CSA 7-R, 5¢ dark blue pair (4 margins) tied RICHMOND VA. JAN 21 on cover to Dr. W.H. Harrell, Wilson N.C.,  Very Fine. $125.

William Bernard Harrell (1823-1906) was a physician, post-war Baptist preacher, Confederate surgeon, and songwriter who wrote the seven quatrains of "Ho! for Carolina!" which at one time rivaled William Gaston's "The Old North State" as a North Carolina anthem. The story goes that in the opening months of the Civil War, a train carrying troops to the Virginia battlefields made a stop at Wilson. A young Georgian stuck his head from the train window and shouted to the crowd gathered there, "Hurrah for old North Carolina! My folks were all from North Carolina, and a grand old state she is. Hurrah! Hurrah!" As Harrell walked home from the railroad platform, the Georgian's words kept recurring to him. He soon wrote down the well-known lines with its chorus beginning, "Ho! for Carolina! that's the land for me; / In her happy borders roam the brave and free," and his wife composed music to fit them. Immediately, the song gained popularity and was sung throughout the state. He attended medical school at University of Maryland. He was acting assistant surgeon and served as an inspector of hospitals at the Camp of Instruction in Dublin Va. He has service in Field & Staff on NC 15th Battalion Cavalry. His wife was Ann Judson Battle (1824-1906).