President Abraham Lincoln letter to General Grant

I do not remember that you and I ever met personally. I write this now as a grateful acknowledgment for the almost inestimable service you have done the country. I wish to say a word further. When you first reached the vicinity of Vicksburg, I thought you should do, what you finally did—march the troops across the neck, run the batteries with the transports, and thus go below; and I never had any faith, except a general hope that you knew better than I, that the Yazoo Pass expedition, and the like, could succeed. When you got below, and took Port- -Gibson, Grand Gulf, and vicinity, I thought you should go down the river and join Gen. Banks; and when you turned Northward East of the Big Black, I feared it was a mistake. I now wish to make the personal acknowledgment that you were right, and I was wrong. Yours very truly

A. LINCOLN

—

Notes:

• Click here to read another Abraham Lincoln letter.

• Reader donations help us continue publishing. If you enjoyed this President Abraham Lincoln letter and are able to help, visit our Patreon page to donate. Thank you for your support.

President Abraham Lincoln letter to General Grant sources:

Portrait of President Abraham Lincoln taken by Alexander Gardner in 1863 – “Abraham Lincoln O-77 matte collodion print.” Wikimedia Commons, Wikimedia Foundation, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Abraham_Lincoln_O-77_matte_collodion_print.jpg / Letter to General Grant written on July 13, 1863 –  University of Michigan Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln. Volume 6. Lincoln, Abraham, 1809-1865