Collection Description

This collection contains papers of the interrelated Pierce and Thayer families of Weymouth, Mass. The earliest Pierce family papers include receipts and deeds of Charles Pierce for property at Milton, Mass., 1783-1822, as well as deeds, receipts, and accounts of Elijah Pierce pertaining to his work as a harness maker at Weymouth, 1818-1836.

The collection consists mainly of papers of Elliot Clark Pierce, 1857-1915, including correspondence, commissions, journals, and military papers related to his service with the 13th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, 1861-1864. Journals and letters to his family and fiancée detail military activities, including the battles of the Rappahannock, Thoroughfare Gap, Second Bull Run, both battles of Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, the Wilderness, Spotsylvania, White Oak Swamp, Cold Harbor, Chickahominy, and Petersburg. Included are vivid descriptions of Ambrose Burnside's famous Mud March reaching Falmouth, Virginia, 22 Jan. 1863, and the retreats from Fredericksburg, Dec. 1862, and at Mine Run, 26 Nov. 1863. Of particular interest are Pierce's accounts of the occupation of Winchester, Va. by Union troops, 13-20 Mar. 1862. Pierce also describes a review of his regiment by Lincoln and Secretary Stanton on 23 May 1862 and troop movements by barge past Alexandria and Washington in May 1862.

A journal of Pierce's wife Mary Baker Pierce, Feb.-Apr. 1864, and letters to her parents contain a full account of her lengthy visit to the headquarters of the 1st Army Ambulance Corps at Culpepper, Va. Included are descriptions of army personalities, social events, and her surroundings in the midst of the troops. Papers for this time period also include reports, orders, and accounts of the work Pierce managed, as well as official papers pertaining to the 13th Regiment, such as muster rolls, special orders, ordinance and equipment returns, officers' reports, vouchers, passes, and disability and discharge papers.

Subsequent Pierce correspondence relates to his membership in the G.A.R., 1870-1914, and includes accounts and reminiscences of the war, maps, photographs of battle sites, and memorabilia from celebrations of important Civil War anniversaries and encampments. Among the correspondents are Charles E. Davis, Jr., Charles H. Hovey, and John Davis Long.

Papers of Baker family members include correspondence, deeds, receipts, and accounts of Ashford Baker, 1841-1873. The collection also contains a journal and papers of his son William Henry Baker related to his education at Weymouth and at Harvard College, his early enlistment in the army, and his death at the Battle of Gettysburg.

Thayer family papers include an account book of J. Thayer of carriage and harness work at Weymouth, 1804-1823, and correspondence of William Wilde Thayer, mainly with family members on personal matters, 1871-1893. Among the correspondents are Charles Sumner and General Francis Asbury Shoup. Also included is his autobiography and certificate of membership in the Masonic order, 1869, as well as later tributes to him and reminiscences written by his daughter Laurel Conwell Thayer.