I passed over the field this morning and the dead Yankees and negroes are strewn thick over all the field. We drove the Yankeess inch by inch for about two miles and then they left in a hurry. I will give you some of the particulars, yesterday morning our Picketts reported that the enemy were coming towards us in heavy force. The 2d. Cav was at once put on the move with Col Clinch's Georgia cavalry and we met the enemy some six miles from our entrenchments and I was thrown to the front with my company to skirmish with them. I engaged them and continued to fall back firing as I went until we got near our infantry support which was one mile from the entrenchments, then I was drawn off and another compnay relieved me. When we got to the infantry line I was thrown to the right flank, some times Col McCormick Commanding [commanding officer 2nd Florida Cavalry] and some times I was in command and Col Clinch occupied the left flank. The enemy pressed us quite hard but our artillery and infantry opened and the boys yelled and went to work as men can only work who are in earnest, then the scene was grand and exciting. I felt like I could wade through my weight in wild cats. The 2d. Cav was dismounted to fight on foot and I think we did good work, we went on with a wild yell and the Yanks and the negroes gave way, then we would remount and follow up and we continued that until the fight ended. Then we were thrown to the front and we got during the night some 200 yanks that were wounded and not able to keep up with the main body.

We were returned this morning after having been in the saddle one day and night without any rest or anything for our horses to eat. We got the Yanks provisions and fared first rate. We followed the Yankees some ten miles from the battlefield and the Cav that relieved us are following them up now and I suppose they will stop at little St. Marys as they have entrenched at that place. They say they only expected to find 1200 men here to fight and they had 11700 men [actually 5500] and had provisions for four days and calculated to reach Tallahassee by that time. We had some four thousand men in the fight against these immense numbersand we drove them as prettily as you ever saw anything done. I had no men killed or wounded but had one horse shot and some very narrow escapes. Ben Gaines [Winston Stephens' half-brother] was in the fight and his company captured 3 pieces of artillery, some of the company were shot but Ben got out without a scratch, how singularly our family are blessed, not one of us hurt yet. Davis [brother-in-law] was not quite well and was not in the fight [actually he was during the second half of the battle] but today he got a wounded yankee horse and is going to try and cure him. I [got] several things of Value, a blanket, tent, 2 oil cloths, Haversack of Provisions, and 2 flannel shirts, 1 pr drawers, 1 pr gauntletts, 3 canteens, and I have got a fine sword from one of men that got it on the field.

The old Georgia troops say that they have never seen better fighting done any where but say our boys did better than any men they ever saw. They say they thought Florida boys would not fight here but now they say they will go even further than they will go, the fact is men cannot fight better than ours did. We lost some good and valuable officers belonging ot the Ga troops, Col Charles Hopkins was slightly wounded in the thigh and arm though remained on the field and fought out the fight. The Yanks are completely routed and unless they are strongly reinforced in a short time, they will not be likely to reach Tallahassee, our force is quite strong and I think we will advance soon. I got some very interesting letters directed to the 54th Mass Colored troops, you will be very interested to read some of them. The Genl is very much pleased with everyone and I think he ought to be as he has no doubt given the Yankees as complete a thrashing as any set ever carried.

I am so tired and sleepy I can hardly keep my eyes open to write. Davis will write by this mail. I went over the battleground this morning on my way to camp and never in all my life have I seen such a distressing sight, some men with their legs carried off others with their brains out and mangled in every conceivable way and then our men commenced stripping them of their clothing and left their bodies naked. I never want to see another battle or go on the field after it is over. I could stand and count 20 or 30 dead yankees at one sight and I counted 12 fine horses killed in 20 steps of each other. We captured six peaces of artillery.... and a great many small arms and any quantity of baggage.

I have only received one letter from you in nearly three weeks. I do wish you would write. I can get a letter any day here as the cars come through, when you feel like writing do so and dont wait for me. Tell the negroes if they could have seen how the negroes were treated I think it would cure them of any desire to go, one of the Yankee negroes offered to shake hands with one of the negroes in camp and the one in camp killed the other, telling him not to speak to him.[1]

I must close. Give my love to Mother and the boys [Winston's in-laws] and kiss dear Rosa [his daughter] and tell her Pa thought of her Ma often while under fire and I feel thankful to God that he has been so merciful to me and mine. Goodbye my darling and may the giver of good continue to watch over us in mercy. I am as ever your devoted Husband.

This letter from Winston Stephens is from pages 319-321 of Rose Cottage Chronicles: Civil War Letters of the Bryant-Stephens Families of North Florida edited by Arch Blakey, Ann Lainhart and Winston Bryant Stephens, Jr., published in 1998 [ISBN 0813015502].

[1] The editors of Rose Cottage Chronicles provide numerous footnotes to the letters and diary entries. For the passage regarding the killing of a U.S. Colored Troops soldier by a negro from the Confederate camp, they state: "There were certainly atrocities committed against blacks by Confederate soldiers during and after the battle, but we doubt the credibility of this story."

11 February 1864 letter from Capt Winston Stephens
27 February 1864 letter from Capt Winston Stephens
15 March 1864 journal entry of Octavia Stephens

Other Letters from Olustee
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