Series I. Autobiography, 1890-1899, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Series I consists of two versions of Chisolm's autobiography, written at least twenty-five years after the Civil War. There are two personal notebooks, written around the early to mid 1890s. The first notebook contains genealogical information about the Chisolm and Hazzard families and describes Chisolm's life before the war and his early involvement in the conflict, notably at Fort Sumter and the First Battle of Bull Run. The second notebook documents Chisolm's war experiences from June of 1862 until the end of the war. There is also a version of the autobiography with illustrations that seems to have been intended for publication, written sometime after the death of Chisolm's wife in 1895. His autobiography recounts his childhood in New York, his management of his properties in South Carolina, his wartime services as Beauregard's senior aide-de-camp, and his postwar civilian life. Chisolm describes the battles at Fort Sumter, Blackburn's Ford, the First Battle of Bull Run (Manassas), Battery Wagner, Drewry's Bluff, Shiloh, Petersburg, Franklin, Atlanta, Nashville, the evacuation of Savannah, and the defense of Charleston.
Arrangement
Series I. Autobiography is arranged in the order of the chapter designations created by Chisolm. The notebooks were also designated as Volumes 1 and 2 by Chisolm.
Processing Information
Chapter 6 of the version of the autobiography with illustrations was originally housed separately from the rest of the chapters. The chapter was reincorporated into the autobiography by the archivist.