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From: Kathy Gunter Sullivan <>
Subject: Re: [APG] Prisoners of Exchange during the Civil War and selectionprocess
Date: Mon, 27 Jul 2009 16:09:34 -0400
References: <C692C347.E023%gothamgal@yahoo.com><627843.71056.qm@web35505.mail.mud.yahoo.com>
In-Reply-To: <627843.71056.qm@web35505.mail.mud.yahoo.com>


I understood Laura to state she was quoting from her own presentation;
thus the quotation marks.
She did not say she was going to provide us a syllabus for her presentation.

Laura wrote: The following excerpts from a talk I gave to a small group a few years ago offer
a brief glimpse at the history of exchanges during the Civil War:



Jeanette Daniels wrote:
> Laura,
>
> This email is being resent since it has been over an hour since I sent it originally.
>
> You are using quotes but no footnotes to know what you are quoting. Please let us know the source(s) of your quotes.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Jeanette
>
>
>
>
>
> ________________________________
> From: gothamgal <>
> To: "" <>
> Sent: Monday, July 27, 2009 12:36:55 AM
> Subject: [APG] Prisoners of Exchange during the Civil War and selection process
>
> Beth,
>
> You've hit the infamous "dead zone" for prisoner exchanges, 1863-1864. The
> following excerpts from a talk I gave to a small group a few years ago offer
> a brief glimpse at the history of exchanges during the Civil War:
>
>
> "At the beginning of the war Lincoln had refused to create a formal exchange
> of prisoners because he would not recognize the Confederate Government. But
> some exchanges happened on an informal basis. Later, Lincoln authorized
> discussions on the subject, but with the Confederate Army, not the
> Confederate Government. In July 1862 Union and Confederate officers signed
> an agreement officially authorizing the exchange of prisoners.
>
> "Under the agreement, all prisoners had to be exchanged or released on
> parole within 10 days of capture. Parole was used when there weren¹t enough
> soldiers to exchange. A soldier was released, but was not allowed to engage
> in any military service until he was notified that his parole had been
> converted into an exchange. It worked on the honor system. Sometimes it took
> months for a paroled soldier to be exchanged. In the meantime, he could go
> home. Sometimes, soldiers hoping to be sent home on parole would allow
> themselves to be captured.
>
> "At other times, paroled soldiers would not return to their units once they
> had been officially exchanged. As a result, the Union started holding
> paroled Union soldiers in federal detention camps until they could be
> exchanged.
>
> .....
>
> "In the summer of 1863 the Union began using black soldiers. When the
> Confederates refused to recognize them as prisoners of war and instead
> returned captured blacks to slavery, and threatened to execute their white
> officers, the United States halted all exchanges of prisoners.
>
> "The Confederates were already running low on supplies and manpower; with
> paroles and exchanges eliminated, they lost the ability to replenish their
> troops. This gave the more heavily populated Union a decided advantage.
>
> "It also caused the prison populations to swell.
>
> .....
>
> "In January 1865, the Confederacy finally offered to exchange all prisoners,
> regardless of race. Exchanges began again on March 15th. Andersonville
> prisoners were immediately paroled and began leaving the prison in early
> April ..."
>
>
> Beth, not mentioned above is the fact that while exchanges were going on
> there was a value assigned to each rank such that if a Lieutenant couldn't
> be exchanged for another Lieutenant, he was instead exchanged for a greater
> number of privates.
>
> My guess is, when exchanges were taking place, men were released based on
> who was captured on the other side (per the rankings) and on a first in,
> first out basis, although I haven't verified that yet.
>
> Best,
>
> Laura H. Congleton
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> .
>
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