prison, Charleston S.C., 1864 Prisoner of War cover with "Port Royal S.C. Sep 12 1864" dcds and matching "Due 3" to Jno. Diehl at Philadelphia Pa., docketed "Officers Letter, Prisoner of War, Charleston S.C." and endorsed "Per Flag of Truce Boat", with original letter, Very Fine. Estimate $2,000 - 3,000.
ONE OF ONLY THREE RECORDED COVERS FROM MARINE PRISON HOSPITAL, ONE OF THE RAREST SOUTHERN PRISONS.
Letter datelined "Charleston S.C. July 30th 1864" and reads "Dear Bro(ther) …tired of this prison life we have been shoved very near all over the Southn Confederacy and have brought up here. We were in Macon Ga. some two months. " He asks for a box of clothing and provisions via Express office to "Prisoner of War Charleston S.C. via Hilton Head" and signed Jacob S. Devine 1st Lieut. 71st P.V." Jacob S. Devine enlisted on August 9, 1861 as a private into Company H of the 71st Penn. Infantry; he was transferred to Field and Staff and then to Company C. He was promoted through the ranks as high as captain on October 29, 1863 during his incarceration (not mustered). He was captured at Gettysburg on July 3, 1863 and confined variously in Confederate prisons at Macon Ga, Columbia S.C., Andersonville Ga. and Libby in Richmond Va.
Realized: $1,700