The Library of Congress > Blogs > Voices of the Civil War > "Our worst fears are confirmed"

"Our worst fears are confirmed"

John Nicolay, July 21, 1861

John G. Nicolay (1832 – 1901) to Theresa Bates, July 21 – 22, 1861. Manuscript. John G. Nicolay Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress

Thus go the fortunes of battle. Our worst fears are confirmed. The victory which seemed in our grasp at four o’clock yesterday afternoon, is changed to an overwhelming defeat—a total and disgraceful rout of our men. The whole army is in retreat, and will come back as far as the lines of fortification on the other side of the river.

This blog complements the Library of Congress exhibition, “The Civil War in America.” This series of posts chronicles the sacrifices and accomplishments of those—from both the North and South—whose lives were lost or affected by the events of 1861–1865. To learn more about the object featured in this blog entry, visit the online exhibition.

Add a Comment

This blog is governed by the general rules of respectful civil discourse. You are fully responsible for everything that you post. The content of all comments is released into the public domain unless clearly stated otherwise. The Library of Congress does not control the content posted. Nevertheless, the Library of Congress may monitor any user-generated content as it chooses and reserves the right to remove content for any reason whatever, without consent. Gratuitous links to sites are viewed as spam and may result in removed comments. We further reserve the right, in our sole discretion, to remove a user's privilege to post content on the Library site. Read our Comment and Posting Policy. "Voices of the Civil War" blog posts are personal observations and declarations of historical figures that lived during the Civil War; Library subject matter experts will respond to comments and questions submitted to this blog.