William R. McMahan's Diary
Dublin Core
Title
William R. McMahan's Diary
Subject
United States History, Civil War, 1861-1865; Diaries
Description
William R. McMahan, born in 1843 in Indiana, enlisted in the Union Army at 18 as a private with the Fifty-eighth Volunteer Infantry on September 10, 1861. His diary offers a firsthand account of military life during significant Civil War campaigns, including those at Chattanooga, Lookout Mountain, Chickamauga, and Atlanta, and records his rise to the rank of First Lieutenant. After his military service, he pursued a medical career, graduating from Rush Medical College in Chicago in 1868 and later teaching at Evansville Medical College from 1882 to 1884. The diary also documents financial transactions and lists of wounded soldiers.
Creator
William R. McMahan
Source
Vanderbilt University Special Collections
Publisher
Vanderbilt University Special Collections, Vanderbilt University
Date
1861-1865
Contributor
A. B. Nickey
Rights
May be viewed only in the reading room of Special Collections in the Jean and Alexander Heard Library
Relation
Not specified
Format
Physical Book
Language
English
Type
Diary
Identifier
MSS.0278; https://collections.library.vanderbilt.edu/repositories/2/resources/1005;
Coverage
Civil War, United States
Still Image Item Type Metadata
Original Format
Diary
Citation
William R. McMahan, “William R. McMahan's Diary,” Spring 2025, accessed December 11, 2025, https://spring2025.vudhum.net/items/show/28.