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Archiver > MO-CW > 2004-09 > 1096531970


From: Arleigh Birchler <>
Subject: Re: [MO-CW] Looking Up Your Missouri Civil War Ancestor
Date: Thu, 30 Sep 2004 01:12:59 -0700 (PDT)
In-Reply-To: <000001c4a6a8$487c9fe0$6401a8c0@DD92G051>


Sue,

It depends on where and when you were. Early in the war in the cis-Mississippi, it was expected that a commanding officer would write a letter to each of the families of soldiers killed. This was true on both sides. If you had a relative around Richmond, near the end of the war, on either side, it is hard to know what happened to them. The Confederate Army command structure was starting to break. During the last few months, there was not time to go back and correct errors.

If you find that an ancestor was listed as a deserter near the end, it means very little. Many of them were separated from their units and fought with another unit. Others were sick and in a hospital. Others were buried in unmarked graves. On the other hand, the fact that they had a parole issued at Appomattox doesn't prove anything. Many more paroles were issued then Lee had on his rosters before the surrender. Paper work had reached a very low priority. Some times, family stories are the best, or only, source available.

Newspapers of the day were written in a VERY romantic style, and most of the stories from both Southern and Northern papers contained more political hype then actual facts. Not sure how to make this fit, but what keeps running through my mind was the editorial decision in New York City to list the dead at Gettysburg on the opposite page from the names of those chosen in the first draft. In retrospect, that seems to have been a mistake.

Arleigh

Glee Krapf <> wrote:

I am also interested in knowing the answer to the question below. Mine
supposley died in a skirmish with a Union unit. A friend of his took the
news home later to his widow. I do not know how soon he took her this news.
Did the confeds have some kind of way of notifing relatives of deaths during
the war?

Does anyone know how family were informed of injuries and/or death during
the
> Civil War?
>
> Sue Adamson Fritz
> Searching for family everywhere!
> God Bless Our Troops!
>
>
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Arleigh Birchler, MDiv, BSN
Bram's Addition Life&Choice
1718 Fisher St #2
Madison WI 53713
608-251-4437

Musick/Porter Fan Club
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