[Letter] 1862 February 23, Camp Price near Ft. Scott [to] Mother / Francis Rupert.

The letter is written on blue lined paper, and the stamp has been cut off the envelope. The letter is part of the Stuckey-Nunn collection of Civil War correspondence between Union soldiers (Joseph D. Richardson and Francis Rupert) and their families, as well as one letter from a Confederate soldier, William T. Bickham to his cousin; see additional letters from Francis Rupert in the collection.

Francis talks about getting a furlough, sending $30 home, and being near Washington. He says that General Hooker's order stands that no paroled prisoner was to have a furlough, but that some paroled married men have had furloughs, so why not a single man? Francis asks his mother to tell his father not to feel bad if he does not write to him as "when I write it's to the whole family." He tells them not to hold the money he sent for him, but to enjoy themselves with it. He urges Lucy to write and states that he'd rather do picket duty than stay in camp unoccupied. Rupert served with the 2nd Regiment of the Pennsylvania Cavalry, 59th Volunteers which saw action in Northern Virginia, assisted in the defenses of Washington, and was present at major battles of the war including Antietam, Gettysburg, and the surrender of Lee at Appomattox Court House. Rupert became a POW and died at Andersonville Prison in Georgia on June 26, 1864; the overcrowded conditions there led to the deaths of 13,000 from disease, malnutrition, and exposure.