Charlie Delahoyde letter to mother from Florida (1898)

DELAHOYDE, STURGEON, BRENIMAN, HARN, LEE, POWELL, HICKMAN

Posted By: Ken Akers (email)
Date: 6/10/2017 at 21:00:18

Audubon County Journal (IA)
Thursday, June 23, 1898, pg. 7

EXIRA DEPARTMENT

Letter From Charlie Delahoyde.

--------
CAMP CUBA LIBRE, JACKSONVILLE,

FLORIDA, June 17, 1898.

DEAR MOTHER. --Well, we got
through all right, and had a very nice
trip and I expect we will be here five
or six weeks, but there is nothing certain
about it. We have got a good
place to camp, the only thing I hate
about it is we have to sleep on the
ground, and I don't like that very well,
but we have good tents to sleep in,
that is one thing. Say, it's pretty
warm down here. We get up in the
morning at 4:30 and drill from 6:15 to
7:30. We will not drill any until the
middle of next week as we are not climated
yet. This is a fine country as
the corn is all tasselled out and the
harvesting is done. There is all kinds
of fruit here, and melons are ripe. You
can get two pine apples for 5c, but we
dare not eat much of this stuff as it
will make us sick; two Iowa boys are
ill here now, but not dangerous. I
was on guard last night, had a loaded
gun with orders to shoot any man
who did not halt when challenged, so
you see they mean business. There is
about 10,000 soldiers here now and 30,-
000 more will be here within twenty days.
I saw Ed. Cotton's brother here
yesterday, he is in my regiment in
Company "C," and used to work in
the store at Exira. Has Frank Sturgeon,
Ollie Breniman and Sam Harn
gone yet? They will wish they were
home if they get in as they are too
small to live on what we have to; if
you can live on hard tack and coffee
for three days at a stretch you are all
right. I only drew $3.60 last pay day
and won't get payed off again until
the middle of July. I don't think we
will ever go into a battle, we may go
over to Cuba but I don't think we will
have much trouble. Our commander
is General Fitz Hugh Lee, that fellow
who was over in Cuba acting as representative
for the United States, and I
tell you he is a mighty fine man. They
think the Iowa boys are the only boys
as we are permitted to go down town
and the ladies and men talk to us and
invite us to dinner and treat us as gentlemen.
When the other regiments go
down town they raise Ned, and the
people don't like that. I was vaccinated
yesterday. Was downtown last
Wednesday and had my picture taken
and will send you one in day or two.
These few lines leave me in the best of
health, and you need not worry about
me for we have the best of doctors and
I will take care of myself as best I can.
I think we are about ten miles from
the ocean, and we can go to St. Augustine,
the oldest city in the United
States, and back to camp for ten cents.
Well write and send me a copy of the
Exira Journal. Your son
CHAS. A. DELAHOYDE
Company "F," Forty-Ninth Iowa
Volunteers.

Audubon County Journal (IA)
Thursday, July 21, 1898, pg. 7

EXIRA DEPARTMENT

Misses Gretchen and Kathleen Del-
ahoyde, daughters of Mr. and Mrs.
Fred Delahoyde received a box, Tues-
day, from their uncle, Charley Dela-
hoyde, containing a lot of shells that
he picked up on the shores of Florida.

Charley Delahoyde has sent his
mother some exquisitely beautiful sea-
shell ornaments from Florida. They
are in the shape of a napkin ring and
a nicely built ship.

Note: Parents of Charles Arthur "Charlie" Delahoyde (1877-1953) were William W. Delahoyde and Margaret Philena "Maggie" Powell. Charlie was married to Kathryn Hickman.

Audubon County Journal (IA) - June 23, 1898
 

Audubon Documents maintained by Cheryl Siebrass.
WebBBS 4.33 Genealogy Modification Package by WebJourneymen