LEWIS C. BISBEE:

Lewis C. Bisbee was born in Hartford, Maine, in 1834. On July 16, 1862, he joined the newly-formed 16th Maine Volunteer Infantry with the rank of lieutenant. The unit served as rear guard at the Battle of Antietam in September, 1862, and participated actively in the battles of Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville. On the first day of the Battle of Gettysburg, July 1, 1863, the 16th Maine was overcome while positioned to guard a Union retreat, and Bisbee was taken captive. He was sent to Libby Prison in Richmond, Virginia, where he remained until May of 1864.

On May 17, 1864, Bisbee, by then promoted to captain, was transferred to Macon, Georgia, and subsequently to Savannah, Georgia, and to Charleston and Columbia, South Carolina. He escaped from Columbia on November 4, 1864, but was recaptured on November 8. On December 9, he sent the diaries home with his compatriot, Lieutenant George Bisbee, who had been released, but he continued to record on odd slips of paper. All of these have been preserved in this collection. Transferred to Charlotte, North Carolina, on February 14, 1865, Bisbee was released in a prisoner exchange on February 20, departing by steamboat on March 3, 1865.

Shortly after the close of hostilities, Bisbee moved with his wife to Minneapolis and became one of the city's first prominent architects. Among other buildings he designed in his 56-year career were the first city hall, the Athenaeum Library, the Church of the Redeemer, and the Thomas Lowry residence. Bisbee retired from his practice in about 1910 and died in Minneapolis on July 15, 1921.

Biographical information was taken from obituaries in the Minneapolis Journal, July 16, 1921, p. 2, and the St. Paul Pioneer Press, July 16, 1921, p. 3.

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The collection centers on diaries that Bisbee kept while in various Confederate prisons between January 1, 1864 and March 3, 1865. The diaries consist of two pocket-size volumes, one booklet made of scrap paper, and three sheets folded to pocket-size, also made from scrap. These are in addition to various papers, arranged chronologically, that relate to his military career, including letters, telegrams, military documents, autographs, and a sketch map.

The diaries describe vividly the routine and extraordinary events of prison life in the last years of the war, when the prisoners were moved again and again just ahead of advancing Union armies. Bisbee recounts in great detail a daring tunnel escape from Libby Prison made by 109 men on February 10, 1864, listing those who escaped and were later recaptured, and diagramming the prison and escape route. Bisbee's own later escape and recapture is also recounted in detail. Finally, Bisbee describes the prisoner­ exchange system by which he was ultimately released.

Volume three combines the author's corrected, annotated, typed transcription of the diaries with explanations, descriptions, and a diagram of the Libby Prison escape, all interspersed throughout the text. This is preceded by a reminiscence of the battles leading up to Bisbee's capture and imprisonment. The transcriptions are followed by some later and additional reminiscences and memorabilia concerning the 16th Maine Regiment. About half of this manuscript has been photographed for preservation and the deteriorated original returned to the donor.

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Access Restrictions:

Originals are closed. Access and use requires the curator’s permission.

Preferred Citation:

[Indicate the cited item and/or series here]. Lewis C. Bisbee Papers. Minnesota Historical Society.

See the Chicago Manual of Style for additional examples.

Accession Information:

Accession number: 4076

Processing Information:

Digitized by: Minnesota Historical Society, September 2022.

Digitization was made possible by the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund through the vote of Minnesotans on November 4, 2008.

Processed by: Ryan Perkins, February 1980

Catalog ID number: 990017319940104294

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This collection is indexed under the following headings in the catalog of the Minnesota Historical Society. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons or places should search the catalog using these headings.

Organizations:

Libby Prison.

United States. Army. Maine Infantry Regiment, 16th.

Places:

United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Campaigns.

United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Prisoners and prisons.

United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Personal narratives.

Document Types:

Diaries.

Personal narratives.

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