160. CIVIL WAR DIARY OF CAPT. CHARLES N. HELMERICH The Civil War diary of Capt Charles Helmerich of the 57th Ohio Vol. Infy., approx. 400pp. sm. 8vo., about 7/8 of which are filled with cleanly-written, legible entries in old German covering the period from Jan. 1- Mar. 17 and May 9-Sept. 1, 1864, somewhat loose leather covers with Helmerich's name, regiment and rank penned on one flap, binding tight. By January 1864, the 47th Ohio Infantry was a battle-hardened regiment that had seen hard service in West Virginia, the Vicksburg Campaign and in the bitter campaigns in eastern Tennessee, up to and including Missionary Ridge. Organized at Camp Denison in August 1861 the regiment included a number of soldiers of German extraction, including the 39 year-old Captain of Co. H, Charles Helmerich. Helmerich's diary for 1864 covers the months during which the 47th Ohio reenlisted after more than two years of service. The earliest weeks of 1864 are relatively uneventful, with the entries being correspondingly brief, discussing such matters as the weather, dress parades, the arrest of a soldier for desertion, and securing a turkey. There are, as elsewhere, a few brief notes regarding returns and reports of ordnance and supplies with references, among other things to the company's Enfield and Springfield rifles. Helmerich and the other veterans of the 47th who reenlisted were granted a furlough from March 18 to early May, during which time there are no diary entries. They returned to Georgia and rejoined the 15th Army Corps, just as it was joining in the fierce Atlanta Campaign. From late May through September, the 47th was involved in a fearsome succession of engagements with the enemy, large and small, suffering heavily. Having begun the war 830 men, they ended the campaign with but 120. Helmerich describes several engagements, including Kennesaw Mountain (poorly translated) : "...Toward 6 in the morning, the order came to take our weapons and 60 cartridges...ordered to the Mountain about 3/4 mile from our Camp and took our place in line of battle and on the double quick we went over an open field...[pinned down] by tremendous fire, here was the greatest slaughter that I have ever experienced, lying around me were six dead men, most of whom appeared to have been killed by shell...". The balance of the diary remains untranslated and likely contains much more fine content! $800 - 1,200