By Drew Adams
Murray, KY – For the first time, the Tennessee State Library and Archives has a collection of letters from white officers who led black troops during the Civil War. The collection consists of correspondence by the Wadsworth Brothers, two white members of the 16th U.S. Colored Infantry. The division was encamped in Clarksville from 1863 to 1865. The two left their studies at Oberlin College to enlist in the Union Army. The collection discusses the inspiration for white officers who wanted to educate and prepare formerly enslaved blacks for citizenship. The library staff received digital copies of the correspondence while searching statewide for Civil War-era documents and artifacts.