Viewing an original muster roll...

Bruce Vail

Captain
Joined
Jul 8, 2015
I suppose it is proof positive that I am a history nerd, but I got a big thrill last week when I had the opportunity for the first time to handle an original Confederate muster roll. A big part of the thrill was that the roll was compiled (and signed) by my adopted Civil War ancestor, Lt. George W. Ward of the 3rd North Carolina State Troops.

I was in Raleigh for a small family gathering and had a chance to visit the NC Archives, just kitty-corner across the street from the Civil War-era state capitol. The Archives are partially re-opened from the COVID closing and the helpful staff retrieved for me the John B. Brown Papers -- five boxes of orginal Civil War documents. Capt. Brown had been the superior officer of Lt. Ward in Company B for a good part of the War, so I was very hopeful that his papers would include some documents that contained info about Lt. Ward.

The documents were mostly routine army paperwork items of little historical interest. To my disppointment there was nothing that would shed any new light of the War experiences of Lt. Ward, but there were what appeared to be about a dozen original Compay B muster rolls. They were standardized military forms (about 18 inches by 30 inches) that allowed for hand-written entries for about 100 members of the company. Most were signed by Capt. Brown but there was one that was filled out and signed by Lt. Ward. (Preparing the muster roll would have been a standard duty of a Lt. in a typical CSA company, and the 1st Lt. would have been expected to sign the roll if the Capt. was absent at the time the roll was completed.)

The muster roll covered the time period Aug. 31-Oct. 31, 1864, a period in which the the 3rd NC was serving in Jubal Early's Shenandoah Valley campaign of that year. In the 'Notes' section of the roll-- apparently written in Lt. Ward's own hand -- it is stated the Co. B was in the battles of Fisher Hill and Winchester.

A lot of you already know that the battles of Fishers Hill and 3rd Winchester (sometimes called Opequon) were signal defeats for Jubal Early and helped lift the reputation of Union commander Gen. Phil Sheridan. It wasn't long after these battles that the Confederate army was driven out the Shenandoah Valley once and for all.

I guess this is all pretty strong evidence that Lt. Ward was a veteran of both 3rd Winchester and Fisher's Hill. That conclusion was suggested by Lt. Ward's CMSR (available on Fold 3) but the original muster roll would be proof. If so, that would be something new in my research and well worth the trip to the NC Archives.
 
Good find -- congratulations on this! I didn't realize it until you mentioned it here that the NC archives research rooms are now open on a limited basis. That's great news -- I've been eager to get back there. In the meantime, archives staff was very helpful to me in obtaining some documents I needed, in spite of the restrictions and how busy they must have been.

Roy B.
 
@Bruce Vail does that library archive have a dedicated room for reading retrieved material? Also is there a shorter time limit for holding the documents than closing time? And were you aware of any inventory before you made your request. I haven't applied for any material yet, why I ask.
Lubliner.
 
@Bruce Vail does that library archive have a dedicated room for reading retrieved material? Also is there a shorter time limit for holding the documents than closing time? And were you aware of any inventory before you made your request. I haven't applied for any material yet, why I ask.
Lubliner.

Under the current re-opening protocol, a dedicated research room is open to the public for viewing retreived materials. An appointment ahead of time is required, and the room is only open three hours a day. It is also subject to requirements that researchers wear anti-COVID masks and observe social distancing policy. Inventory can be searched online, and telephonic/e-mail assistance in researching the inventory is available.

I found the staff to be very professional and helpful. I knew exacty what I wanted to see during my appointment and notified them ahead of time. The material was waiting for me in the reading room when I arrived.
 
Under the current re-opening protocol, a dedicated research room is open to the public for viewing retreived materials. An appointment ahead of time is required, and the room is only open three hours a day. It is also subject to requirements that researchers wear anti-COVID masks and observe social distancing policy. Inventory can be searched online, and telephonic/e-mail assistance in researching the inventory is available.

I found the staff to be very professional and helpful. I knew exacty what I wanted to see during my appointment and notified them ahead of time. The material was waiting for me in the reading room when I arrived.
Thanks.
Lubliner.
 
Good find -- congratulations on this! I didn't realize it until you mentioned it here that the NC archives research rooms are now open on a limited basis. That's great news -- I've been eager to get back there. In the meantime, archives staff was very helpful to me in obtaining some documents I needed, in spite of the restrictions and how busy they must have been.

Roy B.

Ahh...hello again.

I originally intended to contact you in hope of a meeting -- at a local coffee shop, or saloon, or ruined Confederate defense line -- during my holiday visit to Raleigh. But my whole trip was in flagrant violation to the advice of public health professionals concerned with COVID-19, so my wife and I tried hard to limit our direct contacts to a very small family circle. Maybe sometime later this year?

More to the point, I'm told by the NC Archives staff that they have upped their capacity to help amateur researchers in a COVID-safe remote fashion. Specifically, they have made it easier and less costly to order copies of documents online. I am going to use the new system soon, and can report on the results here.
 
I originally intended to contact you in hope of a meeting -- at a local coffee shop, or saloon, or ruined Confederate defense line -- during my holiday visit to Raleigh. But my whole trip was in flagrant violation to the advice of public health professionals concerned with COVID-19, so my wife and I tried hard to limit our direct contacts to a very small family circle. Maybe sometime later this year?

Yes, let's do that after things cool off. I've still been going on solo field trips around the city and have found some interesting things. Pretty soon I plan to post some stuff here about the home of Maj John Devereux, chief quartermaster for NC troops during the war. His home was just inside the northwest stretch of fortifications.

More to the point, I'm told by the NC Archives staff that they have upped their capacity to help amateur researchers in a COVID-safe remote fashion. Specifically, they have made it easier and less costly to order copies of documents online. I am going to use the new system soon, and can report on the results here.

They've actually been good to deal with in spite of obstacles. They communicated with me via email and did some outstanding archival searches for me. And charged next to nothing!

Anyway, now that there's some in-person access, I'll have to figure out a strategy to go in for some research that can be done within that 3-hour window...

Roy B.
 
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