The Courtney Henrico Artillery: My 3rd Great Grandfather Samuel Conway and Three Cousins

Flag of the Courtney Henrico Artillery

The Courtney Henrico Artillery was originally organized on July 8, 1861.  The men from this regiment predominately came from Henrico County and the city of Richmond.  Their initial enlistments took place at Deep Run Church in Henrico County, where 54 men enlisted for one year's service.  The next day, the regiment was relocated to the artillery training grounds at the Richmond Baptist College.  Within the next six weeks, an additional 37 men would enlist and fill her ranks to a total of 91 men by the end of August.  

Postwar Portrait of Alfred Ransom Courtney

The unit was assigned to the command of Captain Alfred Ransom Courtney.  Courtney came from a distinguished King and Queen county family.  Prior to the war, he had been an attorney.  He enlisted in the Hampden Artillery in Richmond as a 2nd Lieutenant on May 15, 1861.  For unknown reasons, he left the Hampden battery and by July was elected captain of a Henrico company then in the process of being formed.   That company would later become the Courtney Henrico Artillery.  

Initially, the Courtney Henrico Artillery was reported as one of the companies proposed for the 4th Regiment Virginia Light Artillery, however that regiment was never formed.  When the company arrived at the Richmond Baptist College barracks, they joined three other batteries that were already in training.  The other three units were Holman's 1st Fluvanna Battery, Thomas H. Carter's King William Battery and Southall's Albemarle Company.  These companies became informally known as the "Baptist College Battalion".  

In the early days of the regiment, there was a severe shortage of guns, ammunition and horses.  The men drilled daily but were very limited in what they could do.  The Confederate and Virginia supply depots and arsenals had been wiped out to supply the newly formed units that had been sent to the most threatened points such as Harper's Ferry, Manassas and Norfolk.  

Special Orders No. 136 were issued on August 28th.  These orders directed the four batteries of the "Baptist College Battalion" to proceed to Manassas Junction and report to General Joseph E. Johnston.  For unknown reasons, the battery didn't move for a week.  On September 1, Courtney and his men were still stationed at Allen's Grove near Richmond.  The battalion finally departed Richmond on September 14 and traveled by rail to Manassas Junction where they went into camp.  They were not used during the Battle of Manassas/Bull Run.  

After the shocking Federal defeat at Manassas, both armies settled down to a stalemate as the opposing forces organized and prepared for what was to come.  During the fall and winter, General Johnston's Army of the Potomac was organized into four divisions.  Courtney's Battery was assigned to Brigadier General Isaac Trimble's Seventh Brigade, Fourth Division, commanded by Major General Kirby Smith.  Isaac Ridgeway Trimble was 60 years old.  He had graduated from West Point in 1822 and served for ten years in the 1st U.S. Artillery Regiment.  He left the army to pursue a career in railroad construction. Following the Confederate bombardment on Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor in April of 1861, he led a contingent of Maryland State Militia to burn the railroad bridges around Baltimore.  When he realized Maryland would not secede from the Union, he returned to Virginia and joined the Provisional Army of Virginia as a colonel of engineers.  He was appointed a brigadier general in the Confederate States Army on August 9, 1861 and was assigned to construct artillery batteries along the Potomac River.  Trimble was a tough old soldier who insisted on tight discipline.  In addition to Courtney's artillery company, his command was comprised of the 15th Alabama, 16th Mississippi, 21st Georgia and 21st North Carolina regiments.  

The men built quarters near Centerville, Virginia.  The muster rolls for the battery from November through December of 1861 show that in spite of the harsh winter conditions, the men seemed to be reasonably healthy.  They continued to drill while in camp.  The battery stabilized around 80 men during the months of January and February of 1862.  During this time, the battery requisitioned forage for about 78 horses. 

Richard Stoddard Ewell "Old Bald Head"

On February 21, 1862, General Richard Stoddard Ewell replaced Kirby Smith as the division's commander.  Ewell or "Old Bald Head" as he was affectionately known to his men, was a 44 year old  career army officer.  He had graduated from West Point in 1840 and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the 1st U.S. Dragoons.  He was promoted to First Lieutenant in 1845 and served on escort duty along the Santa Fe and Oregon Trails.  Ewell had served under Winfield Scott in the Mexican-American War.  He was promoted to Captain for his courage at Contreras and Churubusco.  He served in the New Mexico Territory for some time.  He was wounded in a skirmish with Apache's under the command of Cochise in 1859.  In 1860, while in command of Fort Buchanan, Arizona, illness compelled him to leave the west for his home state of Virginia.in order to recuperate.  He was initially opposed to secession but when his home state of Virginia seceded, Ewell resigned his commission in the U.S. Army on May 7, 1861 to join the Virginia Provisional Army.  He was appointed a Colonel of cavalry on May 9 and was the first officer wounded in the war.  On May 31, in a skirmish at Fairfax Court House, he was wounded in the shoulder.  Ewell was promoted to Brigadier General in The Confederate States Army on June 17, 1861 and commanded a brigade in the (Confederate) Army of the Potomac at the First Battle of Manassas.  Interestingly enough, just hours after that battle, he proposed to Confederate President Jefferson Davis that in order for the Confederacy to win the war, the slaves must be freed to join the ranks of the army.   Ewell was a bit of an eccentric character.  He was known to his men as a tough officer who liked to fight.  He was promoted to Major General on January 24, 1862.  

Confederate intelligence indicated that Federal General George B. McClellan was preparing to move his massive army south, either toward Fredericksburg, or potentially toward Richmond.  Either move would flank Johnston and threaten his position at Centerville.  To counter the threat, Johnston's Army of the Potomac began to move out of their positions at Centerville and Manassas Junction on March 8th.  As opposed to the normal order of procedure, the artillery was ordered to march ahead of the infantry.  Courtney and his battalion put their limbers and caissons on the railway cars at Manassas Junction.  The men, horses and cannons marched southwest down the railroad and crossed the Rappahannock on March 11th.  That night, the battery set up camp a few miles south of the river at Brandy Station. 

By March 20th, the unit only reported 60 effective men, down 20 since the winter months.  As a result, the battery began a full-fledged recruiting effort to refill the ranks.  Forty four new men were recruited and added to the rolls from the Richmond area.  Four additional men were added from Albemarle and Manassas, totaling 48 new recruits.  By early spring, the unit was fully staffed with over 100 men.  

During this time, Ewell's Division remained attached to General Joseph E. Johnston's Army of the Potomac for the winter and spring of 1861 -1862.  To meet McClellan's attack from the east, the bulk of the army departed for Richmond.  Ewell's Division remained around Orange and Culpeper to keep an eye on the Federal threat in north-central Virginia.  The division was composed of roughly 8,000 men, including 500 cavalry and 14 artillery pieces.  They were ordered to support Stonewall Jackson's army in the Shenandoah Valley if needed.  

Courtney's Battery first saw action on April 18, 1862 as 1,500 infantry, 160 cavalry and four pieces of artillery from the Union Fifth Corps made a reconnaissance south to the Rappahannock River to gain the strength and position of the Confederate defenses.  The Federals arrived undetected and opened fire from their batteries on the unsuspecting Confederates.  Three guns from Courtney's Battery and the Baltimore Artillery went into action and fired about 60 rounds of solid shot from their 6-pounder smoothbores.  Their actions helped repel the attach by the 12th Massachusetts Infantry.  Private George P. Wallace from Courtney's Battery described the action in a letter to his mother:

Just after we had gotten on the field Friday [April 18, 1862], concealed our horses and covered our gun with brush so it could not bee seen, the enemy opened on our guns down the river with artillery and it was kept up incessantly by both sides for half an hour of more.... About the third fire from the enemy a shell struck the limber - that is - the ammunition chest, and exploded just as it struck, causing the ammunition to explode and strange to say, none of the men were killed but two of them were burned but not very seriously.

Like many Civil War artillery duels, the action produced more sound and fury than actual damage to the enemy.  Neither side reported any casualties.   On April 20th, the unit loaded their baggage and ammunition on railway cars and proceeded to Gordonsville, where they went into camp.  

Stonewall Jackson was facing the threat of three separate Federal armies in the Shenandoah Valley.  Richmond was being threatened to the southeast by a Federal force of over 100,000 under the command of George McClellan.  During the last half of April, communication intensified between Ewell in central Virginia, Jackson in the Valley, Johnston on the Peninsula and Lee in Richmond.  The main topic was how to best use Ewell's 8,000 man division.  Finally it was decided to send Ewell and his division to the Shenandoah Valley in support of Stonewall Jackson's army.  On April 30th, Courtney's Battery, along with the rest of the division, passed through Stanardsville, and crossed over the Blue Ridge Mountains at Swift Gap.  Upon entering the Valley, Ewell's division set up position in the camps that Jackson's men had just vacated in the vicinity of Conrad's Store.  

With the addition of Ewell's division, Jackson finally had enough manpower to begin his near flawless Valley campaign against the invading Yankees.  Ewell's division included at least two artillery units, the Courtney Henrico Artillery, which had six cannon and the Baltimore Light Artillery, commanded by John Brockenbrough, with four cannon.  Bowyer's Bedford Artillery was likely also included with their four cannon.  

Stonewall Jackson in the Valley by David Bendann

Stonewall Jackson's Valley Campaign was like nothing anyone on either side had ever seen in warfare before.  Jackson marched his men 646 miles in 48 days and defeated three separate Federal armies, which prevented them from re-enforcing George McClellan's Federal Army of the Potomac's Peninsula Campaign against Richmond.  Jackson has always been a hero of mine.  I recently found out that he is my 5x cousin 8x removed on my Dad's side, through the Winn/Wynne family.  

Jackson's Valley Campaign came at a time when Southern moral was at its lowest.  Following the successful summer of 1861, prospects for the Confederacy had met a rapid decline.  Federal armies in the Western Theater under the command of U.S. Grant and others had captured large amounts of Southern territory and had won significant battles at Fort Donelson and Shiloh.  In the East, George McClellan's grand Army of the Potomac was quickly approaching Richmond from the southeast.  Federal Major General Irvin McDowell's large corps threatened the Confederate capital from the North.  Major General Nathaniel Banks corps threatened the Shenandoah Valley.  

The Shenandoah Valley was one of the most strategic geographic features in Virginia.  She was rich in agriculture, producing 2.5 million bushels of wheat in 1860.  This accounted for about 19% of the crop in the entire state.  She was also rich in valuable livestock which was used to provision Virginia's armies and the Confederate capital of Richmond.  The Blue Ridge Mountains on the east and the Allegheny Mountains to the west created a 140 mile long and 25 mile wide valley between them.  The watershed of the Shenandoah Valley passed through the middle of the valley.  The Valley offered two strategic advantages to the Confederates.  Any Federal army entering Virginia could be subjected to Confederate flanking attacks through the many wind gaps across the Blue Ridge.  The Valley also offered a protected avenue that allowed Confederate armies to head north into Pennsylvania unconstrained.  Stonewall Jackson immediately saw the importance of the Valley, writing to a staff member "If this Valley is lost, Virginia is lost."  

Jackson commanded the Valley District of the Department of Northern Virginia.  His command expanded significantly during the campaign as reinforcements were added, starting with a mere 5,000 effectives and reaching an eventual peak of 17,000 troops.  He remained greatly outnumbered by the various Federal armies opposing him.  The Federal forces combined numbered roughly 50,000.  Although he was outnumbered, Jackson's goal was to prevent the Federal forces in the Valley from reinforcing McClellan on the Peninsula.  Jackson's orders were to prevent Banks from leaving the Valley, which is exactly what he appeared to be doing.  

Nathaniel Prentice Banks, had no former military experience before the Civil War.  He had served as Governor and Congressman from Massachusetts.  Banks was a leading Republican.  Through his political ties, he was one of Lincoln's first choices to be a Major General in the Federal army.  At the beginning of the war, he had commanded a military district in Maryland.  Although in Maryland, his division belonged to the command of George McClellan.  Lincoln issued an executive order on March 14, 1862, forming all troops in McClellan's department in to corps.  This effectively made him a corps commander.  Command of his division fell to Brigadier General Alpheus Williams.  Also in his command was the division of Brigadier General James Shields.  Sheilds  was wounded in a skirmish with Ashby Turner's cavalry on March 22.  He received a broken arm from an artillery shell fragment.  He was effectively out of commission.  Command of his division fell to Colonel Nathan Kimball.

Jackson and Banks would first clash in Kernstown, Virginia.  The First Battle of Kernstown took place on March 23, 1862.  Due to receiving bad intelligence, Jackson was under the impression that a small detachment of Banks' troops under the command of Colonel Nathan Kimball was vulnerable.  In all actuality, it was a full Federal infantry division that was more than twice the size of Jackson's force.  Jackson ordered his cavalry commander, Ashby Turner, to attack.  His attack was immediately repelled by the larger Federal force.  Jackson then attempted to envelop the Federal right but was countered by the brigade of Colonel Erastus Taylor.  Once Kimball's brigade move in to assist, Jackson's forces were driven from the field.  Although the battle was a tactical victory due to the Confederate forces being driven from the field, it represented a strategic victory for the Confederates because they prevented the Federal forces in the Shenandoah Valley from reinforcing McClellan on the Peninsula.

Banks initially pursued Jackson but called off the pursuit due to supply problems.  Jackson withdrew his forces to Mount Jackson, just north of New Market.  There, he asked his map maker, Captain Jedediah Hotchkiss, to make him a map of the Valley from Harpers Ferry to Lexington.  Hotchkiss would end up being the most famous cartographer and topographer of the Civil War.  His accurate and detailed maps of the Shenandoah Valley are one of the main reasons for Jackson's success.  

On April 16, Banks again advanced and attacked Ashby's cavalry, catching them completely by surprise.  About 60 Confederate horsemen were captured in the skirmish.  The remainder of Turner's forces made their way back to Jackson.  Jackson assumed that Banks had been reinforced so he withdrew abruptly up the Valley to Harrisonburg.  On April 19, he ordered his men to march 20 miles east out of the Shenandoah Valley to Swift Gap Run.  Banks now occupied New Market and controlled the Valley as far south as Harrisonburg.  He knew exactly where Jackson was but he completely misread his intentions.  Banks thought that Jackson and his army were heading east of the Blue Ridge on their way to aid Richmond.  

The men participated in General Stonewall Jackson's Valley Campaign.  During that campaign, the men marched 646 miles in 48 days and defeated three separate Union armies, which in turn prevented them from re-enforcing General McClellan's Army of the Potomac's offensive against Richmond.  Following Jackson's Valley Campaign, the Unit was assigned to Captain Alfred R. Courtney's Battalion of Artillery.  From that point on, the Unit was referred to as the Courtney Henrico Light Artillery.

"The Battle of Spottsylvania" by Kurz & Allison

My 3rd Great Grandfather, Samuel Conway was injured in battle in 1862 and captured in battle in 1864.  Samuel's capture came during the Battle of Spotsylvania Courthouse, which took place from May 8 - 21.  The precise date of his capture was May 12th, during the fighting at the "Bloody Angle".   On the 12th, The Courtney Henrico Artillery was attached to Major Cutshaw's Battalion, which also consisted of the Charlottesville and Staunton Artilleries.  Cutshaw's Battalion was part of General Ewell's Corps.  Cutshaw's Battalion was positioned near the "West Angle" later referred to as the "Bloody Angle".  The guns of the Courtney Henrico Artillery faced southwest.  The four Napoleons of the Charlottesville Artillery faced eastward toward the Spotsylvania Courthouse.

Map showing the action on May 12, 1864

At 4:30a.m. the men of the Cutshaw's Battalion heard great confusion on their right.  As the fog lifted, the men saw several lines of the enemy approaching rapidly.  Captain Carrington's Charlottesville Artillery immediately took action.  They were placed to the right of the Courtney Henrico Artillery.  The Charlottesville Artillery fired canister shot toward the advancing Federals.  According to Captain Carrington:

My men promptly got to the guns and instead of firing only two shots as General Long says, all four of the guns used canister...  I do not exaggerate, though I may be mistaken as to the exact number, when I say from my entire battery  [Carrington's] twenty-five or thirty rounds of canister were discharged into the advancing columns in front of me. 

Unfortunately the blasts from the Chartlottesville and Courtney Henrico Artillery's guns were too little and too late to take much effect on the onrushing Yankees of General Winfield Scott Hancock's II Corps.  All 8 guns from the Courtney Henrico Artillery were captured.  The casualties from the united included 2 killed in action, 2 wounded in action, and 23 captured or missing soldiers.   Samuel Conway was one of these 23 men.  Following his capture, he was sent to Fort Delaware Prison. 

Samuel Conway was born in Henrico, Virginia in 1824.  Prior to his enlistment in the Confederate States Army, he was a Farmer by trade.  On March 7, 1862 at the age of 37, Samuel enlisted as a Private in the Courtney Henrico Light Artillery Battery. 

1st Muster Roll for Samuel

Samuel was injured at the Battle of Cross Keys, Virginia on June 8, 1862.  Being an artillery man was dangerous duty.  Not only was it dangerous to discharge your own guns, but artillery lines were often the primary target of enemy artillery guns.  Samuel was wounded by an exploding shell during the battle.  My 2nd Great Grand Uncle, Sergeant James A. Vaden, who served in the Manchester Light Artillery Battery, was killed from wounds sustained at the Battle of Cross Keys. 

Muster Roll showing Samuel was wounded at Cross Keys

Samuel's injury was extensive.  Although his wound was sustained in June of 1863, he was unable to return to duty until November of that year.  In October of 1863, Samuel was examined at the Confederate Medical Director's Office in Richmond, Virginia.  The exam took place on October 21, 1863. 

Roll showing Samuel's Medical Exam

Samuel must have been cleared to return to duty because he is listed as "Present" in the November 1, 1863 Muster Roll for his Regiment. 

Muster Roll showing Samuel's return to duty

Samuel was captured at the Battle of Spotsylvania Courthouse on May 12, 1864. 

Muster Roll showing Samuel was captured at Spotsylvania Courthouse

Following his capture, Samuel was sent to Fort Delaware Prison.  Fort Delaware is located on Pea Patch Island in the Delaware River.  It was originally used for harbor defense.  The first fort was a star fort that was used in the War of 1812.  That fort was destroyed in a fire in 1831.  The present Fort Delaware was built between 1848 and 1860.   During the Civil War, the fort was used as a Prisoner of War camp.  It held almost 33,000 prisoners by the end of the war.  Roughly 2,500 prisoners died at Fort Delaware during the Civil War.   

Aerial View of Fort Delaware

POW Roll showing Samuel's confinement to Fort Delaware

Samuel was exchanged on September 18, 1864.

POW Roll showing Samuel was exchanged on September 18, 1864

Samuel took an Amnesty Oath on April 15, 1865.   On the Register, he is listed as being 40 years old and a Farmer from Henrico County, Virginia.

Amnesty Oath for Samuel

Samuel Conway lived at least an additional 15 years following the Civil War.  No record of him can be found after the 1880 Federal Census.  No record of his burial is known at the time of this entry.   Several of Samuel's family members, including his son Samuel Conway, Jr. are buried in Richmond's Maury Cemetery.   It's quite possible that Samuel was also buried there.


Here's my relation to Samuel:

Samuel Conway 1824-1880
3rd great-grandfather
Robert B. Conway 1859-1896
Son of Samuel Conway
Eunice Maude Conway 1895-1981
Daughter of Robert B. Conway
Robert William Vaden (Lewis) 1913-1990
Son of Eunice Maude Conway
Joyce Elaine Lewis 1948-
Daughter of Robert William Vaden (Lewis)
Selby Edward "Chip" Stokes III
You are the son of Joyce Elaine Lewis

John William West, Jr. was born in Henrico County, Virginia on December 26, 1842.  He is my 1st cousin 4x removed.  Records indicate he preferred to go by his middle name.  William enlisted as a Private in the Courtney Henrico Artillery on July 15, 1862 at the age of 18. 

1st Muster for William

On April 3, 1862, William was detached from the Regiment on Special Service as a teamster for the Quartermaster Department.   He remained in this position for the duration of the war. 

Muster Roll showing William's detached service

William was responsible for driving a team of horses with the Supply Train Artillery near New Market, Virginia. 

Muster Roll showing William's service with Supply Train Artillery

John William West, Jr. lived an additional 61 years following the end of the Civil War.  He died in Albemarle County, Virginia on July 9, 1926 at the age of 83.  William is buried in the Piedmont Christian Church Cemetery in Albemarle County, Virginia. 

Grave of John William West, Jr.

Here's my relation to William:

John William West Jr. (1842 - 1926)

is your 1st cousin 4x removed

Your 1st cousin 4x removed

Temperance Conway (1820 - )

mother of John William West Jr.

Samuel Conway (1793 - 1857)

father of Temperance Conway

Samuel Conway (1824 - 1880)

son of Samuel Conway

Samuel Henry Conway Jr. (1868 - 1936)

son of Samuel Conway

Eunice Maud Conway (1895 - 1981)

daughter of Samuel Henry Conway Jr.

Robert William Lewis (Vaden) (1913 - 1990)

son of Eunice Maud Conway

Joyce Elaine Lewis (1948 - )

daughter of Robert William Lewis (Vaden)

Chip Stokes

You are the son of Joyce



Andrew Jackson Sneed



My 1st cousin 6x removed, Andrew Jackson Sneed, also served in the Courtney Henrico Artillery.  Andrew was born in Henrico County, Virginia on May 4, 1831.  Prior to his enlistment, Andrew was a Millwright by trade.  He enlisted in the Courtney Henrico Artillery on July 16, 1861 at the age of 30. 



1st Muster Roll for Andrew

In April of 1862, Andrew was promoted to Full Corporal.



Muster Roll showing Andrew's promotion to Full Corporal

The battle at Cedar Mountain, by Currier and Ives

He was wounded at the Battle of Slaughter Mountain (Cedar Mountain) on August 9, 1862.  The Union Army initially gained favor in the battle, however a daring rally by Stonewall Jackson inspired a Confederate counterattack that turned the tide for the Confederate Army.   Casualties on the Union side numbered 2,353 (314 killed, 1,445 wounded, 594 missing), Confederate casualties numbered 1,338 (231 killed, 1,107 wounded, one of which was Corporal Andrew Jackson Sneed). 

Muster Roll showing Andrew's injury

His wound led to the amputation of his right leg.

Hospital Report regarding the amputation of Andrew's leg

The amputation of his left leg caused Andrew to be retired to the invalid corps and led to him being declared permanently disabled. 

Report showing amputation and retirement

Register showing Andrew's retirement to the Invalid Corps

On April 14, 1864 Andrew applied for an artificial limb.

Andrew's application for an artificial limb

On April 17, 1865 Andrew signed an Amnesty Oath with the Provost Marshall headquartered in Richmond, Virginia. 

Amnesty Oath for Andrew

Andrew Jackson Sneed lived an additional 51 years following the end of the Civil War.  Despite the loss of his leg, he returned to a career as a Millwright at a Grist Mill in Hanover County, Virginia.  Andrew died in Hanover County, Virginia on October 19, 1916 at the age of  85.   He is buried on his land which is now private property.  Several years ago, I was contacted by the owner of the property.  He maintains the cemetery where Andrew is buried and sent me the following picture of his grave.  

Grave of Andrew Jackson Snead and Family

Here's my relation to Andrew:

Andrew Jackson Sneed (1831 - 1916)

is your 1st cousin 6x removed

Jacob Sneed (1775 - 1845)

Father of Andrew Jackson

Charles Sneed (1745 - 1841)

Father of Jacob

Judith Sneed (1772 - 1834)

Daughter of Charles

Josiah Blackburn (1790 - )

Son of Judith

Sarah Jane Blackburn (1831 - 1896)

Daughter of Josiah

Samuel Henry Conway Jr. (1868 - 1936)

Son of Sarah Jane

Eunice Maud Conway (1895 - 1981)

Daughter of Samuel Henry

Robert William Lewis (1913 - 1990)

Son of Eunice Maud

Joyce Elaine Lewis (1948 - )

Daughter of Robert William

Chip Stokes

You are the son of Joyce


James F. Blackburn was born in Henrico County, Virginia in 1840.   He is my 2nd cousin 5x removed.  James enlisted as a Private in the Courtney Henrico Artillery at the Baptist College in Richmond, Virginia on July 12, 1861.  He was 21 years old at the time of his enlistment.  Prior to enlisting, James was a farmer by trade.

1st Muster Roll for James

Originally, James enlisted for a 12 month period, however on December 31, 1861, his enlistment was extended for 2 years.  He was paid a bounty of $50.00 for his extending his enlistment. 

Muster Roll showing James' enlistment extension

James was absent without leave from February 9 - 19, 1863 and fortified pay for that time.

Muster Roll showing James was AWOL

He was captured by the Ringold Cavalry on July 20, 1863 and held as a prisoner of war.

Report of Rebel Prisoners

James was confined to the Military Prison in Wheeling (West) Virginia also known as Athenaeum.  He is described as being 23 years old, having a florid complexion, 5'9", blue eyes and light hair.

Prisoner Description List for James

He was sent to the Provost Marshall in Richmond, Virginia where he signed the Oath of Allegiance on April 14, 1865 and was released from Union captivity.

Amnesty Oath for James

James survived the Civil War and died sometime after 1870.   The 1870 Federal Census is the last record I've been able to find for James.  His burial location is not known at the time of this entry.  His father, David Albert Blackburn served in the Virginia Local Defense Regiment that was assigned to protect the Confederate Capitol of Richmond. 

Here's my relation to James:

James F. Blackburn (1840 - )

is your 2nd cousin 4x removed

David Albert Blackburn (1817 - 1888)

Father of James F.

Absalom Blackburn (1784 - )

Father of David Albert

Absalom Blackburn (1766 - 1854)

Father of Absalom

Josiah Blackburn (1790 - 1857)

Son of Absalom

Sarah Jane Blackburn (1831 - 1896)

Daughter of Josiah

Samuel Henry Conway Jr. (1868 - 1936)

Son of Sarah Jane

Eunice Maud Conway (1895 - 1981)

Daughter of Samuel Henry

Robert William Lewis (1913 - 1990)

Son of Eunice Maud

Joyce Elaine Lewis (1948 - )

Daughter of Robert William

Chip Stokes

You are the son of Joyce


Two husbands of my cousins also served in the Courtney Henrico Artillery.  My 2nd cousin 4x removed, Letitia Blackburn married Bernard/Benjamin Theodore Franck.  Andrew Jackson Sneed's sister, my 1st cousin 6x removed, Milcena Sneed married William Tinsley.

Bernard/Benjamin Theodore Franck

Bernard/Benjamin Theodore Franck was born in Hanover, Germany on November 9, 1835.  By 1850, he had crossed the Atlantic and had relocated to Henrico County, Virginia.  Prior to the Civil War, he was a Carver and Builder by trade.  Franck enlisted in the Courtney Henrico Artillery on March 11, 1862.  He was 27 years old at the time of his enlistment. 

1st Muster Roll for Bernard/Benjamin

The description in his service record lists him as being 5 ft. 8½ in., fair complexion, brown eyes, auburn hair.
Franck was discharged by reason of disability on September 22, 1863.   His disability reason was states as "organic disease of the heart". 

Bernard/Benjamin's discharge

Bernard/Benjamin Theodore Franck lived an additional 30 years following the end of the Civil War.   He died in Henrico County, Virginia on September 17, 1895.   He was 59 years old.  He and his wife are both buried in Richmond's Historic Hollywood Cemetery.

Grave of Bernard T. Franck

Here's my relation to Bernard/Benjamin:

Bernard Theodore Franck (1835 - 1895)

relationship to you: husband of 2nd cousin 4x removed

Letitia Blackburn Franck (1836 - 1915)

Wife of Bernard Theodore

Absalom Blackburn (1811 - 1879)

Father of Letitia Blackburn

Absalom Blackburn (1784 - )

Father of Absalom

Absalom Blackburn (1766 - 1854)

Father of Absalom

Josiah Blackburn (1790 - )

Son of Absalom

Sarah Jane Blackburn (1831 - 1896)

Daughter of Josiah

Samuel Henry Conway Jr. (1868 - 1936)

Son of Sarah Jane

Eunice Maud Conway (1895 - 1981)

Daughter of Samuel Henry

Robert William Lewis (1913 - 1990)

Son of Eunice Maud

Joyce Elaine Lewis (1948 - )

Daughter of Robert William

Chip Stokes

You are the son of Joyce

William Tinsley was born about 1839 in Virginia.  He enlisted as a Private in the Courtney Henrico Artillery on February 19, 1862.  He was about 23 years old at the time of his enlistment. 

1st Muster Roll for William

In March and April of 1864, William was on detached service as a wagon guard for the Supply Train Artillery. 

Muster Rolls showing William's detached service with the Supply Train Artillery

He remained on detached service through February of 1865.

Muster Roll showing William's continued detached service

William Tinsley lived an additional 40 years following the end of the Civil War.   He died in Rock Spring, Virginia on May 2, 1905.  He was 66 years old.   His burial location is not known at the time of this entry.

Here's my relation to William:

William Tinsley (1839 - 1905)

relationship to you: husband of 1st cousin 6x removed

Milcena Sneed (1835 - )

Wife of William

Jacob Sneed (1775 - 1845)

Father of Milcena

Charles Sneed (1745 - 1841)

Father of Jacob

Judith Sneed (1772 - 1834)

Daughter of Charles

Josiah Blackburn (1790 - )

Son of Judith

Sarah Jane Blackburn (1831 - 1896)

Daughter of Josiah

Samuel Henry Conway Jr. (1868 - 1936)

Son of Sarah Jane

Eunice Maud Conway (1895 - 1981)

Daughter of Samuel Henry

Robert William Lewis (1913 - 1990)

Son of Eunice Maud

Joyce Elaine Lewis (1948 - )

Daughter of Robert William

Chip Stokes

You are the son of Joyce



Saber belonging to Private Gentry Williams of the Courtney Henrico Artillery