Letitia Frazer's Plea for Parole for Her Husband, C. W. Frazer, Prisoner on Johnson's Island

The Hayes Presidential Library and Museums Manuscripts Division holds one of the largest collections of the Civil War's Confederate Officers' Prison located on Lake Erie's Johnson's Island. The most important of these collections is that donated by the late Charles E. Frohman, who wrote "Rebels on Lake Erie."

During a recent visit, Andrews Martin of Sandusky, Ohio donated this 2-cent "Black Jack" orange cover (above) addressed to Mrs. L. S. Frazer  Sandusky O. and postmarked Mar. 8 '65 with a double circle postmark beside it. It also contains  a partial strike of the examiner's oval (initials G. F. M.)  in the corner.

As we discussed the rare cover, we believed that it was probably addressed to a relative of Confederate "Brigadier General" John W. Frazer. Frazer was the commanding officer who surrendered Cumberland Gap to General Burnside without firing a single shot. Frazer acted as a brigadier general, but after his surrender of the Cumberland Gap, his nomination was rejected by the Senate of the Confederate States. He did spend time at Johnson's Island, but was also imprisoned at Fort Warren in Boston Harbor.  

A quick check online turned up a letter in the Abraham Lincoln Papers at the Library of Congress. It was written by Letitia Frazer who traveled to Washington, D. C. to present her letter to President Abraham Lincoln asking for a parole for her husband, Captain C. W. Frazer, who was imprisoned on Johnson's Island. The letter is not dated, but ironically it was delivered to President Lincoln in an envelope marked "From Jay Cooke and Co., Washington, D. C."

 A transcription of this letter follows. 

To His Excellency Abraham Lincoln
President of the United States

Mr. President:

My husband Capt. C. W. Frazer has been a Prisoner of War on Johnson's Island since Sept. 1863. I have followed him all through the war and when he was captured I went to Sandusky, Ohio and remained there still to be near him though I could not see him felt comforted to know that he was safe. Now the Exchange has commenced and I am almost crazy to get him out of that Army, I know of but one way I earnestly entreat the President to allow me to try it. His interests are all in the Union, his family are all loyal citizens of Memphis. They need him sorely and desire him to come home. I pray the President to give him a limited time to report at his place of exchange on his parole of honor so that I may have the opportunity to convince him that his duty is at home and to leave the Rebel Army. I know he must be exchanged when his time comes then he will be lost to me so this is my last opportunity to convert him and save my husband. I do not ask this great favor for him, but on behalf of his suffering family. 

Respectfully
Letitia Frazer

http://lincolnpapers2.dataformat.com/images/1865/02/228004.pdf

From this letter, it appears that Mrs. L. S. Frazer, was the wife of Capt. C. W. Frazer and, as she writes, followed him to Sandusky, where she was living to be near her husband, who was imprisoned on Johnson's Island.

President Lincoln gave his permission immediately. Below is a scan of a photocopy of a document found in the Roger Long Papers. Letitia Frazer was allowed an "interview" with her husband after taking the oath of allegiance. Letitia was allowed to visit once every ten days until her husband was released.

The Roger Long Papers contain much more about Frazer's service and post-war life, including this photograph of Frazer's military coat.. Frazer served as adjutant in the 5th Confederate Infantry.

Sailor George Earl Swank of Sandusky, Ohio

This photograph of George Earl Swank in his baseball uniform is from the Joyce Zeigler Collection. George Earl Swank was the son of Mr. and  Mrs. George Swank, who were one-time residents of Fremont, Ohio, but later moved to Sandusky, Ohio.

Swank served as a midshipman for two years in the fleet that took part in 1914 in the "Tampico Affair" in Mexico. His ship was sent to protect the large number of American citizens who resided there.  When Swank returned, he signed on as a deckhand on the sand sucker Recor, one of the vessels that made up the fleet of the Kelleys Island Lime and Transport Company. On April 17, 1915, Swank lost his footing on the dock while tying up the boat. He fell into the bay, probably striking his head on the dock.  Captain Omar Myers and a a group of men pulled Swank from the water within five minutes. Sadly, despite every attempt to resuscitate him, the 25 year-old Swank passed away a short time later at Good Samaritan Hospital.

 

Students at Carlisle Indian Industrial School, Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, 1879

Carlisle Indian Industrial School Students, Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, 1879
The above names appear on the reverse of this cabinet card.

1. Anna Laura, Daughter of Shooting Cat, Rosebud Agency
2. Alice Wynn, Daughter of Lone Bear, Pine Ridge Agency
3. Hattie, Daughter of Lone Wolf, Pine Ridge Agency
4. Mabel, Kiowa, from Fort Sill Indian Territory
5. Rebecca, Daughter of Big Star, Rosebud Agency
6. Stella Berht, Daughter of Chasing Hawk, Rosebud Agency
7. Grace, Daughter of Cook ?, Rosebud Agency
8. Ruth, Daughter of Big Head, Rosebud Agency

Miss Mary R. Hyde, Matron (center)

President Rutherford B. Hayes threw the support of his administration behind Captain Richard H. Pratt's efforts to establish the Carlisle Indian Industrial School at Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Pratt believed that through a curriculum of English, training in the trades and the white culture, Christianity, citizenship, and patriotism, Indian boys and girls would soon learn the "white man's way" and take their place in mainstream American society. During its existence (1879-1918), this first off-reservation school served as a model for other boarding, day, and off-reservation schools funded by the federal government.

Army Captain Richard H. Pratt, Superintendent of the Carlisle Indian Industrial School sent stereoview, cabinet card, boudoir images of the students to President Rutherford B. Hayes and First Lady Lucy Webb Hayes in 1879. These were produced by commercial photographer John N. Choate. This image, along with others, are believed to feature the first group of students who entered Carlisle in the fall of 1879.

Choate photographed the students in their traditional dress upon their arrival at Carlisle. Later, Choate photographed the same students in white man's clothing. For Pratt, the "before" and "after" images served as visual evidence of the program's success in assimilating Indian students. Pratt sent photographs to Christian reformers, Hayes administration officials, congressmen, and others who believed that Indians could be "Americanized" through education. Pratt did not send President Hayes images of students in their traditional dress. Students were not allowed to speak their native language or wear their traditional dress, however they did gain a skill and learned to read, write, and speak English. The experiment created patterns of dislocation and separation and emotional and cultural disruptions in the lives of the students, their families, and their communities. As adults, most Carlisle students were caught between their own society and the white man's world. However, many discovered their own resilience, resourcefulness and ways of resistance.  You can learn more about the school and these and other students through school records, publications, documents, and more photographs at  The Carlisle Indian School Resource Center . which represents an effort to aid the research process by bringing together, in digital format, a variety of resources that are physically preserved in various locations around the country." The center seeks "to increase knowledge and understanding of the school and its complex legacy, while also facilitating efforts to tell the stories of the many thousands of students who were sent there."

Army Captain Richard H. Pratt, Superintendent of the Carlisle Indian Industrial School sent stereoview, cabinet card, boudoir images of the students to President Rutherford B. Hayes and First Lady Lucy Webb Hayes in 1879. These were produced by commercial photographer John N. Choate. This image, along with others, are believed to feature the first group of students who entered Carlisle in the fall of 1879.  

Choate photographed the students in their traditional dress upon their arrival at Carlisle. Later, Choate photographed the same students in white man's clothing. For Pratt, the "before" and "after" images served as visual evidence of the program's success in assimilating Indian students. Pratt sent photographs to Christian reformers, Hayes administration officials, congressmen, and others who believed that Indians could be "Americanized" through education. Pratt did not send President Hayes images of students in their traditional dress.

Students were not allowed to speak their native language or wear their traditional dress, however they did gain a skill and learned to read, write, and speak English. The experiment created patterns of dislocation and separation and emotional and cultural disruptions in the lives of the students, their families, and their communities. As adults, most Carlisle students were caught between their own society and the white man's world. However, many discovered their own resilience, resourcefulness and ways of resistance. 

You can learn more about the school and these and other students through school records, publications, documents, and more photographs at  The Carlisle Indian School Resource Center . which represents an effort to aid the research process by bringing together, in digital format, a variety of resources that are physically preserved in various locations around the country." The center seeks "to increase knowledge and understanding of the school and its complex legacy, while also facilitating efforts to tell the stories of the many thousands of students who were sent there."