James Dearing Letter

Today’s post will focus on a letter recently found in Avoca’s archives. This letter pictured was addressed to Charles Henry Lynch, and was written by James Dearing in June of 1861. This letter comes from the very beginning of the Civil War, at a time when Virginia had only been seceded from the Union for a month. Dearing was at the very center of Confederate operations at this quintessential time, so therefore this letter paints a vivid picture on the situation of the time. Dearing wrote the letter from the Spotswood Hotel in Richmond, VA. Richmond was of course the capital of the Confederacy, and the Spotswood Hotel is often remembered as a very important location to the Confederate Army. Many Confederate generals met at the Spotswood, and it was a frequent haunt for soldiers such as Dearing. Jefferson Davis even spent time there. In fact, David was present at the hotel when Dearing wrote this letter. Dearing met Jefferson Davis, and wrote to his uncle that Davis, “Complimented us very highly.” Dearing’s time at Spotswood is a snapshot of a time during the Civil War that can be described as a calm before the storm. When this letter was written, Dearing was a young man full of life and excited for this new experience, it would not be until later that the full realities of war came crashing down on him.