Soldiers Rest in Alexandria, Virginia

 In a previous post [click here], I shared a part of a letter written by Sgt. William Henry Austin of the 109th New York Infantry.  He knew Rosetta Wakeman from back home and mentioned that he encountered her at Soldiers Rest in Alexandria, Virginia.  What is interesting is that at the time, she was serving as Pvt. Lyons Wakeman in the 153rd New York Infantry and sported an "insipid moustache."  Despite the disguise, Austin nevertheless recognized her.  In this post, I wanted to share images and information of Soldiers Rest where he encountered her prior to the 153rd New York's assignment to the western theater where Wakeman and her regiment participated in the ill-fated Red River Campaign.  Rosetta ultimately would not live to see the end of the war as she succumbed to dysentery in June 1864.

Rosetta Wakeman sans "insipid moustache"

Sarah Rosetta Wakeman Wore a Fake Mustache?

 A reader sent me a link to an auction house that sold a letter written by Sgt. William Henry Austin of the 109th New York Infantry.  He was a childhood friend of Rosetta Wakeman and was a bit surprised to see her in the uniform of a soldier when her regiment, the 153rd New York Infantry, was passing through Alexandria, Virginia.  Austin says her unit was bound for Texas, but they ended up in Louisiana and participated in the ill-fated Red River Campaign.  What I found especially intriguing about Austin's letter is the fact that he observed that she sported "an insipid moustache, highly colored."