Sullivan Ballou was born in Rhode Island in 1827. Orphaned when he was young, he experienced considerable poverty before qualifying as a lawyer. He entered politics and was elected to the Rhode Island House of Representatives. Ballou was married with two young sons when the Civil War started. A strong opponent of slavery, Ballou joined the 2nd Rhode Island Volunteer Infantry on July 14, 1861. The regiment was sent to Washington where they waited for further orders. In July, 1861, Abraham Lincoln appointed Major General Irvin McDowell as commander of the Union Army and sent him to take Richmond, the new base the Confederate government. It was decided that the 2nd Rhode Island Volunteer Infantry would be part of McDowell's army. When he heard he was leaving, Ballou wrote his famous letter to his wife Sarah Ballou. A week later on July 21, 1861, Major Sullivan Ballou was killed when he was hit by a cannon ball during an attack by the Confederate Army at Bull Run.
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