William Job Reynolds was born in Wickford, RI on October 9, 1830 to William Job Reynolds and Mary (Davis) Reynolds. He worked as a jeweler and married Lucinda Caroline Nichols, daughter George Thomas Nichols and Amy (Thomas) Nichols. Reynolds was mustered into the Fourth Regiment of the Rhode Island Volunteers on October 30, 1861 and after moving up the ranks was promoted to Captain of Company E of the 4th Regiment on December 8, 1862. On July 30, 1864 Reynolds was captured by the Confederates during fighting at the Battle of the Crater in Petersburg, VA. He was held captive in Columbia, South Carolina until a prisoner exchange in March of 1865, whereupon he was released. Reynolds was mustered out of service in May of 1865. According to his obituary, he resumed work at local factories as a jeweler after the war. He died on August 4, 1913 at his home in Providence, RI.
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[item title], William Job Reynolds papers, 2025.7, North Kingstown Free Library. North Kingstown, Rhode Island.
This collection consists of correspondence and papers related to the military service of Captain William Job Reynolds who served in the 4th Regiment of the Rhode Island Volunteers (later incorporated into 7th Regiment of RI Volunteers). Most notably this collection contains 11 letters written by Reynolds to his wife Lucinda (Carrie) during his confinement in Confederate prisons in Danville, VA and Columbia, SC from July 30, 1864 to March 1, 1865. The letters primarily consist of Reynolds reassuring his wife that he is in good health and his desire to hear from her (the letters indicate that prisoners received mail very inconsistently) and rumors of a prisoner exchange being brokered between the opposing sides. Reynolds mentions other officers from Wickford that he is imprisoned with, Capt. Caleb T. Bowen and Capt. Sumner Shearman, as well as Colonel Martin Buffum of Providence. In his December 9, 1864 letter Reynolds tells his wife that Col. Buffum and Capt. Shearman have been released on prisoner exchange. There are also two letters written to Reynolds from his father-in-law George Thomas Nichols, one prior to his imprisonment and one following. In the first, Nichols updates Reynolds as to the well-being of William’s family, including their difficult financial situation and that the family is arranging to rent a house in Wickford from Judge Sylvester Shearman, the father of Capt. Sumner Shearman. In the second letter, written just after Reynolds’ release, Nichols informs William of the death of his son, George Reynolds, who died in January 1865.
Organized by date.
Gift of Stephen Godin, November 2025.
The collection was processed by Tom Frawley in November of 2025.
No accruals are expected.