Letter to his parents while stationed on Roanoke Island. Discusses his voyage from Annapolis, MD.
Roanoke Island Feb 27th 1862
My Dear parents
I now take my pen in hand to write a few lines to you not from Annapolis but from Roanoke way down in dixy where we landed after 12 days on the water. We left Annapolis on the 13th of Feb and landed the night of the 26th. I will try to give you a few particulars of the voyage. We left Annapolis amid the cheers of the citizens that lined the wharf and a few guns from the two gunboats that lay there at the time and arrived at fortress monroe on the 14th where we lay three days for a storm to pass when we put to sea about 90 miles and found it so rough that we could not enter the inlet and put back to fortress monroe where we stayed another day when we put to sea again and were driven back by a gale about the time that we entered the harbor it began to be foggy and the captain of the boat thought that it was again to clear up so that we could leave in the morning under that impression he thought that as he had got to have more coal he would get it that night and forthwith started for the coal boat when the latter rope caught and we were run ashore under the bowsprit of a schooner which carried away our pilot house? somewhere we did not get any coal that night and had to stay the next two days to repair damages when we put to sea again and it being foggy run past the inlet and the sea being rough we had to put back to of Cape McHenry?? where we lay in quiet until about when a squall struck us and came near sinking us they got up the anchor as soon as possible but not until the seas had swept our hurrycane deck which is about 20 feet from the water at length she was got around before the wind before which she drifted at a fearful rate we the distance of about miles in the space of about six hours we anchored that night in sight of cape Hatteras light then next morning we weighed anchor and made the in a little past noon we went over the swash and anchored for the night in the morning we started for where we were landed on the 26th And here I am in the sand way down in dixyland. We had a very severe storm here last night it rained all night and waked the night and my feet in a puddle of water which vexed me not a little we are ex close to Burnsides head quarters close back of the fort. I should have answered your letters bur I did not get them until last night. I shall have to close this letter you may expect a letter one next time. yours as ever, C. D. Garlick
