Captain Tim's souvenir from Andersonville 'prison pen'

16th Connecticut Captain Timothy Robinson's Andersonville souvenir. (The piece of wood, not the banana.)
Image courtesy Robinson descendant.

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On post-war visits to Civil War sites, veterans often grabbed a souvenir -- a spent bullet, a piece of artillery shell, a sliver of stone from a wall, a brick from a war-time structure. During his visit to Andersonville, 16th Connecticut vet Timothy Robinson -- whose remarkable story is told here on my blog -- snatched a section of the old stockade fence at the notorious former prison camp.

Post-war image
of Timothy Robinson.

A Robinson descendant emailed me about the souvenir: “I’m happy to say it’s still in our family. The inscription reads, ‘From Confederate Prison pen, Andersonville, Ga.’

“Tim’s brother, Henry, was also in the 16th and both Robinsons were captured along with the rest of the regiment April 20, 1864, in Plymouth, N.C. Henry was wounded that day and being an enlisted man, he was sent to Andersonville. Tim, who was an officer and was treated better, ended up in Camp Sorgum, Columbia, S.C., from which he later escaped. But Henry died in Andersonville 4 months later and is buried there.

“Tim visited Andersonville at least once in his life and he was there for the October 1907 dedication ceremony honoring Connecticut war veterans who died at Andersonville.”

Known as "Captain Tim," Robinson served as president of the 16th Connecticut's regimental association for many years. Crippled by a cerebral hemorrhage, he died in Bristol, Conn., on Feb. 6, 1918. He was 83.

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