May 17—Saw Mack Sample, Will Stone and several of our company to-day that have been prisoners since the battle of Gettysburg. We get two meals a day.
Diary of a Tar Heel Confederate Soldier By Louis Léon [53d North Carolina Regiment, infantry]
May 16—Left this morning at II in a tugboat, and from here packed into the Steamer S. R. Spaulding. We are now on our way to a regular prison. We got there at 8 o’clock to-night, and found it to be Point Lookout, Md., fifty miles from Belle Plain. It is in St. Mary’s County. We were drawn up in line, searched for valuables, and they taken from us, and marched to prison, one mile from the landing. There are sixteen men in each tent.
May 15—Still here. They are fighting very hard on the front.
May 14—We are still camped here. Have been prisoners since the 5th of this month, and have drawn three and a half days’ rations. On that kind of a diet I am not getting very fat. We certainly would have suffered a great deal, but our Yankee guard gave us quite a lot of their own rations.
May 13—Left here this morning and passed through Fredericksburg. Crossed the Rappahannock on pontoon bridges, and got to Belle Plain on the Potomac at 3 o’clock—nineteen miles to-day. It rained all day, and it is very muddy.
May 12—Raining hard all day, and fighting all last night. About 2 o’clock this afternoon about 2,000 prisoners came in, with them Major-General Johnson and Brigadier-General Stewart. We have moved four miles nearer to Fredericksburg. I suppose they think we are too close to our own lines, and they are afraid we will be recaptured, as it was a few days ago. We heard our boys’, or, as the Yankees call it, the Rebel yell. We prisoners also gave the Rebel yell. A few minutes after that they brought cannon to bear on us, and we were told to stop, or they would open on us. We stopped.
May 11—This morning about 800 more prisoners came in. Most of them were from my brigade, as well as from Dole’s Georgians. I was surprised to see my brother with them. He was taken yesterday, but before he surrendered he sent two of the enemy to their long home with his bayonet.
May 10—Fighting to-day at Spottsylvania Court House. Prisoners still coming in, two more from my company.
May 9—Started again this morning, and passed over the Chancellorsville battlefield. Marched twelve miles to-day. We passed a brigade of negro troops. They gave us a terrible cursing, and hollered “Fort Pillow” at us. I am only sorry that this brigade of negroes was not there, then they certainly would not curse us now. We halted at dark on the plank road seven miles from Fredericksburg.
May 8—We left this place at dark last night, but only got a distance of two miles, and it took us until 9 in the morning of the 9th.
