A Summer Sunday in 1864: Isaac Sannan’s News from the Farm

“my corn is good it is over my head as I plow some is silking”

Come on in and sit a spell, neighbors. I’ve found something truly special tucked away in our archives—a handwritten letter from July 1864, written by a man named Isaac Sannan in Gallia County, Ohio. Holding this piece of paper feels like reaching across time. It’s a bit worn, with some brown stains and foxing along the edges where it was folded long ago, but Isaac’s cursive hand remains clear as day. Even with his unique, phonetic spelling, you can almost hear his voice as he catches his friend John Quinn up on the news of the day.

Isaac’s letter is a wonderful mix of the monumental and the mundane. He talks about the chaos of the Civil War, specifically General Crook’s raids through Virginia, where bridges were burned and railroads were torn up in places like Newborn and Stanton. He even mentions the capture of the partisan Bill Thurmond on Sewell Mountain, wondering if the yankeys might execute him. Yet, in the very next breath, Isaac pivots to the life he knows best: his farm. He tells John that his corn is already over his head while he plows, and he shares the going rates for wheat and corn, which were fetching quite a price back then.

What makes this letter so precious is how it anchors these massive historical events in the everyday lives of regular folks. Amidst the talk of war and capture, Isaac is getting ready to head out to church to hear a woman preach—a bit of a rarity for the time that clearly piqued his interest. He’s worried about not being able to get letters through to his father, showing that the real tragedy of war was often the silence it forced between loved ones as communication lines across Virginia were severed.

Looking at this letter today, we’re reminded that history isn’t just about generals and battlefields. It’s about the farmer who worries about his oats while his country is being reshaped. It’s about the enduring bond of friendship and the hope of visiting old friends once the trouble passes. Isaac’s words invite us to remember that even in the darkest of times, people still planted their crops, cared for their neighbors, and looked for a little bit of inspiration on a Sunday morning.

Original Transcription

harris burg gallia Co ohio
July the 17 1864
Dear friend we received
youre letter the 9 of July
and it fonus all as well
as common and was glad
to hear from you a gain
we ar all at this and hope
that this will find you all
well I cant giv you any
true statement a bout V A
I cant get any news
correct from thare thar
is troops at fayette ville but
gener Croks is makring raids
all this spring and sommer he
went to newborn and whip the
rebs and tore up the rail rode and
burnt the bridge and then went to
lewis burg and to Stanton and
to lynch burg and don all he
wanted to do and now is gone
to pency vania

2
I cant get a letter to
father any more I dont
know what is the reason I am
trying to find out and to
get all the news I can and
when I can find out I will let
you know I can tell you
that the yankeys hav got
Bill Thurmond in Jan thay
got him on Suell mountain
thay had not killed him
yet but I think thay will
times is tolerabl good hear
wheat crops is short corn
is tolerabl good corn is 100 pr B
wheat is 200 pr B I think I maid
one hundred B of wheat my
corn is good it is over my
head as I plow some is silking
my oats is good and all most
rip I hav got up on half
stack and hav 5 achors yet
to cut I cut on the halfs

3
I hav nthing mutch writ at
this tim and it is tim I was
gon to church I am going to
hear a woman preach today
I wood be glad to see you all
giv wife and children our
love and all of our old friends
we wood be glad to see
them come this fall and
we will go to v a rite soon
so nothing more at presant
but your true friend
Isaac Sannan
to John G Quinn