Telegram from Abraham Lincoln to Lt. Gen. Ulysses Grant at City Point, Virginia

View the full document here: https://docsteach.org/document/lincoln-grant-city-point/

Transcript

133
“Cypher”
Executive mansion,
Washington, August 17. 1864.
Lieut. Gen. Grant
City Point VA.
[blue stamp] “PRINTED WAR RECORDS 1861-1865”
[handwritten check mark]

I have seen your dispatch expressing your unwillingness to break your hold where you are. Neither am I willing. Hold on with a bull-dog grip, and chew and choke, as much as possible.
[signed] A. Lincoln
1030 am / T [red stamp] “WAR RECORDS 1866” 131 / 145

Citation

This primary source comes from the Records of the Office of the Secretary of War.

National Archives Identifier: 301640

Full Citation: Telegram from Abraham Lincoln to Lt. Gen. Ulysses Grant at City Point, Virginia; 8/17/1864; Telegrams Sent and Received By The War Department Central Telegraph Office, 1861 – 1882; Records of the Office of the Secretary of War, Record Group 107; National Archives Building, Washington, DC. [Online Version, https://docsteach.org/document/lincoln-grant-city-point/, January 13, 2026]

Rights: Public Domain, Free of Known Copyright Restrictions. Learn more on our privacy and legal page.