We can only hope, Mike. It amazes me to realize how many documents from the Civil War still turn up in private hands. Back about 20 years ago, I worked with a guy who was a coin and paper currency collector. He was seriously into it, and went to trade shows every once in awhile. In addition to the coin and currency dealers, the shows usually had booths for document and rare book dealers. He attended one in Nashville and, knowing of my interest in the Civil War, brought me back a prospectus from one of the document dealers. I couldn't believe what was on the list of documents for sale -- Civil War (mostly Confederate!) letters, orders, quartermaster and commissary receipts, even a couple of original company muster-in rolls (literally rolls -- according to the description they were something like 2 to 3 feet long). With all the drooling and heavy breathing I was doing, my wife probably thought I was looking at porn.

A few years later, I heard about a coin and currency show at Memphis, so I drove over to see if there any document dealers. Sure enough, there were a few there. Nearly had a fainting spell when I looked over their goods. I found and purchased an 1862 duty roster from the famous old 3rd Arkansas Regiment. It was a list of men who were ordered to various detached duty assignments -- hospital orderlies, blacksmiths, mechanics, couriers, etc. It was an undescribable feeling to hold an actual piece of history from a regiment that I had studied for years.

So, a century and a half later, neat stuff still keeps turning up.