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David Lang was born in Camden County, Georgia, on May 9, 1838. He attended the Georgia Military Academy in Marietta, where he graduated in 1857. Lang then moved to Florida with his family, where he worked as a surveyor in Suwannee County. He served in the First Florida Infantry Regiment, organized and was elected captain of a new company that became Company C of the Eighth Florida Infantry Regiment, and temporarily commanded the entire Florida Brigade, surrendering at Appomattox in April 1865.
At Gettysburg in July 1863, Lang led his small band of Floridians into some of the most vicious fighting of the battle. The Florida Brigade played a prominent role in the fighting on July 2, and the following day supported the major Confederate assault know as Pickett's Charge. Of the 700 men in Lang's unit, nearly 500 of them died in the skirmish, perhaps the highest percentage of losses for any Brigade in General Lee's Army. Lang served with the Florida Brigade until the end of the war, surrendering at Appomattox in April 1865.
After the war, Lang married Mary Quarles Campbell and they had four children. He worked as a civil engineer before his appointment as Adjutant General of the State Militia (1885-1894). Lang also served on the State Board of Pensions, was private secretary for Florida Governors Mitchell (1893-1897) and Bloxham (1897-1901) and worked as a cashier of the Florida State Hospital in Chattahoochee from 1901 until his death in 1917.
Summary:
This collection consists of fourteen letters that David Lang wrote during his service in the Civil War. Lang wrote them to his cousin, Elizabeth Atkinson, of Marietta, Georgia. In the letters, Lang describes his experiences in camp and battle. A calendar gives the date and a brief description of the contents of each letter.
Finding Aids:
Calendar available. 0 Biographical and historical background information and transcripts of some letters prepared by donor are available in the case file. 0
Additional Physical Form:
Reproduction Note:
Photocopies.
Location of Originals/Duplicates:
Originals in possession of donor.
Associated Materials:
For more materials related to David Lang and his family, see Collection M84-28, David Lang Letterbooks, 1886-1889, 1893-1909 (.5 cubic foot) and Collection M94-6, David Lang Letters and Photographs, 1864-1900 (.5 cubic foot).
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Electronic Records Access:
Subject Access Fields:
Confederate States of America. Army. --Florida Brigade, Finegan's. Confederate States of America. Army. --Florida Infantry Regiment, 8th. Confederate States of America. Army. --Florida Brigade, Perry's.
Bull Run, 2nd Battle of, Va., 1862. Chancellorsville (Va.), Battle of, 1863. Fredericksburg (Va.), Battle of, 1862. Gettysburg (Pa.), Battle of, 1863. Petersburg, Siege of, 1864-1865. Rappahannock Bridge, Battle of, 1863.
United States History Civil War, 1861-1865
for detailed listing.