An autographed letter, with enclosed map, from Lieutenant John H. Hammond to the Commander in Chief Abraham Lincoln. Only five days after Ulysses S. Grant entered Kentucky at Paducah, Hammond implored President Lincoln to send troops into eastern Kentucky and Tennessee because of the region's strategic importance. "I submit that this country, if not occupied or commanded by a Union force, lies open to the Rebels & continually furnishes products similar to those of the Northern States, & of which they stand most in need." 11 September 1861.

This item is at the University of Kentucky Special Collections and Digital Programs. The creator is Lieutenant John H. Hammond. The letter was digitized in 2008.