About This Collection
The two digitized diaries of William Riley Blakeslee consist of 538 scanned pages and date from January 1862 to December 1863. Found within the diaries are accounts of his service in the Civil War, including personal accounting records, daily events, travels between camps, and visits to Coatesville. William Riley Blakeslee (1822-1909) was born to Benjamin and Sophia Lane Blakeslee in Springville Township, Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania. After receiving his medical degree, Blakeslee moved to Coatesville, Pennsylvania where he practiced medicine as a surgeon and general physician. Blakeslee was married three times and left seven children. As a well-known figure in his community, Blakeslee was known for his house and gardens, and for opening one of the first drug stores in Coatesville. During the Civil War, Blakeslee served as a surgeon with the 115th Regiment of Pennsylvania Volunteers from October 1861 until his discharge in March 1863, and returned to service from July to August 1863 in the wake of Gettysburg. After the war, he continued practicing medicine in Coatesville and was employed as a surgeon for the Pennsylvania Railroad for over fifty years. The first diary notes Blakeslee’s arrival at Camp Constitution in Camden, New Jersey in May 1862, and documents the regiment’s travels to various locations in Virginia, including Fort Monroe, Harrison’s Landing, Centerville, northern Virginia, and Fredericksburg from June to December of 1862. Entries in the second diary describe marches near Falmouth, Virginia from January to March, and activities at Camp Muhlenberg near Reading, Pennsylvania and Camp Cook near Scranton, Pennsylvania from July to August of 1863. Blakeslee’s entries for 1863 provide greater description and details regarding fellow officers, daily news, events, and visits back to his home in Coatesville. In addition, entries dating from September 9 onward include recollections and notes of daily activities from the previous year. The entirety of the William Riley Blakeslee Diary Collection is housed and available for research use at the Chester County History Center.
