Coleman, John Nathan.

The John and Virginia Adkins Coleman Papers include correspondence and financial documents pertaining to John and Virginia Coleman. A major portion of the collection are the letters written during the American Civil War between John and his fiancée Virginia Eliza "Jennie" Adkins. The correspondence between them detail life on the home front in Marshall, Texas, and John's service in the 3rd Texas cavalry, Confederate army, serving in Arkansas, Indian Territory (Oklahoma), Tennessee, Mississippi, Missouri, and Georgia.

John Nathan Coleman, born in Georgia in 1835, moved to Harrison County, Texas, in 1854. He established a mercantile business in the area, J.N. Coleman & Co., and soon became wealthy. With his Southern ties, it is no surprise that he chose to fight for the Confederacy during the American Civil War. At the time of his enlistment, he was courting the local girl Virginia Eliza "Jennie" Adkins. Since she was the daughter of a hotel keeper, her family was quite wealthy, with her father having a net worth of over $50,000 in 1860. At 15 years old at the start of their letters, Jennie was ten years his junior.

Coleman enlisted with the 3rd Texas Cavalry, a regiment that was the first to serve outside the state of Texas. A well-traveled unit, the 3rd Texas fought all over the South, from Arkansas to Georgia to Tennessee. Some of the major battles the regiment was involved in included Wilson's Creek, Pea Ridge, Iuka, Holly Springs, Thompson's Station, and the Atlanta and 1864 Tennessee campaigns. Though at first the regiment served in Indian Territory, when the unit later went to Corinth it was placed into a brigade along with the 6th, 9th, and 27th Texas Cavalry. Several generals commanded the brigade, including John W. Whitfield and Hinche P. Mabry, from 1863-1865 famous Texas figure Lawrence Sullivan "Sul" Ross was the leader of the unit. Through it all, John and Jennie wrote letters to each other about the war and their lives, which are preserved in this collection.

When the war ended in 1865, John returned home to marry Jennie. After their marriage in August 1865, they lived in Marshall. His mercantile business must have rebounded after the war, since by 1870 the Colemans employed a house servant and John's net worth was approximately $2,000. The couple had six children, John died at 45 years old in 1880. The receipt for his coffin and other funeral services is preserved in this collection. Jennie lived on until 1932, when she passed away at 87 years old.

From the description of John and Virginia Adkins Coleman papers, 1861-1881 1861-1863. (Baylor University Libraries). WorldCat record id: 777981890