“Old Abe Done a Bad Thing”
John Taylor Cuddy
Letter from John T. Cuddy to John H. Cuddy, January 16, 1863. Accessible through the Dickinson College Archives.
“Old abe done a bad thing w[h]en he freed all the slaves,”[1] wrote John Taylor Cuddy, a young Union soldier from Carlisle, Pennsylvania. It was 1863, two years before the Confederacy would surrender to the Union, and one year before Cuddy would die in a prison camp in South Carolina.[2] Like many of his time, John Cuddy was quick to enlist in the Civil War in 1861, following Abraham Lincoln’s call for volunteers. Cuddy was just shy of seventeen when he joined the Carlisle Fencibles, a company organized by local resident and lawyer, John Henderson.[3] Cuddy’s devotion to the Union army carried him through his wartime experience, but his reasons for fighting were not wholly in agreement with Lincoln or anti-slavery advocates. Cuddy was one example of the many Union soldiers who prioritized an indivisible nation above all else, treating slavery as a hindrance to achieving a Union victory.
In the opening lines of The Union War, Historian Gary Gallagher describes the Civil War as “a war for Union that also killed slavery.”[4] Gallagher’s claim reinforces the idea that slavery was never central to the purpose of the Civil War, but a side issue that became a central matter as the war progressed. Gallagher argues that today, “Students and adults interested in the Civil War are reluctant to believe that anyone would risk life or fortune for something as abstract as ‘the Union.’”[5] Gallagher bluntly writes that “A war to end slavery seems more compelling”[6] to most people, exacerbating a misconception about what the average Union soldier fought for.
Wartime letters from Cuddy to his family support Gallagher’s claims, showing the young soldier was very much dedicated to the abstract Union Gallagher mentions. A letter from June, 1861, was particularly evident of Gallagher’s observation, for Cuddy wrote that Union soldiers “listed for a good cause” and that was “to save our co[u]ntry and to ke[e]p the stares and stripes.”[7] No mention of slavery is made. Cuddy’s dedication to the United States, emboldened by his belief that “the c[o]untry is ours for ever,”[8] did not include defending black suffrage, nor addressing the moral or ethical reasons to emancipate slaves. Instead, Cuddy’s passion for an indivisible country was threatened by emancipation. Cuddy strongly believed that “God will helpe us to keep the flag up fore ever,”[9] but even his belief in God did not deter his fear of the destitute slaveholder.
It wasn’t until 1863 that Cuddy mentioned black Americans in his letters, and the bitterness in his voice pervaded his prose. Cuddy felt Union soldiers were “not fighting for what we ware wen we started out.”[10] Instead, the Union was “fighting for the niggers now.”[11] In a letter to his father in March of 1863, Cuddy conveyed that he was not alone in his dissatisfaction with the new Union cause, writing that “all the sold[i]ers is tiard of fighting for niggers.”[12] Emancipation to Cuddy, as Gallagher believed of many Union soldiers, “took a back seat to saving the Union.”[13] However, as the war continued, it became nearly impossible for Cuddy to avoid acknowledging the relevance of slavery to the very war in which he fought. This change is reminiscent of Historian Chandra Manning's claim that slavery was central to the Civil War. In the 2008 issue of the Civil War Times, Manning argued that the “war would not have happened if it hadn’t been for slavery.”[14] While this claim does not coincide with Cuddy’s ardent intent to preserve the Union, his tendency to refer to emancipation in his letters home illustrates Manning’s argument that slavery was an every day part of the Union soldier’s fight.
John Cuddy’s complicated relationship with the Union cause developed throughout the war, but he would never see its resolution. Cuddy died in a Confederate prison camp fearing that slavery—the pillar of the Southern Empire—would destroy Union efforts. Just weeks before the end of his enlistment, Cuddy and fellow men in his company joined General Ulysses S. Grant’s army in a military interception of Robert E. Lee’s army near the Rapidan river in Virginia. The battle occurred in a thick, forested area called “The Wilderness.” Cuddy and his fellow Union soldiers were unfamiliar with the terrain and lost themselves quickly in the brush and dense forest. However, the rebels knew it well and easily captured all of the Union men, including Cuddy. The rebels transported the soldiers to the Andersonville Prison in Georgia, where many died of disease and starvation. Cuddy survived long enough to be transferred to another prison camp in Florence, South Carolina. In this camp, Cuddy succumbed to disease and died, just shy of his twentieth birthday. John Cuddy offers a portrait of the average Union soldier that directly dispels the idea that the Civil War was over slavery. Instead, Cuddy’s beliefs serve as evidence for what many Union soldiers fought for, stood for, and believed in: the sanctity of the Union.
In the opening lines of The Union War, Historian Gary Gallagher describes the Civil War as “a war for Union that also killed slavery.”[4] Gallagher’s claim reinforces the idea that slavery was never central to the purpose of the Civil War, but a side issue that became a central matter as the war progressed. Gallagher argues that today, “Students and adults interested in the Civil War are reluctant to believe that anyone would risk life or fortune for something as abstract as ‘the Union.’”[5] Gallagher bluntly writes that “A war to end slavery seems more compelling”[6] to most people, exacerbating a misconception about what the average Union soldier fought for.
Wartime letters from Cuddy to his family support Gallagher’s claims, showing the young soldier was very much dedicated to the abstract Union Gallagher mentions. A letter from June, 1861, was particularly evident of Gallagher’s observation, for Cuddy wrote that Union soldiers “listed for a good cause” and that was “to save our co[u]ntry and to ke[e]p the stares and stripes.”[7] No mention of slavery is made. Cuddy’s dedication to the United States, emboldened by his belief that “the c[o]untry is ours for ever,”[8] did not include defending black suffrage, nor addressing the moral or ethical reasons to emancipate slaves. Instead, Cuddy’s passion for an indivisible country was threatened by emancipation. Cuddy strongly believed that “God will helpe us to keep the flag up fore ever,”[9] but even his belief in God did not deter his fear of the destitute slaveholder.
It wasn’t until 1863 that Cuddy mentioned black Americans in his letters, and the bitterness in his voice pervaded his prose. Cuddy felt Union soldiers were “not fighting for what we ware wen we started out.”[10] Instead, the Union was “fighting for the niggers now.”[11] In a letter to his father in March of 1863, Cuddy conveyed that he was not alone in his dissatisfaction with the new Union cause, writing that “all the sold[i]ers is tiard of fighting for niggers.”[12] Emancipation to Cuddy, as Gallagher believed of many Union soldiers, “took a back seat to saving the Union.”[13] However, as the war continued, it became nearly impossible for Cuddy to avoid acknowledging the relevance of slavery to the very war in which he fought. This change is reminiscent of Historian Chandra Manning's claim that slavery was central to the Civil War. In the 2008 issue of the Civil War Times, Manning argued that the “war would not have happened if it hadn’t been for slavery.”[14] While this claim does not coincide with Cuddy’s ardent intent to preserve the Union, his tendency to refer to emancipation in his letters home illustrates Manning’s argument that slavery was an every day part of the Union soldier’s fight.
John Cuddy’s complicated relationship with the Union cause developed throughout the war, but he would never see its resolution. Cuddy died in a Confederate prison camp fearing that slavery—the pillar of the Southern Empire—would destroy Union efforts. Just weeks before the end of his enlistment, Cuddy and fellow men in his company joined General Ulysses S. Grant’s army in a military interception of Robert E. Lee’s army near the Rapidan river in Virginia. The battle occurred in a thick, forested area called “The Wilderness.” Cuddy and his fellow Union soldiers were unfamiliar with the terrain and lost themselves quickly in the brush and dense forest. However, the rebels knew it well and easily captured all of the Union men, including Cuddy. The rebels transported the soldiers to the Andersonville Prison in Georgia, where many died of disease and starvation. Cuddy survived long enough to be transferred to another prison camp in Florence, South Carolina. In this camp, Cuddy succumbed to disease and died, just shy of his twentieth birthday. John Cuddy offers a portrait of the average Union soldier that directly dispels the idea that the Civil War was over slavery. Instead, Cuddy’s beliefs serve as evidence for what many Union soldiers fought for, stood for, and believed in: the sanctity of the Union.
Use the interactive map below to learn more about important places and moments in John Cuddy's life
Sources
In researching for this essay, I relied on the John Taylor Cuddy Correspondence (1861-1864) for primary source material. The Cuddy Papers is a collection of letters written from John Cuddy to his family and friends. The Cuddy Papers are housed in the College Archives and accessible through JumpStart on the Waidner-Spahr Library search engine. These letters were imperative to understanding Cuddy’s thoughts on the Civil War and his role as a Union soldier. Without them, it would have been impossible to create an accurate picture of not only who Cuddy was, but what he stood for.
John Taylor Cuddy is the title of a short but informative biographical note accessed through The House Divided: The Civil War Research Engine at Dickinson College. This very short piece was helpful for basic background and contextual information. The Union War (2011) by Gary Gallagher was elemental to understanding the argument that Union soldiers fought for the integrity of the United States above the emancipation of slaves. Lastly, an interview by Chandra Manning, published through HistoryNet but originally published in the Civil War Times, provided a counterargument for Gary Gallagher’s claim about the Union Cause.
[1]John T. Cuddy to John H. Cuddy, January 16, 1863; House Divided: The Civil War Research Engine at Dickinson College, http://hd.housedivided.dickinson.edu/node/32755.
[2] “John Taylor Cuddy is born near Carlisle, Pennsylvania,” House Divided: The Civil War Research Engine at Dickinson College, http://hd.housedivided.dickinson.edu/node/32748.
[3] John Osborne and James Gerencser, “John Taylor Cuddy (1844-1864),” Their Own Words, http://deila.dickinson.edu/theirownwords/author/CuddyJ.htm.
[4] Gallagher, Gary W. The Union War. (Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press, 2011), 1.
[5] Gallagher, Gary W. The Union War. (Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press, 2011), 3.
[6] Gallagher, Gary W. The Union War. (Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press, 2011), 3.
[7] John T. Cuddy to John H. Cuddy, 30 June 1861; John T. Cuddy Papers, Dickinson College Archives and Special Collections, http://archives.dickinson.edu/sites/all/files/files_war/mc2001.09_0.pdf.
[8] John T. Cuddy to John H. Cuddy, 30 June 1861. John T. Cuddy Papers, Dickinson College Archives and Special Collections, http://archives.dickinson.edu/sites/all/files/files_war/mc2001.09_0.pdf.
[9] John T. Cuddy to John H. Cuddy, 30 June 1861. John T. Cuddy Papers, Dickinson College Archives and Special Collections, http://archives.dickinson.edu/sites/all/files/files_war/mc2001.09_0.pdf.
[10] John T. Cuddy to John H. Cuddy, 3 March 1863. John T. Cuddy Papers, Dickinson College Archives and Special Collections, http://archives.dickinson.edu/sites/all/files/files_war/mc2001.09_0.pdf.
[11]John T. Cuddy to John H. Cuddy, 3 March 1863. John T. Cuddy Papers, Dickinson College Archives and Special Collections, http://archives.dickinson.edu/sites/all/files/files_war/mc2001.09_0.pdf.
[12] John T. Cuddy to John H. Cuddy, 3 March 1863. John T. Cuddy Papers, Dickinson College Archives and Special Collections, http://archives.dickinson.edu/sites/all/files/files_war/mc2001.09_0.pdf.
[13] Gallagher, Gary W. The Union War. (Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press, 2011), 34.
[14] Peter S. Carmichael, “Interview with Chandra Manning: Common Soldiers and Slavery,” HistoryNet, https://www.historynet.com/interview-chandra-manning-common-soldiers-slavery.htm.