Congress enacts Letterman’s, 234
criticism of Letterman’s allocation of personnel, 195–196
and dead soldiers, 146
at Fredericksburg, 145–147
general hospitals established, near battlefields, 115
at Gettysburg, 183–184, 187–189
Larrey’s “flying ambulance,” 41, 154
Letterman’s restructuring of, 86–90, 93–95, 270
smell of decay, 189–190
“victory” of medical department at Fredericksburg, 147
battlefield medical reforms. See also military hospitals
ambulance corps established by Letterman. See ambulance system
and camp sanitation. See Sanitary Commission; sanitation issues
Congressional bill in support of, 62
first aid/triage stations implemented, 130, 131–132, 134, 182, 183, 270–271
foundation of standards, by Special Orders, 79–80
Fredericksburg as first test of, 148
General Orders enabling, 80, 84, 88, 198–199
Letterman’s philosophy of military medicine, 240–241, 273
need for chain of care for wounded, 124
battlefield medical (continued)
realized by Letterman, 208–209
recognition of Letterman’s, 214– 216, 241–242, 249, 279–280
regimental affiliations eliminated in, 130–131
tiered supply chain plan. see supply chain
Bellows, Henry, 50, 77–78
Billings, John Shaw, 264, 290
Bowditch, Henry, 210–211
Brewer, William, 234–235, 237
Brinton, John H.
mission to discover casualties at Chancellorsville, 170–171
report of Fredericksburg, edited by Letterman, 147
role in redefining battlefield hospitals, 154, 155–156
on Stanton, 222
and supply chain, 172, 177
transfer of, out of surgeon general’s office, 221–222
Broadhead, Sarah, 189
Brooke, George M., 29
Buckingham, Catharinus, 134
Buford, John, 178, 179
Bull Run, 42–45, 48, 49–50, 63
burial detail, 146
Burnside, Ambrose
at Antietam, 109, 112–113
career, post–Civil War, 288
at Fredericksburg, 140, 142, 145, 146, 147
internal attack against, 152
lack of leadership ability in, 136, 138, 272
“Mud March” toward Lee abandoned, 150, 153
physical appearance of, 136–137
removed from command by Lincoln, 153
replaces McClellan as commanding officer, 134, 136–138, 151
resignation of, refused by Lincoln, 152–153
Butterfield, Daniel, 166, 169
California Petroleum Company, 230, 233, 244–245
Cameron, Simon, 65, 226
Camp Letterman, 194–195, 196
Canon, John, 4–5, 7
Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, 3–6, 9
Carleton, James Henry, 38–40, 239, 284–285
casualties
at Antietam battle, 103, 123
Antietam battle vs. Revolutionary War, 126
at Battle of Chancellorsville, 167, 170–171
death on the battlefield, 114, 146, 190
at Fredericksburg, 143, 145, 146
at Gettysburg, 180, 182, 183, 185, 186–187, 188, 193
hospital recovery, suffering in, 116, 133
of Letterman’s first four battles, 203
wounded on the battlefield, 94–95, 96
Chancellorsville. See Battle of Chancellorsville
Chatham House, 143–144
Child, William, 116
Chinese immigration issues
anti-Chinese sentiment, in political parties, 250–251, 258
and employment in San Francisco, 248–249
Letterman’s sympathy for, 256–257
cholera, 27
Christian Commission, 176, 184
Civil War. See also specific battles
ailments suffered by veterans of, 255, 274
Antietam. See Battle of Antietam
case history of patient suffering, in recovery, 275–276
casualties of. See casualties
first spring campaign in Virginia, 69–72
global attention paid to medical improvements during, 273
lethality of battles, 126. See also Antietam, battle at
Mine Run, 207–208
outbreak of, at Manassas Junction, 42–45
Second Battle at Bull Run, Union defeat at, 91–95
South Mountain battle, 102–105
walking wounded, after defeat of Union Army, 46–48
weaponry of increased lethality, 84–86
civilian relief organizations, 50–51, 61, 192–193. See also Sanitary Commission
Clemens, Samuel, 251
Clements, Bennett Augustine, 239, 263, 266
Confederate army. See specific battles
Congress
ambulance law enacted by, 218–219
basic army ration established by, 129
emancipation legislation passed by, 248, 258
Letterman’s battlefield evacuation plan enacted by, 234
medical department and surgeon general’s office legislation, 67–68
medical department reform bill passed by, 62
National Academy of Sciences established by, 228
Cook, Benjamin, 1–2
coroner’s office, 249–251, 254–255
Couch, Darius, 212–213, 214
Crimean War, 41, 50, 55, 75
Cuyler, John, 52
Daily Alta California, 233, 234
Davis, Benjamin Franklin, 39, 239–240
Delafield Commission, 55
Democratic Party
Letterman runs for office of coroner, 249–251
loss to Taxpayers Union Party, 260
peace platform of, 222
racist platform of, 250–251, 258–259
Department of the Susquehanna, 212–214, 217–218
deserters, 132, 147, 149–150, 153, 269
doctors. See military medical corps Dodge Commission, 278
Dunglison, Robley, 283
Dyer, J. Franklin, 268
dysentery, 21, 79, 231–232, 255, 273
early America
education in, 6, 7–8, 10–11
expansion of, 8–9, 22
medical beliefs and practices in, 16–17
medical schools, 12–15, 16, 17
pioneering lifestyle in, 3–4, 9
politics in, 2–3, 8
Edmonds, Emma, 44–45, 56–57
European ambulance systems, 41, 132, 211
European military medicine, 41, 50, 62, 75–76, 153–154, 273
Ewell, Richard, 179, 180, 183
farmer “profiteering,” 192
Finley, Clement Alexander, 51–52, 54, 58, 59, 62, 68
food rations. See also nutrition and dietary concerns
established by Congress, 129
hardtack, 82
lack of vegetables in diet, 157
Letterman’s improvements to, 157
nutrition concerns with, 33, 82–83
winter camp, 217
Fort Defiance, Arizona, 31–33
Fort Meade, Florida, 23–24, 25–26, 27–29
Fort Monroe, Virginia, 37, 69
Fort Ripley, Minnesota, 29–30
Fort Tejon, California, 37–38, 239
Fort Union, New Mexico, 35–37
Franklin, William, 140, 142, 143, 152
Frederick, Maryland, 99–102, 116, 117–118, 176–177
Fredericksburg. See Battle of Fredericksburg
French, William, 27–29
General Orders
ambulance regulation, 88, 198–199, 218
battlefield evacuation, 88
medical department reorganization, 80
sanitation recommendations, 84
geologists
criticism of Silliman’s oil samples by, 242
Josiah Whitney, 234, 237–238, 244, 292
William Letterman, 253, 282
George Spangler’s farm, 185
Gettysburg. See Battle of Gettysburg Gorham, George, 251
Grant, Ulysses S., 287, 288–289
Gross, Samuel, 201
Guild, LaFayette, 169–170, 290–291
Haight, Henry H., 250, 259, 260
Halleck, Henry, 90, 91–92, 138, 173, 221, 249, 272, 289
Hamilton, Frank H., 45–46
Hammond, William
Army Medical Museum created by, 276
arrest of, 216
assessment of Gettysburg medical situation, 196
banning of two routine drugs by, 200–201
career of, 285
dietary self-experiments by, 33–34, 51
feud with Stanton, 68–69, 95, 149, 200–202, 210, 216, 221–222, 286
investigative committee, 201–202, 210, 216
joins U.S. Army as assistant surgeon, 22
Kansas real estate scheme, involvement in, 200, 201
and Letterman alliance, 22, 64, 66, 67, 68–69, 77, 91, 151, 199, 271–272, 285
medical library established by, 264
medical specialty hospitals established by, 276
pavilion hospital design by, 66–67, 132–133, 274
on poor hospital conditions, 66
supported by Sanitary Commission, 62, 64, 200
surgeon general, promotion to, 68
trial and prosecution of, 220–221
Hancock, Cornelia, 189
Hancock, Winfield, 182
Hardie, James, 173
hardtack, 33, 62
Harris, Elisha, 51
Harris, Stephen Randall, 251
Hawley, Paul R., 267
Herriott, George, 7
Hewitt, Henry, 154
Holman, Sam, 265–266
Holt, Daniel, 115–116, 120, 124, 140
Hooker, Joseph
appointed commanding officer, 153
at Battle of Antietam, 108–110
battle plans for spring 1862, 160–161, 162
caution allows enemy advantage at Chancellorsville, 163–164, 165, 166
de-prioritizing of medical department by, 162–163, 167–168, 171, 172–173, 240
endorsement of Letterman’s nutrition improvement, 157, 159
feud with Halleck, 173, 272
knocked unconscious at Chancellorsville, 166
popularity with troops, 153, 272
post–Civil War, 288
removed from command, 288
requests concealment of casualty numbers at Chancellorsville, 170–171
Horsey, Outerbridge, 206
hospital inspector, post of, 213–214
Hough, Franklin, 144–145
Indian “affairs”
Carleton expedition against Paiute Indians, 38–40, 284
Loring expedition and Apache groups, 34–35, 284
Navajos, forced relocation, 284–285
war against Seminoles, 23
Irwin, Bernard, 155, 291
Jackson, Andrew, 2–3
Jackson, Thomas. J. “Stonewall,” 27–29, 92, 105, 111, 137, 142, 284
Janes, Henry, 191, 193, 194–195
Jefferson College, 6, 9–10, 13
Jefferson Medical College, 7, 12–15, 169, 281–282, 283, 290
Johnston, G. K., 189
Journal of the American Medical Association, 277
Keedysville field hospital, 109, 114, 116, 118
Keen, William W., 94–95, 290
Kimball, Gilman, 52
King, William S., 44, 46, 47, 49–50, 196
Larrey, Dominique-Jean, 41, 154
Lawson, Thomas, 24–25, 26, 40–41, 51
Leatherman, Anna (née Ritchie), 7, 12
Leatherman, Jonathan, 6–7, 9, 12
Lee, Charles Carroll, 204, 253, 264
Lee, Mary Digges. see Letterman, Mary Digges (née Lee)
Lee, Robert E., 91–92, 99, 100, 105, 116, 163–164, 168, 177, 185
Lee, Thomas Sim, 204, 205, 236
Letterman, Ann Madeline, 243, 253, 264, 265
Letterman, Craig, 253
Letterman, Jonathan in California
candidate as oil exploration organizer, 230–231
Commissioner of Lunacy, 261
invests in Philadelphia & California Petroleum, 232
lawsuit against Philadelphia & California Petroleum, as stockholder, 245
medical practice in San Francisco, 249, 253, 254
oil exploration, failure of, 233–238, 242, 291–292
character of
accountability, importance of. See accountability
compassion for human life, 257, 269
highly regarded by fellow officers, 206, 214–215
and Hooker’s concealment of Chancellorsville casualties, 170–171
supporters of, and memorial presented to Senate’s Military Committee, 214–215
tributes to, 262–263
as coroner
causes of death determined, 258
Democratic Party, 289
Democratic Party election, 249–251
night inquests, 254–255
report to Board of Supervisors, 256–257
request for morgues, 257
role of, 253–260
friendships of
Hammond alliance, 22, 64, 66, 67, 68–69, 77, 151, 271–272, 285
with McClellan, 68, 73–74, 135, 222, 271–272
wedding gift from fellow officers, 206
as medical director
appointment of, 73–74, 151
authority of, 76–77, 79
battlefield assessment for medical needs, 181
battlefield care reforms of. See battlefield medical reforms battlefield evacuation preparation at Antietam, 106–109
casualty contingencies, planned by at Fredericksburg, 139–140
criticism of, 149
editing of Brinton’s report, 147, 150
head of chain of command, 104
hospital system restructured by. See military hospitals
housing orders issued by, 158
leave requested by, 209–210
legacy of, 279–280
medical examination board created by, 156
overhaul of battlefield care by, 79–81. See also battlefield medical reforms
praise for accomplishments of, 214–216, 241–242, 265–267
pre-battle assessment of medical set-up, 178–179
resignation of army commission by, 223–225
restructuring of medical supply chain by. See supply chain
supply trains organized as patient transfer, 123
supply trains organized as patient transfer by, 117–118
military career
expeditions against Indians, 34–35, 38–39, 239, 284
final campaign of, at Mine Run, 207–208
final year of army life, 224–225
as general superintendent of Philadelphia & California Petroleum Company, 233–238, 242
hospital inspector postings, 70, 212–214, 217–218
joins U.S. Army as assistant surgeon, 22
in New York City, as medical purveyor, 58–59
outpost medicine assignments, 21–24, 27–33, 35–38, 40
surgeon general of California’s militia, 255–256, 260
at West Point, 219, 220
personal life of
birth and family of, 3, 6, 7
burial at Arlington National Cemetery, 264–265
daughters of, 232, 234, 243, 253, 264–265
death and funeral of, 261–262
early years of, 2, 7, 9–10
education, 7, 10–12, 14–15, 21
health pr
oblems, 231, 255, 259, 261
loss of wife and depression suffered by, 253–255
marriage to Mary Digges Lee, 205–206, 208, 219–220, 242–243
move to California, 232–233
move to San Francisco, 243, 247
private nature of, 202–203, 224, 238
and Silliman’s oil samples, 237–238
writings of
on battlefield injury, xviii–xix
on Bennett Augustine Clements, 239
on civilian doctors, 193–194
on deserters, 147
on friendship with B. F. Davis, 239–240
on Hooker’s hampering of medical department, 172, 240
on medical accountability in preventive health care, 159
Medical Recollections of the Army of the Potomac written by, 238–241, 249
on military medicine, 240–241
on plight of Chinese immigrants, 256–257
on preparedness of army at Fredericksburg, 138
on reality of medical supply availability in wartime, 127
Letterman, Mary Catherine “Cassie,” 232, 234, 243, 253, 264–265
Letterman, Mary Digges (née Lee) burial at Arlington National Cemetery, 264–265
California living conditions, 235–236, 237
children of, 232, 236, 243
death of, 252–253
family of, 204–205, 225, 232
illness of, 235–236, 243
on Letterman’s election as coroner, 251–252
marriage to Letterman, 205–206, 208, 219–220, 234
Letterman, William, 253, 281–282
Letterman General Hospital, 266
libraries, 264, 290
lice infestations, 84
Lincoln, Abraham
appoints Hooker to replace Burnside, 152
assassination of, 233
on Hooker’s defeat at Chancellorsville, 167
and McClellan, 62, 77, 94–96, 125, 133–135
re-election as president, against McClellan, 221
refusal of Burnside’s resignation, after internal plotting, 151–153
replaces Hooker with Meade as commanding officer, 172
and Stanton, mutual dislike of, 63–65, 285
surgeon generals appointed by, 50–52
volunteers called for by, 41
Longmore, Thomas, 273
Longstreet, James, 92, 111, 137, 140, 182–183
Loring, William W., 34–36, 262, 284
Lovell, Joseph, 18–20, 24–25, 33
malaria, 16, 24, 27
Manassas Junction. See Bull Run
Manual of the Medical Officer of the Army of the United States, 56, 287
Marye’s Heights, 141, 142, 143, 144, 151
McClellan, George B.
Antietam battle plan, and delay aids evacuation plan, 107, 108–109
career, post–Civil War, 288
cautious military tactics of, 289
as commanding officer, 56–57, 62–63
criticism of, 126
Democratic nomination for president, 222