Civil War Non-Coms

[Thomas29ID]

(as a PVT here just want to say I'm doing everything I can to readup on the enormous amount of CW info/opinions posted...ran a search and don't think I'm re-hashing here...)

In all my civil war studies I realized the other day how little I knew about Non-coms throughout the WBTS....In fact, other than a few various stories such as Richard Kirkland I'm not sure I recall much of any enlisted man throughout the war. As an NCO myself I'm disapointed in myself for this lack of knowledge.

Does anyone have any interesting, amusing or intriguing stories, fact or information particurly involving an NCO?

great board --- I've enjoyed it thoroughly thus far ---

(tommy)

 

[ole]

Welcome Thomas291D. And good luck! I'm sure there are stories out there, but I'm unaware of any volume of stories. Noncoms don't sell books.
Ole

 

[Thomas29ID]

hey ole,

I guess thats true enough...non-coms don't sell books....still they did a heck of a lot of fighting; maybe some of the officers were taking credit for things their non-coms did?? hmmm...naw, that would never happen...

I'll see if I can do some more research and maybe post a reply to my own post!

(tommy)

 

[ole]

....still they did a heck of a lot of fighting;

Then, as now, the noncom ran the army. The generals pointed it, but without the noncom, it wasn't going anywhere.
Ole

 

[brett4733]

Non-Coms...

Tommy,
I realize it may be difficult to find books directly relating to non-coms out there, but rest assured, there are a few. Sometimes, it may pay to look a little deeper...For instance, in "The Civil War Letters of James B. Thomas," the author spent the first part of his enlistment as a sergeant, then sergeant-major, before being promoted to adjutant. If nothing else, his early missives give a nice picture of the headaches associated with the red-tape of army life.
In many cases, you can find memoirs or diaries of junior officers who began life as NCO's. In most fighting units, attrition allowed for promotion from within, and the natural source of new "shoulder straps" were found amongst the non-commissioned officers.
Also, if you search through the offerings from the big box bookstores online, and dig VERY deep, there are quite a few published accounts out there. But, as I said, you have to look.
If you have any specific questions, let me know. My personal library is in boxes right now, but I have a nice collection of first-person narratives. In fact, I have been researching line officers for a few years now, and might be able to help.
Cheers and Fairwinds,
Brett Silver

 

[larry_cockerham]

This topic interests me as well. My Grandson has eleven civil war ancestors that I've identified so far and aside from one Union 1st Lt, no rank in the pile. I did however, just discover one Thomas Hamilton Jaynes who served with the 41st Tennessee CSA having volunteered for service for three years at Shelbyville, TN December 1863. By 1864 he shows up as a non-commissioned officer (sergeant) for his service as a nurse in Jackson's Cavalry in Newton, Mississippi. He stayed with this unit until his eventual release in Guntersville, AL May 10, 1865. Is it common for nurses to have been sergeants or vice-versa? Curious.

 

[ole]

Is it common for nurses to have been sergeants or vice-versa? Curious.

A most interesting question. How military were the military care-givers? I've never given it a thought outside of assuming that they were civilian volunteers. But a discussion of that would be hijacking Tommy's thread. If someone has enough to open a thread on nurses, I'd be happy with the information.
Ole

 

[larry_cockerham]

I guess the point in all this is that sergeants were the guiding force of everyday life. For those not having the background or wealth to achieve 'instant' rank, another source of identification had to be found, hence the birth of the sergeant? Folks with superior skill or knowledge needed to be identified as leaders.

 

[brett4733]

NCO's...

And don't forget, amongst the various job descriptions for a sergeant, was gunsmith...well, perhaps he would not be called upon to act in quite that capacity; but, in camp and in action, it would have been up to the NCO's to ensure the men kept their weapons in working order. No small feat when you figure in the utter ignorance of the men in the operation and maintenance of small-arms!
Cheers and Fairwinds,
Brett Silver

 

[Thomas29ID]

Non-coms in general are the middle management of the army...the creed of the NCO states "[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]My two basic responsibilities will always be
uppermost in my mind -- accomplishment of my mission and the welfare of
my Soldiers" Later it states: "[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Officers of my unit will have maximum time to accomplish their duties; they will not have to accomplish mine"



I always find it a little interesting to be around a Sergeant Major who has been in the army for twenty years saying "yes sir" to a 23 year old kid who went to ROTC for 3 years and recently got his commission as a 2nd LT...

Its really un-american...

might be a little OT but I'm trying to have a 19th century mindset about that irony...

(slowly rambling, slowly rambling, slowly rambling)

(tommy)
[/FONT]

 

[Thomas29ID]

any information as to what would qualify or earn a promotion to a NCO in CW??

Pay difference??

(also I'd love to learn to fish rather than given a fish...if someone can point me in the right direction...I dont even know where to look)

(am I over using parenthesis??)

(tommy)

 

[gary]

Berry Benson was a sergeant and his memoirs have been published.
Marion Hill FitzPatrick was another non-com whose letters have been published. Unlike Benson he died (at Petersburg).
John Worsham was another enlisted man.
Sam Watkins, Company Aytch, also published his memoirs post-war.

Wyman White of the Second Berdan Sharpshooters was a non-com and his diary has been published.
Corp. Norman Shepard's (146th NY Vol. Inf) memoirs have been published.

There are hundreds of other memoirs that have been published. Each will describe in some detail the duties the soldier experienced as a non-com.

As to qualifying for sergeancy, being liked by the officer(s) weighs heavily. Last man standing is another rule. Sometimes it is a very senior private who is trusted and respected by his officer. In newly formed units, it could be that the person learned the drill from an earlier and now disbanded unit. His valuable experience made him eligible (sometimes even for an officer's commission).

There is more pay and like today, it goes up according to the rank. How much more I never bothered to notice.