Mary Johnston Pickett (1805-1860) the mother of the future Confederate General, George E. Pickett. A rare letter written to her son George, who is studying law at Quincy, Illinois. The letter was sent by Mary from Richmond, Virginia, Jan. 27th, 1841. George Pickett was 16 years old at the time. Pickett was born in Richmond, Virginia, the first of the eight children of Robert and Mary Pickett, a prominent family of Old Virginia of English origins, and one of the "first families" of Virginia. He was the cousin of future Confederate general Henry Heth. He went to Illinois, to study law, but at the age of 17 he was appointed to the United States Military Academy. Legend has it that Pickett's West Point appointment was secured for him by Abraham Lincoln, but this is largely believed to be a story circulated by his widow following his death. Lincoln, as an Illinois state legislator, could not nominate candidates, although he did give the young man advice after he was accepted; Pickett was actually appointed by Illinois Congressman John T. Stuart, a friend of Pickett's uncle and a law partner of Abraham Lincoln. A year after young George received this letter he was off to West Point. Pickett was popular as a cadet at West Point. He was mischievous and a player of pranks, "... a man of ability, but belonging to a cadet set that appeared to have no ambition for class standing and wanted to do only enough study to secure their graduation." At a time when often a third of the class washed out before graduation, Pickett persisted, working off his demerits and doing enough in his studies to graduate, ranking last out of the 59 surviving students in the Class of 1846. It is a position held with some backhanded distinction, referred to today as the "goat", both for its stubbornness and tenacity. The position usually relegated its holder to a posting commanding infantry in some far away outpost, which if no conflict arose, would offer little opportunity to advance. Two of the most famous "goats" were Pickett and George Armstrong Custer (as was also Pickett's cousin, Harry Heth). All of them had the good fortune to graduate shortly after a war broke out, when the army had a sudden need for officers, greatly improving their opportunities.In this letter [folded stampless letter], 3 full pages, plus the address leaf WHICH IS DOCKETED BY GEORGE PICKETT [himself], his mother Mary asked him about his chances of getting an appointment to West Point, and then goes on at great length to talk about concerns back home about whether George will conduct [behave] himself. She mentions energy and independence of character, etc. George Pickett’s personality has already established itself, apparently enough to cause great worry for his mother. The picture of the painted portrait of Mary Pickett was borrowed from the internet and is not included here. Starting to separate at some of the fold lines; small hole [seal hole] on page 3. Approx. 8 x 10 in.

Starting to separate at some of the fold lines; small hole [seal hole] on page 3.