"In this point of view, this Diary of Mr. Welles is among the most valuable documents within reach of our historical writers. As between the two, a diary should be accorded greater value than letters, for it is apt to be more ingenuous, more honest. Thus it is not possible to
imagine that any historian can possibly have access to better evidence than this Diary of Mr. Welles." --John T. Morse, Jr., in the Introduction, 1909
Diary of Gideon Welles, Secretary of the Navy Under Lincoln and Johnson Vol. II offers the view and experiences of Gideon Welles, Secretary of the Navy during the Civil War, of the Abraham Lincoln administration, and of the Andrew Johnson administration that followed. This volume covers the period of April 1,1864 through December 31, 1866.
It was a lifelong custom of Gideon Welles to keep a diary, including during his years in public office. By 1909, his diaries, edited by Welles's son Edgar, were published.