Family who fought for both Union and Confederate

mterry

Private
Joined
Jan 17, 2018
Hi - a couple years ago I got pretty into ancestry.com and started both mine and my wife's family tree. recently I started looking into who fought in the civil war more closely - specifically which regiments and then trying to figure out which battle's they may have been at. I've had some luck but trying to really nail down IF they actually fought in the battle or were absent or participated in some other support role has been really really difficult. If anyone has more information on any of these regiments, or these folks I sure would love to learn as much as I can. It was suggested I post it here.. I had this question in another thread so I just copied and pasted the below.


MD Ator - 31st Tennessee Infantry - if I am reading his card right, he started as private, left as sergeant. I THINK they participated in both Battle of Franklin and Battle of Stone Creek in Murfreesboro. I found this particularly interesting because I've been to both - before I knew I may have had an ancestor there. He was older during the war so I thought that was interesting. Were older men like him involved in actual fighting or you think he was some sort of support personnel? It looks like his regiment took some reasonably high losses at Battle of Stone Creek.

Richard Morrison - 29th Illinois Infantry - I THINK this regiment participated at Shiloh and again, it looks like they were involved in some serious fighting. Again, just trying to figure out if he was actually present and in what capacity.

William Golden - 21st Texas Infantry - I think they were involved in fighting in the red river campaign.,
My wife's ancestor - William Ferrel was with the 16th Ohio infantry - I believe they participated in the red river campaign as well. It'd be interesting to figure out if they actually lined up opposite each other on a battle field. I have no idea how to figure that out.. I think most engagements were smaller, correct?


any more information on the regiments and what they did... anything noteworthy.. or some how being able to confirm these folks participated in these battles would be really interesting.

thanks
mike
 
Welcome! Sorry, I can't help with your specific questions, but I am certain you'll soon get some answers. Afterward, stay around and join the discussion in one of the many threads.
How old was Mr. Ator? One of my family members enlisted in the 61st Illinois Infantry at age 53 and served until the fall of 1865 when he was 55. From what I know of him, he served as just another soldier alongside younger men, doing the same duties they did. I suspect he may have joined for the bounty, but I have not found any evidence thus far.
 
Welcome! Sorry, I can't help with your specific questions, but I am certain you'll soon get some answers. Afterward, stay around and join the discussion in one of the many threads.
How old was Mr. Ator? One of my family members enlisted in the 61st Illinois Infantry at age 53 and served until the fall of 1865 when he was 55. From what I know of him, he served as just another soldier alongside younger men, doing the same duties they did. I suspect he may have joined for the bounty, but I have not found any evidence thus far.


MD Ator was born in 1812.. so late 40's / early 50's... which to me just sounds really tough for an older guy out there trying to keep up.

Thanks!
 
Smitten by other people's stories! Thanks for coming to find more about yours although now I'm distracted by older men in the ranks- doesn't it seem crazy? To have fought all the way through, like we see sometimes meant reenlisting, too. We see quite a few much older generals out there at a time when you just know their wives were regretting marrying into the military- deserved a feather bed, fireside and good book on a winter night, not lumpy cots, dysentery, squabbling staff and fleas. A private? No horse, little pay, worse food, heat, cold, getting shot at, maybe a forced march somewhere- and all the disease an army could invite along. In their 50's. Amazing men.

Having butted in, will shush. We have an awful lot of members who can find this stuff, like ancestors out of Time's hat. Have a feeling they'll be extremely helpful, as usual.
 
  • Like
Reactions: WJC
From my research, most of the older men in the Confederacy were, 1) enlisted officers who served a short time and went home, or 2) conscripted by force, as the Confederacy became more desperate. The latter would fight until death's release, or parole at the end of the War.
 
MD Ator was born in 1812.. so late 40's / early 50's... which to me just sounds really tough for an older guy out there trying to keep up.

Thanks!

There was at least one Union regiment whose members were primarily middle aged and older men.

"The 37th Regiment Iowa Volunteer Infantry, nicknamed the "Graybeard Regiment," was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War....

...The regiment was created for political reasons as a way of proving that men well above normal military age were willing to volunteer. While most of its members were in their 40s, 50s, and 60s, it is recorded that a few were in their 70s and at least one man claimed to be 80. It was generally understood that the regiment was to be limited to light duties like guarding supply trains, but there was nothing official about this. Most of the 37th Iowa's members had sons and/or grandsons serving in other regiments, and none could list Iowa as their birthplace since all of them had been born before it was even settled (settlement of the region had begun in 1833).

The regiment was mustered out on May 24, 1865."

37th Iowa Volunteer Infantry
 
MD Ator was born in 1812.. so late 40's / early 50's... which to me just sounds really tough for an older guy out there trying to keep up.

Thanks!
Thanks for your response.
Yes, it does. On the other hand, these were men who got far more exercise as part of their daily routine than most of us today. I doubt there were many 'couch potatoes'. Little of their daily work was mechanized or automated. They walked a great deal, farm boys often behind a plow. They lived a far more strenuous life than today's average American and were far more used to hardship.
Some state muster rolls show the age at enlistment. In these, by far most soldiers were young men. But there are exceptions.
Let's not forget that in more recent times, the World War 2 U. S. draft required all men from 18 to 65 to register and made all who were 18 to 45 subject to immediate induction.
I would not discount reports of Mr. Ator's advanced age.
 
Back
Top