Abstract Basil H. Messler enlisted in the Union Army in 1864, at Fort McClellan in Davenport, Iowa. Messler served in the Mississippi Marine Brigade, which was commanded by Brigadier General Alfred W. Ellet. He saw action at Vicksburg several times. The Brigade was dissolved in August 1864, and Messler was reassigned as Commissary Sergeant of the First Battalion Calvary Regiment. He was later promoted to Corporal. Messler’s diary spans from late February 1864 to late January 1865. It mainly describes...