Abraham Lincoln Letter to Mrs. Bixby, Provo, UT
N 40° 14.057 W 111° 38.656
12T E 445193 N 4453959
This obelisk in Memorial Park, Provo, UT.
Waymark Code: WMA17M
Location: Utah, United States
Date Posted: 10/30/2010
Views: 21
Located in the Memorial Park in Provo, Utah is a monument that bears an etching of a letter that President Abraham Lincoln wrote to Mrs. Lydia Bixby, the mother of five sons who fought for their country, Authur, Charles, Oliver, Henry and George. At the time he wrote the letter, Lincoln believed all five had died fighting; it was later determined that only two had died in service.
Sgt. Charles N. Bixby (18 July 1861 – 3 May 1863), was killed near Fredericksburg, Virginia while in the service of Company D, 20th Massachusetts.
Pvt. Oliver C. Bixby, Jr. (26 February 1864 – 30 July 1864, was killed near Petersburg, while in the service of Company E, 58th Massachusetts.
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Reportedly, it was later reported for her other three sons:
one was honorably discharged and later killed at Gettysburg. (Cpl. Henry C. Bixby, Company K, 32nd Massachusetts (1862 – 1864),
one was an army deserter (Pvt. Arthur Edward Bixby, Company C, Massachusetts 1st Heavy Artillery),
and the other (Cpl. George A. Bixby, Company H, 25th Massachusetts (17 September 1861 – 7 July 1864) either deserted or died as a prisoner of the war after being captured at Petersburg.
It is thought that Mrs. Bixby destroyed the letter when she received it, as she was a Confederate sympathizer, not liking President Lincoln.
Location Type: Historic Marker
Property Type: Public
Date of Event: Sept 21, 1864
Location Notes:
The text on this monument reads:
"Sept 21, 1864
Mrs. Lydia Bixby
Boston, Massachusetts
I have been shown in the files of the War Department that you are hte mother of sons who have died gloriously on the field of battle.
I feel how weak and f
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