PLEASE HELP Interpret This Document?

[CLuckJD]

Researching Ancestry.com, I ran across a Civil War Pension doc on a man by the name Joshua Calhoun as 'Soldier,' whom I feel is same as my 2nd great grandad! Far more verification before celebration, though. Vital info written by hand, so it's tough.

Please review a scan below and provide any inside tips on best way to go. (NB: Applicant "Sophia" Calhoun verified as 2nd great grandma, per 1920 US Census data on her son's household)

Specific questions: ​

1. NAME OF SOLDIER
a. Why would it show an alias? Was this common for Black men who served the Union?
b. If so, why use their same last name vs. change it completely?
c. Does "Augustus" look correct as alias first name?

2. SERVICE: I assume "Col'd" is "Colored" but what's the rest of this scribble say?

3. DATE OF FILING: Why delay 4 decades to apply for benefits?

4. APPLICATION NUMBER: Searchable databases that may yield more details about this Soldier and/or his widow-beneficiary?

5. REMARKS: Any clue whatsoever as to what this says?

Thanks for all your helpful advice in advance.

 

[Seduzal]

Sorry but I can't help you but just wait for a little while and someone will be along to answer your questions.

 

[Taylin]

This is a widows pension, normally applied for within a year the husbands death. The unit in the pension us Company H, 3rd Mississippi Colored Infantry. (53rd USCT).

Aliases aren't uncommon, perhaps we'll never know why he chose to enlist under another name, perhaps to avoid being found by his master if he was a slave.

Here are his index cards from Fold3
Looks like he was born in 1837-8

 

[East Tennessee Roots]

Researching Ancestry.com, I ran across a Civil War Pension doc on a man by the name Joshua Calhoun as 'Soldier,' whom I feel is same as my 2nd great grandad! Far more verification before celebration, though. Vital info written by hand, so it's tough.

Please review a scan below and provide any inside tips on best way to go. (NB: Applicant "Sophia" Calhoun verified as 2nd great grandma, per 1920 US Census data on her son's household)View attachment 321438

Specific questions: ​

1. NAME OF SOLDIER
a. Why would it show an alias? Was this common for Black men who served the Union?
b. If so, why use their same last name vs. change it completely?
c. Does "Augustus" look correct as alias first name?

2. SERVICE: I assume "Col'd" is "Colored" but what's the rest of this scribble say?

3. DATE OF FILING: Why delay 4 decades to apply for benefits?

4. APPLICATION NUMBER: Searchable databases that may yield more details about this Soldier and/or his widow-beneficiary?

5. REMARKS: Any clue whatsoever as to what this says?

Thanks for all your helpful advice in advance.

Augustus enlisted and mustered in Company H on 5/19/1863. Counting him, there were 15 with the Calhoun surname.

Fifty-third U. S. Colored Troops

Organized March 11, 1864, from 3rd Mississippi Infantry (African Descent). Attached to 1st Brigade, 1st Division, United States Colored Troops, District of Vicksburg, Miss., to October, 1864. 1st Brigade, 4th Division, 16th Corps, to November, 1864. Dept. of Arkansas to February, 1865. District of Vicksburg, Miss., and Dept. of Mississippi to March, 1866. SERVICE.-Post and garrison duty at Haines Bluff, District of Vicksburg, Miss., till October, 1864. Expedition to Grand Gulf March 12-14. Action at Grand Gulf July 16. Moved to St. Charles, Ark., on White River October, 1864, and duty there till February, 1865. Action on White River, near St. Charles, October 22, 1864. Moved to Vicksburg, Miss., February, 1865, and duty there; at Macon, Meridian and other points in the Dept. of Mississippi till March, 1866. Mustered out March 8, 1866. Frederick A. Dyer "A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion" vol. 3 ********************************************************************** OCTOBER 22, 1864.--Attack on Union transport, on the White River, near Saint Charles, Ark. Report of Col. Orlando C. Risdon, Fifty-third U. S. Colored Troops. HDQRS. SECOND DIVISION, NINETEENTH ARMY CORPS, Mouth of White River, Ark., October 24, 1864. MAJ.: Through headquarters Colored Brigade Gen. Dennis received a dispatch to-day as follows: SAINT CHARLES, ARK., October 23, 1864. COL.: I have the honor to report that I arrived at this place with my command at 7 p. m. October 22. I was fired upon by the enemy from the south bank of the river. My loss is 17 wounded and 3 killed, including 1 officer mortally. The severely wounded I forward to you by steamer Marmora. Please send them forward to Vicksburg or see that they are properly cared for. I am, respectfully, your obedient servant, O. C. RISDON, Col. Fifty-third, U. S. Colored Infantry. Col. HIRAM SCOFIELD, Cmdg. Colored Brigade. This is the regiment that left this post for Saint Charles on the morning of October 22. Gen. Dennis directs me to say the wounded officer and men will be sent to Vicksburg on to-morrow morning on steamer Havana. I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant, LEW. DORLAN, Lieut. and Acting Assistant Adjutant-Gen. Maj. S. C. FARRINGTON, Acting Assistant Adjutant-Gen., Nineteenth Army Corps. Source: Official Records PAGE 890-83 LOUISIANA AND THE TRANS-MISSISSIPPI. [CHAP. LIII. [Series I. Vol. 41. Part I, Reports. Serial No. 83.] *************************************************************************************** MARCH 12-14, 1865.--Expedition from Vicksburg, Miss., to Grand Gulf and vicinity. Report of Col. Orlando C. Risdon, Fifty-third U. S. Colored Troops. HDQRS. FIFTY-THIRD U. S. COLORED INFANTRY, Vicksburg, Miss., March 14, 1865. CAPT.: Agreeable to instructions from post headquarters I embarked with my regiment on board the steamer Diana at 11 a. m. March 12, 1865, and proceeded down the river. On reaching Hard Times Landing I gave the signal for the gun-boat agreed upon. I was not answered and I kept on to Grand Gulf, where I ascertained that the gun-boat had left. I then proceeded down the river to the mouth of Bayou Pierre, where I found the gun-boat Mound City. After conferring with Capt. Paddock, commanding Mound City, we started up Bayou Pierre, the gun-boat in advance. After running up some three or four miles the bayou became so narrow and the trees hung so far over that the Diana could not proceed and I was obliged to return to the mouth of the bayou. From thence I ran up to Grand Gulf, disembarked with my command, and started overland for Port Gibson. On reaching Bayou Pierre, some two miles from Port Gibson, I found it too deep to ford, and could get no ferry-boat or skiffs, and there being no other way to cross I returned to Grand Gulf, re-embarked, and ordered that the boat proceed up the river to the Buckner plantation. Here I sent one company ashore, and several deserters from my regiment were arrested and brought on board. I then ordered that the boat proceed to Vicksburg, where we arrived about 9 a. m. of this date. While at Grand Gulf I arrested two citizens--a Mr. Sanders, who is reported to have been the man who brought the note to the steamer Monroe which caused her to run up Black River, where she was pillaged and robbed, and the other is Doctor Carrol, who says he is not a Union man and was connected with the rebel army in the early part of the war. I accordingly brought him in as a hostage, in accordance with instructions. I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant, O. C. RISDON, Col., Cmdg. Regt. Capt. A. C. FISK, Assistant Adjutant-Gen. Source: Official Records PAGE 85-103 KY., S. W. VA., TENN., N. & C. GA., MISS., ALA., & W. FLA. [Series I. Vol. 49. Part I, Reports, Correspondence, Etc. Serial No. 103.] ​

 

[LSBusch]

I don't have much to add to the above--wow! But I wanted to add that when I see "alias" on a Civil War pension record I think "AKA" (also known as). To me, "alias" implies the soldier was some kind of criminal, and I don't believe they intended that.

I have an "alias" mystery. My gg-grandfather's brother (white) was named Edward Barrows. His pension record shows his name "alias Jackson Brown." Jackson Brown was a black man who enlisted half a year after Barrows deserted at Gettysburg. Barrows eventually got amnesty and presumably got a pension under his own name.

Anyway, I definitely don't think "alias" was used only for black soldiers.

 

[John Winn]

Regarding an alias: the term simply meant that the applicant was recorded or known under a different name during his service (or that he was recorded under several names). It didn't necessarily imply any sort of criminality. Of the 38 Civil War veterans I researched who are buried in the cemetery where I volunteer, three enlisted under aliases. Two did so because they were underage and they didn't want their fathers to find them. The third was French Canadian and didn't speak any English when he enlisted and he was essentially assigned a name. Your grandpa could simply have gone by several names during his service and knowing the different names would have been necessary to get his complete service record.

Regarding why so late to apply: as was stated earlier, the widow applied for the pension so it likely was simply a matter of when the solider died. More often the soldier was already receiving a pension when he died and the widow applied to continue to receive such. I have seen several, though, where the soldier never applied but the widow did, usually because she was left without means of support.

 

[Bruce Vail]

It is my understanding that the widow's pension required a separate application from the original veteran's pension. So the veteran may have been receiving a pension for years, but his death would require the spouse for file her own application is she wanted to receive the widow pension after the death. Alternately, the veteran may have been denied a pension at some point, and then the rules of eligibility were loosened in later years. The rules for pension eligibility were originally quite strict, but loosened considerably as the years went by.

 

[Bruce Vail]

The squiggle in the "Remarks" line is in all likelihood the name and/or initials of the recording clerk.

 

[East Tennessee Roots]

Researching Ancestry.com, I ran across a Civil War Pension doc on a man by the name Joshua Calhoun as 'Soldier,' whom I feel is same as my 2nd great grandad! Far more verification before celebration, though. Vital info written by hand, so it's tough.

Please review a scan below and provide any inside tips on best way to go. (NB: Applicant "Sophia" Calhoun verified as 2nd great grandma, per 1920 US Census data on her son's household)View attachment 321438

Specific questions: ​

1. NAME OF SOLDIER
a. Why would it show an alias? Was this common for Black men who served the Union?
b. If so, why use their same last name vs. change it completely?
c. Does "Augustus" look correct as alias first name?

2. SERVICE: I assume "Col'd" is "Colored" but what's the rest of this scribble say?

3. DATE OF FILING: Why delay 4 decades to apply for benefits?

4. APPLICATION NUMBER: Searchable databases that may yield more details about this Soldier and/or his widow-beneficiary?

5. REMARKS: Any clue whatsoever as to what this says?

Thanks for all your helpful advice in advance.

Here's a widow's pension index card with Augustus as the alias. I couldn't find a record of Augustus ever filing for a Veteran's pension. Probably explains the 40-year lapse. Not sure about the laws concerning pensions for USCT Veterans or their widows?

 

[John Winn]

I forgot to say that if you haven't planned to get a copy of the application file you should do so. Those typically have quite a bit of information about the soldier and the applicant (if such was the widow); i.e. not just about his military service. Some are a bit sparse but the majority are genealogical gold mines.

I recommend the services of our own @RhinehartRoots as you will get the complete record (not always the case with the Archives) and get it quickly (the Archives takes months).

 

[RhinehartRoots]

Thanks for the mention, John. Yes, I'll be at the National Archives next weeks, so I can get this file for you if you wanted. My rates are much less than the National Archives, and as John mentioned, you'll have it back in a couple weeks instead of months and months.

You've gotten some good input from people already, but my take on this pension card is that yes, he served under a different name. It could have been something as simple as a transcription error in some of his records. He may have decided to use a different name later in life (but you're right, that's more likely to be a last name change and not a first name change). It could be that he didn't want to be tracked down in the war by his previous owners-- some enslaved people did that when they enlisted. I wrote about a case of this happening on my blog the other day (https://rhinehartroots.com/blogs/news) if you wanted read about that. Many times, but not always, you'll find out the reason within the pension file itself

Some veterans did have both an invalid pension and then a widow's pension after he died. If that was the case, you'd see both entries on the card, since they consolidated the complete file into one packet. In this case, his widow was the only one who filed.

The pension card is missing the certificate number. When a pension was applied for, it was given an application number. When it was approved, it was given a certificate number. There is only an application number on this card. So in this case, she applied, but for whatever reason, it was never approved. Without seeing the file, I can't say why, but it could be that she never followed through on finishing the process. It could be that she died before they approved it. They could have flat out denied it because she didn't have proof of his marriage or death or service (not uncommon with formerly enslaved people).

A denied claim doesn't necessarily mean a bad file though. Many times those are better, because the widow would appeal or submit additional documentation to help get approved.

These pension files are great files, especially for the formerly enslaved. There can be some great genealogical documentation in there.


Some of your itemized questions:

Yes, col'd means colored. He was in company H of the 3rd Mississippi Colored Infantry.

The four decade wait was because it was a widow's pension. She filed after he died. A soldier who applied for a pension during himself while he was alive would have to had proved that he was injured, sick, or disabled somehow. They didn't just give pensions to soldiers for serving, it had to be tied into a sickness or injury. Those who came home from the war with injuries often applied right away. In the 1880s and 1890s, the government loosened their requirements, so many soldiers applied for ailments related to aging instead of war injuries. So he may not have had any kind of ailment to base his pension on, or he didn't live long enough to apply.

The remarks section is often times the name of the attorney who helped file his claim. It could be some sort of internal note too.

As for searchable databases, you can probably get his service records on Fold3.com. I believe someone linked those already. The complete pension file, though, would only be available at the National Archives. Those aren't online.



Let me know if I can help. I'll be in DC next week. My website and Facebook contact information are in my signature line.

Brian

 

[CLuckJD]

Here's a widow's pension index card with Augustus as the alias.

This image is the exact duplicate of the one in my post that I chose to invert black and white colors on first, so it might help enhance visual quality.

View attachment 321499

 

[CLuckJD]

My gg-grandfather's brother (white) was named Edward Barrows. His pension record shows his name "alias Jackson Brown." Jackson Brown was a black man who enlisted half a year after Barrows deserted at Gettysburg. Barrows eventually got amnesty and presumably got a pension under his own name.

So, you mean to say there was no way Barrows could obtain pension benefits except using an alias name before he was granted amnesty for desertion at Gburg? Where did that leave the true Jackson Brown insofar as his own claim?

 

[CLuckJD]

get a copy of the application file ... the majority are genealogical gold mines.

So, what type of document does the image I posted depict in relation to this particular application? My main goal at this point is to verify if my 2nd g-grandad was the same man listed as 'Soldier'. Just because I know without any reasonable doubt his widow had a name identical to my 2nd g-grandma's doesn't prove they are the same person. Is there any way to determine that without having to pay first?

 

[John Winn]

So, what type of document does the image I posted depict in relation to this particular application? My main goal at this point is to verify if my 2nd g-grandad was the same man listed as 'Soldier'. Just because I know without any reasonable doubt his widow had a name identical to my 2nd g-grandma's doesn't prove they are the same person. Is there any way to determine that without having to pay first?

Well, I can't really say exactly how you might prove that the man whose widow applied for the pension is the same person as your grandpa. The document you posted just shows that a woman named Sophea Calhoun applied for a widow's pension under her husband's name. It doesn't say if she got it or not, just that she applied. That said, the application process required a lot of evidence such as marriage records or letters from folks who could attest to certain claims. Unfortunately, such documentation certainly could have been hard for persons who had been slaves to produce. However, the application file would contain whatever Sophea had to say for herself and her relationship to Joshua/Augustus.

In your case it's a gamble but one that has the potential to pay off. I can't make a decision for you and, of course, don't know if paying for the records would be a major investment for you. If I were you I'd do it because it looks like right now you don't have a lot of information and the file might provide some that could link you with your grandpa which, if it did, would be a major breakthrough (or so it seems to me from what you've said). If you don't do it you'll never know. If you do it and it doesn't get you anywhere you're out a few bucks but you definitely know the file doesn't contain your Rosetta stone. Up to you.

 

[CLuckJD]

Probably explains the 40-year lapse.

Per a 1920 US Census file, my 2d g-grandma was 'Sophia Calhoun' but her DOB is listed "abt 1864." So, could she in fact be minor child v. widow of this Soldier? OTOH, 1920 Census data also list Sophia as a widow living with her son and his family at that time (sigh)...

 

[RhinehartRoots]

Is there any way to determine that without having to pay first

Do you know when your ancestor died? This pension was filed in Feb 1899, which is usually shortly after the soldier died. Does that correspond with what you know?

Where was he living in 1890? There was a Veterans' census that was taken in 1890 that listed soldiers and the regiment they fought in. If you can find him in 1890 in that list, in the county that you know he was in, and it matches the regiment that the pension card says, it would be a pretty big clue.

Have you seen an obituary? They sometimes will tell what regiment he was in. Gravestones will sometimes show the same thing.

 

[RhinehartRoots]

could she in fact be minor child

If that was the case, what should have happened is that the pension card would have had all of the numbers in the "minor" column and not the "widow" column. Of course, there is always room for human error, but these cards are usually pretty accurate.

 

[CLuckJD]

Do you know when your ancestor died? Where he lived in 1890? ... seen an obituary?...

No X 3. The Civil War pension doc is sole reference to this putative ancestor discovered so far. But I'll check 1890 Veterans Census records as you suggest. If public access is free, a link might be quite helpful Tnx!

 

[CLuckJD]

what should have happened is that the pension card would have had all of the numbers in the "minor" column and not the "widow" column

Agreed. But since forms were filled in by hand, I figured the odds of human error increased dramatically (wishful thinking?? )