Albert and Edward Bayles, two brothers from Middle Island, enlisted in the Union Army in 1862, signing on to Company A of the 139th New York Volunteers. From August 1862 until their deaths in June 1864, they wrote over 50 letters home, which are now in the Thomas R. Bayles Local History Room. These letters detail the brothers' lives as soldiers in the Civil War and their impressions of the Longwood community in the mid-1800s. The collection has recently been digitized and can be found at https://nyheritage.org/collections/ci....

The Thomas R. Bayles Local History Room holds many documents and items relating to the Longwood community. You can view them in person at the library or at www.longwoodlibrary.org/localhistory.