43rd Tennessee Infantry, CSA, commanded by Colonel James W. Gillespie

“We left Charleston, Tennessee on the 4th of August [1862] for Abingdon, Virginia. . . We marched to Castlewood in four days where we rested three weeks during which time other regiments of our Brigade came in.

“On the 4th of September our Brigade left Castlewood for Pound Gap, commanded by General Herbert Marshall. . . We crossed Cumberland Mountains at Pound Gap and passed through into Kentucky.

“Our march for several days was very tiresome. . . . There are several small towns on this route that are worth mentioning: West Liberty, the county seat of Morgan County, is noted for its Southern sentiment and the manner in which they received us. The ladies of this town presented several banners to our Brigade. The next that I will make mention of is Mt. Sterling in Montgomery County. this is a beautiful town with great Southern feeling. We remained there one week during which time our Regiment received a beautiful banner at the hands of the ladies, who gave us a great deal of clothing and provisions. At this place we were changed and attached to General [sic, Colonel Alexander W.] Reynolds Brigade.

“On the 29th of September we left Mt. Sterling.”

A copy of Stampers diary is located at the State Library and Archives in Nashville. I purchased mine at the History Branch, Cleveland Public Library, Tenn.

I will look into my history for descriptions of individual company flag presentations and pass on shortly. None though, describe the flags in any detail.