May 30, 1862
Charleston, Va., May 18th, 1862.
Editor Telegraph:--You will please publish the following for the benefit of the friends of said soldier.
Matthew Phelps, a soldier belonging to Co. F, 4th Reg't. Va. Vol. Infantry, fell overboard and was drowned, near the mouth of Thirteen Mile Creek, in the Kanawha River, on the 2nd of May. The Regiment was moving to Charleston, Va. The accident happening in the night, he was not missed until morning.
I received the following not to-day:
"Matthew Phelps was found dead in a drift heap, a little above the mouth of Thirteen Mile Creek, in the Kanawha River, on Sunday, May 11, and was buried near where he was found. His papers and pocket-book are in the hands of R. Harrison, at Leon, Va.
[Signed:] D. C. Forbes."
Respec[t]fully yours,
Capt. Geo. W. Story,
4th Virginia Reg't.
Timeline of West Virginia: Civil War and Statehood: May 1862