A thread on this forum three years ago (Was Kelly's Missouri Battery disbanded in May '62?*) touches on Tull's Missouri Battery. My question is, who is this Captain Francis Tull in Missouri? When and where was he born; where is he buried, and how do we know his middle name? How can we access the service records of Tull's Missouri Battery?
I’m trying to track down the complete service record of CAPT. FRANCIS S. TULL (1838-1917), a native of Pennsylvania, who is buried in Houston, Texas and has a 28-page Confederate pension file (at Ancestry), in which he claims to have enlisted on 7 Feb 1861 at Vicksburg, MS as Captain of the VICKSBURG LIGHT ARTILLERY, and been paroled at Monroe, LA in June 1865. His CSR in the Vicksburg Light Artillery confirms his service there from 10 Apr 1861 to 14 Jul 1861, when he resigned his commission (no reason given), but no later service records of FRANCIS S. TULL have been found in the NARA collection at Fold3. The 1st Lt of Vicksburg Light Artillery stated in Tull’s pension application that after Jul-Aug 1861 he did not see Tull again until after the war. There are two references in the pension file to Tull being at the Battle of Pea Ridge, AR, 7-8 Mar 1862 – he says he was wounded there, and one witness says he saw Tull on the field at that time, and saw him with his artillery battery a few days after the battle. Wikipedia** shows a detailed order of battle for Pea Ridge, including a “CPT FRANCIS M TULL, TULL'S MISSOURI BATTERY,” as part of the Missouri State Guard, under Maj Gen Sterling Price. But Sifakis says the commander of Tull's Missouri Battery is “CAPT FRANCIS S TULL.” The same 1st Lt also stated that Tull “then went to the service in Missouri I am informed in the Nitre and Mining Bureau.” This statement is supported by documents in a 13-page Confederate Citizens file at Fold3, which show that FRANCIS S TULL was paid $4 a day from 13 Nov 1862 to 31 Mar 1863 for “Services rendered the C. S. Nitre & Mining Bureau as Agent.” The signatures on the Mining Bureau documents at Little Rock, AR match those on the Vicksburg Light Artillery documents. The three service periods – Apr-Jul 1861, Mar 1862, and Nov 1862-Mar 1863 – are far enough apart that they could all belong to one person. But if that is the case, we need to learn why the commander of the Missouri battery is reported with “M” as a middle initial. Or, to prove that there are two Francis Tulls who commanded artillery batteries in states that sound a lot alike, we need to find the Missouri Tull in other records such as census and burial. Any illumination would be most gratefully received.
* https://civilwartalk.com/threads/was-kellys-missouri-battery-disbanded-in-may-62.123019/
**
I’m trying to track down the complete service record of CAPT. FRANCIS S. TULL (1838-1917), a native of Pennsylvania, who is buried in Houston, Texas and has a 28-page Confederate pension file (at Ancestry), in which he claims to have enlisted on 7 Feb 1861 at Vicksburg, MS as Captain of the VICKSBURG LIGHT ARTILLERY, and been paroled at Monroe, LA in June 1865. His CSR in the Vicksburg Light Artillery confirms his service there from 10 Apr 1861 to 14 Jul 1861, when he resigned his commission (no reason given), but no later service records of FRANCIS S. TULL have been found in the NARA collection at Fold3. The 1st Lt of Vicksburg Light Artillery stated in Tull’s pension application that after Jul-Aug 1861 he did not see Tull again until after the war. There are two references in the pension file to Tull being at the Battle of Pea Ridge, AR, 7-8 Mar 1862 – he says he was wounded there, and one witness says he saw Tull on the field at that time, and saw him with his artillery battery a few days after the battle. Wikipedia** shows a detailed order of battle for Pea Ridge, including a “CPT FRANCIS M TULL, TULL'S MISSOURI BATTERY,” as part of the Missouri State Guard, under Maj Gen Sterling Price. But Sifakis says the commander of Tull's Missouri Battery is “CAPT FRANCIS S TULL.” The same 1st Lt also stated that Tull “then went to the service in Missouri I am informed in the Nitre and Mining Bureau.” This statement is supported by documents in a 13-page Confederate Citizens file at Fold3, which show that FRANCIS S TULL was paid $4 a day from 13 Nov 1862 to 31 Mar 1863 for “Services rendered the C. S. Nitre & Mining Bureau as Agent.” The signatures on the Mining Bureau documents at Little Rock, AR match those on the Vicksburg Light Artillery documents. The three service periods – Apr-Jul 1861, Mar 1862, and Nov 1862-Mar 1863 – are far enough apart that they could all belong to one person. But if that is the case, we need to learn why the commander of the Missouri battery is reported with “M” as a middle initial. Or, to prove that there are two Francis Tulls who commanded artillery batteries in states that sound a lot alike, we need to find the Missouri Tull in other records such as census and burial. Any illumination would be most gratefully received.
* https://civilwartalk.com/threads/was-kellys-missouri-battery-disbanded-in-may-62.123019/
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