Mary (Elizabeth) Emaline Lomax

The following is a letter to Mary Emaline from her brother Lt.

James Welsh written the day after the Battle of Shiloh:

"Camp Shiloah April 28th 1862

Dear Sister Em This afternoon is very pleasant a little on the

warm order, and I have just made some lemonade and drank some of it so

that I am in good enough humor to write you a short letter. I wish you

could all be here to see the greatest battle field that ever has been

on this continent. I am sure that you have no idea of how it looks. In

passing over the battle ground which covers a great many thousands of

acres, you find every tree pierced with from a dozen to one hundred

bullets and generally two or three cannon balls buried to the very

centre of the tree even if the tree is three feet through. A great

many trees eighteen or twenty inches through are cut clear off and

some a great deal larger are cut so badly with the balls that they

have fallen to the ground. I just now got a letter from father dated

Apr. 20th and one from Di dated april 19th. The rebels have been

firing at our pickets up on the left where General Popes division is

camped & Daniel Diray, who just came from there says that Popes men

are drawn up in a line ready for fight is necessary. Crawford

Armstrong is in that division. Our battle line is now about twenty

miles long, counting Gen. Mitchell's division which are on the extreme

left. Some think that we will have another fight & some say that the

rebels are leaving. I am not able to say how this is. I send you a

roze [Alice Ream noted that a little dry yellow rose was crisp and

breaking when she received the letter] that I pulled from a bush in a

mans yard today. I must close for this time. I want you to write soon.

Direct your letter to Savannah Tenn. Asbury is well, so with Barnetts

& Davis boys. Joseph boy was here a while yesterday. He is camped

close to us. I hope you are all well.

Yours Aff. Lt. Welsh

Mary's father, John Welsh, was owner of a mill, hardware store,

grocery, shoe and millinery shop in Ohio. He had relatives in the

Laclede MO area and they prevailed on his coming to Laclede in 1863.

Soon after the Civil War he sold his businesses for $50,000 and bought

the hotel on the Burlington Railroad in Laclede and 160 acre farms for

most of his children.

He "married for a second time in 1856 in Marshall Co., WV to

Salina Simpson. In Marshall Co. in 1855 my [Charlotte Robinson]

grandfather Baker's grandfather, Jacob Jefferson took a second wife

named Marinda Simpson. The names listed as parents for both these

brides was John and Elizabeth Simpson, so they apparently were

sisters."

Mary died of influenza and broncho pneumonia.