Finding A Grave.

[JenkinsFerry1864]

I have found through ancestry a direct ancestor of mine Thomas C Harrison. From what I can tell he was mortally wounded at the battle of Prairie Grove taken to fort smith and then later died. He was born in 1834 and he died either on the 9th or the 29th of December 1862 I had conflicting sources on that. He served in the 37th Arkansas Infantry Regiment as a Regimental fifer. I've looked him up on a few different grave websites and I wasn't able to find him. Is it possible he was buried in a mass grave?

 

[DixieRifles]

Your Title of your post somewhat implies that you have only searched for his grave on the site Find-A-Grave. Of course that site does not cover all graves at all cemeteries.
What resources have you used to find his service records and history? Family records?

 

[Lampasas Bill]

It's entirely possible since the Confederates retreated from the battlefield, leaving it in Union control. They reportedly left many of their dead behind.

 

[JenkinsFerry1864]

Your Title of your post somewhat implies that you have only searched for his grave on the site Find-A-Grave. Of course that site does not cover all graves at all cemeteries.
What resources have you used to find his service records and history? Family records?

You can find references to his service on these sources. http://www.couchgenweb.com/civilwar/37thcoe.html https://www.nps.gov/civilwar/search...oldierId=0D86FBA5-DC7A-DF11-BF36-B8AC6F5D926A When I had fold3 I took at look at the muster cards. And yes i looked for him on Find a grave and even did several different versions of the name and got nothing.

 

[DixieRifles]

@JenkinsFerry1864
I am interested in your research as My GrandMother was born in Arkansas in 1890 about the same year her Father died. They still didnt birth certificates and very few death certificates. I soent an afternoon at the archives in Little Rock. I tried to go back another generation in Arkansas and the best source I found was church records in Drew County. I havent searched much cemetery records in Arkansas.

 

[JenkinsFerry1864]

@JenkinsFerry1864
I am interested in your research as My GrandMother was born in Arkansas in 1890 about the same year her Father died. They still didnt birth certificates and very few death certificates. I soent an afternoon at the archives in Little Rock. I tried to go back another generation in Arkansas and the best source I found was church records in Drew County. I havent searched much cemetery records in Arkansas.

Its very hard to find information on soldiers and people other than a few dusty muster cards or some kind of census record. It's very sad that nearly everything known about these people is lost to time. But yeah I wasn't able to find his grave and probably never will. I guess we can chalk it up to mass grave.

 

[JenkinsFerry1864]

@JenkinsFerry1864
I am interested in your research as My GrandMother was born in Arkansas in 1890 about the same year her Father died. They still didnt birth certificates and very few death certificates. I soent an afternoon at the archives in Little Rock. I tried to go back another generation in Arkansas and the best source I found was church records in Drew County. I havent searched much cemetery records in Arkansas.

I also seen that you were interested in The Battle of Fort Pillow. My Great-Great-Great Grandfather Benjamin Carven Heard served in the 1st Choctaw mounted rifles however two of his brothers served in the 20th Arkansas Infantry Regiment company D both of them would've been at fort pillow in 1862. Unfortunately both Zachariah Heard and William Heard Junior were captured in 1863.

 

[OldSarge79]

Is it possible he was buried in a mass grave?

Yes, it's very possible.

My own ancestor in the 26th Arkansas Infantry was also at Prairie Grove. He died 2 or 3 weeks later in camp outside Little Rock. The only information passed down in the family is that he is believed to have been buried in a mass grave there. We do not know the cause of death, wounds or illness or both. The family did search the area some years later but never found anything.

The retreat from Prairie Grove was quite an ordeal, and many of the troops suffered from hunger and exposure so it's understandable that there were substantial numbers of deaths in the days and weeks following.

 

[DixieRifles]

My own ancestor in the 26th Arkansas Infantry was also at Prairie Grove. He died 2 or 3 weeks later in camp outside Little Rock.

Two of my grandmother's uncles served in Arkansas Regiments. William L. Pritchard was in the 26th Arkansas. He died at Camp Hope. There were 1500 soldiers who are buried there.
His brother, Barton Pritchard, was in the 3d Arkansas Regt that served Hood's brigade with ANV.

 

[DixieRifles]

Here are my notes on Camp Hope.

In 1862, there were thousands of Confederate soldiers from Texas and Arkansas gathered near the settlement of Austin (Lonoke Co.) They were camped near what was then called Camp Hope. During the Fall of 1862, the camp was stricken by the measles, typhoid and a variety of other diseases that proved fatal to as many as 1,500 soldiers. These soldiers were buried throughout the countryside surrounding the camp. After the death of Brigadier General Allison Nelson in October 1862, Camp Hope was renamed Camp Nelson. By the end of 1862, the camp had been abandoned and was forgotten. Many years later, a group of local Confederate veterans initiated actions to establish a formal burial ground for the war dead. Veteran James Gately sold a small tract of land to the group. Through their diligence and determination, funds were found and eventually local crews were hired to scour the countryside looking for graves. Once located, the grave was opened, and the remains were placed in a box or barrel. They were then taken to the Camp Nelson Confederate Cemetery and re-interred. Even though 428 individual headstones were placed in four equal sections, physical evidence uncovered in 1980 indicates that the dead were buried in a single trench upon being re-interred in 1905. Three flags, Texas, Arkansas and Confederate States of America, fly over the twelve foot tall monument which was placed in the center of the cemetery honoring all the soldiers.

Today, the Camp Nelson Confederate Cemetery, the only all-Confederate cemetery in Arkansas, sits in a clearing in the woods off Cherry Road. During holiday periods, three flagstaffs carry the flags of Arkansas, Texas and the Confederacy. Beneath the flags, a 12-foot obelisk stands guard over rows of marble gravestones, each inscribed with the Confederate Cross of Honor and the words "Unknown Soldier CSA." The stark white stones, some darkened with age, their tops gabled so "no d**n Yankee can sit on 'em," mark the graves of 428 unsung, but not forgotten, heroes of the Confederacy.

Monument dedicated to Arkansas and Texas Confederate soldiers amid tombstones at
Camp Nelson Confederate Cemetery in northern Lonoke County, near Cabot; 2002.

Cabot is NorthEast of Little Rock.
Austin is located next to Cabot; not sure if it is a town or just part of Cabot.

 

[DixieRifles]

I also seen that you were interested in The Battle of Fort Pillow. My Great-Great-Great Grandfather Benjamin Carven Heard served in the 1st Choctaw mounted rifles however two of his brothers served in the 20th Arkansas Infantry Regiment company D both of them would've been at fort pillow in 1862.

That would be what many refer to as the 1st Battle of Fort Pillow—- even though there was no real battle then. "River Run Red" has a list of all units that was garrisoned at Fort Pillow. I know it has Federal regiments bit I need to see if also lists all the Confederate units.
My ancestor was in the 1864 Battle.

 

[OldSarge79]

Here are my notes on Camp Hope.

In 1862, there were thousands of Confederate soldiers from Texas and Arkansas gathered near the settlement of Austin (Lonoke Co.) They were camped near what was then called Camp Hope. During the Fall of 1862, the camp was stricken by the measles, typhoid and a variety of other diseases that proved fatal to as many as 1,500 soldiers. These soldiers were buried throughout the countryside surrounding the camp. After the death of Brigadier General Allison Nelson in October 1862, Camp Hope was renamed Camp Nelson. By the end of 1862, the camp had been abandoned and was forgotten. Many years later, a group of local Confederate veterans initiated actions to establish a formal burial ground for the war dead. Veteran James Gately sold a small tract of land to the group. Through their diligence and determination, funds were found and eventually local crews were hired to scour the countryside looking for graves. Once located, the grave was opened, and the remains were placed in a box or barrel. They were then taken to the Camp Nelson Confederate Cemetery and re-interred. Even though 428 individual headstones were placed in four equal sections, physical evidence uncovered in 1980 indicates that the dead were buried in a single trench upon being re-interred in 1905. Three flags, Texas, Arkansas and Confederate States of America, fly over the twelve foot tall monument which was placed in the center of the cemetery honoring all the soldiers.

Today, the Camp Nelson Confederate Cemetery, the only all-Confederate cemetery in Arkansas, sits in a clearing in the woods off Cherry Road. During holiday periods, three flagstaffs carry the flags of Arkansas, Texas and the Confederacy. Beneath the flags, a 12-foot obelisk stands guard over rows of marble gravestones, each inscribed with the Confederate Cross of Honor and the words "Unknown Soldier CSA." The stark white stones, some darkened with age, their tops gabled so "no d**n Yankee can sit on 'em," mark the graves of 428 unsung, but not forgotten, heroes of the Confederacy.

View attachment 464302
Monument dedicated to Arkansas and Texas Confederate soldiers amid tombstones at
Camp Nelson Confederate Cemetery in northern Lonoke County, near Cabot; 2002.

Cabot is NorthEast of Little Rock.
Austin is located next to Cabot; not sure if it is a town or just part of Cabot.

Great information. Thanks!

 

[JenkinsFerry1864]

That would be what many refer to as the 1st Battle of Fort Pillow—- even though there was no real battle then. "River Run Red" has a list of all units that was garrisoned at Fort Pillow. I know it has Federal regiments bit I need to see if also lists all the Confederate units.
My ancestor was in the 1864 Battle.

I knew they weren't in the 1864 battle but I thought you might find it interesting because it's still is fort pillow related.

 

[DixieRifles]

I knew they weren't in the 1864 battle but I thought you might find it interesting because it's still is fort pillow related

Of course. Im even interested in finding more about the US Navy's role in the forts along the river. The USS CAIRO had iron rails added to reinforce it there at Fort Pillow.

 

[MsJan]

I have found through ancestry a direct ancestor of mine Thomas C Harrison. From what I can tell he was mortally wounded at the battle of Prairie Grove taken to fort smith and then later died. He was born in 1834 and he died either on the 9th or the 29th of December 1862 I had conflicting sources on that. He served in the 37th Arkansas Infantry Regiment as a Regimental fifer. I've looked him up on a few different grave websites and I wasn't able to find him. Is it possible he was buried in a mass grave?

My ancestor died at Prairie Grove. I read that a few years after the burials the bodies were disinterred and moved to the new Fayetteville National Cemetery. Most would not have had identification or head stones. I've requested a headstone for him at Fayetteville and I'm waiting to hear back.

 

[East Tennessee Roots]

I have found through ancestry a direct ancestor of mine Thomas C Harrison. From what I can tell he was mortally wounded at the battle of Prairie Grove taken to fort smith and then later died. He was born in 1834 and he died either on the 9th or the 29th of December 1862 I had conflicting sources on that. He served in the 37th Arkansas Infantry Regiment as a Regimental fifer. I've looked him up on a few different grave websites and I wasn't able to find him. Is it possible he was buried in a mass grave?

National Archives NextGen Catalog

The online portal to the records held at the National Archives, and information about those records.

catalog.archives.gov

37thcoe

37thf&s

https://www.cem.va.gov/pdf/InterpretiveSigns/ConfederateBurials-TheConfederateOccupation.pdf