A Georgia Soldier in the Civil War, 1861-1865, W.0083

Abstract: Contains an unbound manuscript of Robert Duncan Chapman's published Civil War memoir.Scope and Content Note: This unbound, sixty-eight page manuscript of Robert Duncan Chapman's Civil War memoir, A Georgia Soldier in the Civil War, 1861-1865, describes his war experiences from his enlistment in August 1861 until 1865 as a member of the Fifty-fifth Georgia Infantry.Chapman describes his capture at the Battle of Cumberland Gap and his subsequent imprisonment at Johnson's Island, Ohio. Chapman was a prisoner at Johnson's Island for five months when he staged an escape and impersonated a book salesman to avoid recapture.Chapman's memoir was first published in 1922. The memoir was published again in 1929 and included an updated postscript written by the then ninety-year-old Chapman. The manuscript contains the postscript written in 1929 and some minor handwritten edits.Biographical/Historical Note: Robert Duncan Chapman was born on December 8, 1839, in Houston County, Georgia.During the Civil War, Chapman enlisted in Company E of the Fifty-fifth Georgia Regiment. Chapman was captured by Union troops at the Battle of Cumberland Gap. After escaping and being recaptured by Union forces, he was imprisoned at Johnson's Island between September 1863 and February 1864, when he staged a second successful escape. Reunited with the remnants of his regiment, Chapman served as the adjutant at post at Andersonville Prison, Georgia, from June 15, 1864, to October 15, 1864.Shortly after the end of the war, Chapman moved to Cuthbert, Georgia, where he worked at Baldwin, Redding and Co., a general merchandise firm. In 1867, Chapman married Eugenia Alice McNeil. The couple had one son, William McNeil, and two daughters, Martha Carrie and Lollie Dee. In 1871, Chapman moved to Texas with his wife and son. They lived in Nacogdoches and Houston, where he served as an officer in the local and state United Confederate Veterans camps. He died on August 7, 1934, in Dallas, Texas