Henry Theodore Bahnson was born in Lancaster, Pa., the son of George Frederic Bahnson, a Moravian bishop. In 1849, the family moved to Salem, N.C. Bahnson pursued theological studies at the Moravian Theological Seminary at Bethlehem, Pa. In 1862, Bahnson returned to North Carolina, where he served in the 2nd North Carolina Infantry Battalion until his capture at the Battle of Gettysburg. After six months of captivity divided between the Baltimore City Jail and Point Lookout, Md., he was exchanged and began service with the 1st North Carolina Sharpshooters Battalion. He served with this unit until his capture in the course of the Confederate surrender at Appomattox Court House, Va. After a brief internment in Virginia, he was released and made his way back to Salem, N.C. After the war, Bahnson studied medicine at the University of Pennsylvania; he spent the balance of his life practicing medicine in Salem, N.C. The collection consist primarily of a series of notebooks that appear to have been produced by Henry T. Bahnson in the early 1890s. The notebooks are mostly devoted to details of Bahnson's service in the Confederate Army with the 2nd North Carolina Infantry Battalion until his capture at the Battle of Gettysburg and with the 1st North Carolina Sharpshooters Battalion after his release. They document various aspects of military life, including extensive discussions of foraging, picket duty, and the experience of battle. Included are anecdotes drawn from Bahnson's everyday military experiences. The notebooks also contain an account of Bahnson's time as a prisoner in the Baltimore City Jail, during which he was removed from solitary confinement in order to make room for the Confederate spy Belle Boyd. There is brief mention of his transfer to the Union detention camp at Point Lookout, Md. The notebooks contain accounts of the Confederate retreat from Petersburg, Va., to Appomattox Court House; a brief encounter with General Robert E. Lee; details of Bahnson's capture; and a brief exchange between Bahnson and the Union cavalry general Philip Sheridan as Bahnson was being led away from the battle to prison. Also included is a program from Bahnson's funeral in 1917.
