The year was 1865 and the Civil War had just grown to a close. The surrender was on May 9th, 1865. General Lee had surrendered to General Grant, and I had been there to witness it, although I was just one of several hundred onlookers in Appomattox, Virginia, and I was glad the war was finally over.
My name is James Timmons. I fought for the Union. I'm from great state of Kansas, where my family owns a farm in the southeastern part of the state. It had become a state while, I was away fighting in the war.
Now that the war was over, I was planning on returning home, but only for a short visit before continuing west. A sod-buster is the last thing I want to be. I grew up farming and I don't want to waste another day of my life watch plants grow. I was sixteen years old and the War Between the States had broken out, that was 1861. I had heard stories about the war and from what little I knew of history. Just what I'd read in school, I had a romantic infatuation with the idea of being a soldier. I didn't want to be just any soldier though. I wanted to be an important one. That idea, was quickly dispelled, once I enlisted.