to U.S. Officer Stationed in New York City Harbor

Civil War date envelope with C.D.S. New Orleans, Sep. 4, 1862, with 3 cents George Washington postage stamp [Scott #64] with bulls eye cancellation. Addressed to Lieut. M.H. Stacey, Fort Hamilton, New York. The envelope is torn along the upper edges where it was opened. Red wax seal on the back flap.

May Humphreys Stacey, a Pennsylvania native, enlisted on May 14, 1861, as a 1st lieutenant, and was commissioned into the 12th U.S. Infantry. He was promoted to captain on August 18, 1864, for gallantry in action on the Weldon Railroad, Va.; brevet major, and brevet lieutenant colonel, April 9, 1865, for gallantry in the campaign that resulted in the surrender of the insurgent army under General Robert E. Lee.

WBTS Trivia: During the Civil War, Fort Hamilton's garrison protected the New York City harbor against the possibility of Confederate raiders. It also provided troops to help put down the 1863 New York City Draft Riots, and served as a prisoner-of-war camp.