The Diary of Julius
Lafayette Dowda
This document is a transcription of the diary of Julius Lafayette Dowda during his service to the Confederate States of America in the 3rdGeorgia Cavalry. The original diary is in the Georgia Department of Archives and History. The typescript from which this page is prepared - in addition to the original- was the gift of the Alfred Holt Colquitt Chapter, United Daughters of the Confederacy, Atlanta, Georgia (March 2, 1970).
The diary appears, in places, to be more a memoir, prepared from notes or memory, than an actual diary. There are several places where Julius describes events in the historical past tense (e.g. the description of his first months on duty) but it also seems evident that some has been transcribed from notes (e.g. most of the items related to daily troop movements). The diary seems clearly to have been written in its present form after the War. His terminal entry and comment is dated March 17, 1868. The diary is in a bound book like those used by shopkeepers of the time and, indeed, his business records for several years and some genealogical items follow the diary entries.
J.L. was the son of William Anderson Dowda and Mary Jane Slavin, a farmer and shoemaker, a trade Julius was to follow. He was educated and was brother to James O. Dowda, a prominent citizen, lawyer, judge and minister in Cherokee County Georgia and Capt. William T. Dowda, a school teacher in Cobb County Georgia. Shortly after the War, Julius moved to Atlanta from his home in Cherokee County.
As would be expected in documents designed for personal use, Julius was not always careful with punctuation and capitalization. His variances, however, are consistent. The purpose of this page is historical, not the literal transcription of sentences without periods or initial capitals, and best sense was used in presenting this document. Those wanting a literal demonstration of the writing habits of the 19th century are referred to the original.
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