#102-CIVIL WAR SALE: THE EXTRAORDINARY DIARY OF SGT. JAMES PAXTON, CO. D, 3RD IOWA

This diary is one of the finest--and one of the longest and most comprehensive--war diaries kept by any soldier in the Civil War. James Paxton kept his detailed and very informative diary for all of 1864. The diary itself is approximately 200 pages long and provides great detail into the life of a soldier during a full year in the midst of the Civil War. As you can see in the first photo, Paxton did not merely jot down a few notes daily but filled every page of his leather-bound diary completely.

It is in a custom packaged outer case as you can also see in the photos. The case is essentially a box that was made specifically to house the diary and related documents. One of the sides (which look like the boards of a hardbound book) lifts up and back to reveal the diary, as well as a second publication tracing the history of the Paxton family. The diary and the Paxton family book are both bound in leather which you can see in the open case in the second photo.

In the first photo you can see the diary opened, showing its lengthy and detailed diary text; to the right is the bound book "We are One," which is the history of the Paxton family and was published in 1903.

If you look closely at the second photo you can see the quality of the construction of the box. At the top is the inside of the lid while below it the center panel forms what would then look like the spine of the box when closed. And the bottom of this photo shows the incredible workmanship of the box, as you can see the the interior walls of the box with its fabric covered boards, including and the thick and sturdy walls of the box.
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Just a few entries from Paxton:

>>>August 13-- “All quiet in camp all day. A very sad accident occurred this morning at the Depot, resulting in the death of 3 soldiers. The cars were passing the Depot and caught a squad of soldiers in between the platform and car and mashed 3 to death and 6 others (were injured) very bad.”

>>>April 24th-- "When it rains hard our tent leeks (sic) some...I arose very early this morning and went down to the pond to wash. The pond was very muddy and the fish came out to the edges--So I went to fishing with my hands and throwed (sic) out 14 nice cat fish."

>>>April 4--St. Louis, Mo. "My Dear Mother--I am almost willing to despair and give up trying to live....You did not think...that three of your Dear son's (sic) would leave their home to go and do battle for their country and leave those near and dear to them behind"

>>>October 10th,-- "The 13th Missouri Cavalry made a gallant charge and captured two fine brass cannon. The enemy were soon routed and drove (sic) back in disorder. The fighting was very hard at times. But was soon over for the Rebels could not stand our Sharp's Rifles. Several of my regiment was killed and a great many wounded."

IMPORTANT NOTE RE: THIS INCREDIBLE DIARY: The diary has been consigned to this sale by Thomas McCarthy, well-known in historical circles as having one of the finest Civil War libraries in private hands. McCarthy has worked with The History Bank for many years, graciously providing access to his library as we researched the many Civil War books we both wrote and produced for Penguin Books and other publishers.

We have a working agreement with McCarthy to explore possibilities of publishing the diary in its entirety, with added commentary and introductory remarks, as well as an index to the people, places and battles discussed by Sgt. Paxton. Such an index would become a very important part of the published book. The History Bank would be pleased to continue working toward the eventual publication of the diary with the person who purchases it, who as the owner of the physical diary would be welcomed as a beneficial partner in the publication of it should he/she wish to be involved.

OFFERS CONSIDERED
Submit offers to [email protected]