The Upland Army General Hospital at Chester, Pennsylvania was pressed into service to handle sick and wounded Confederate POWs from the Gettysburg campaign. Chester is just north of Wilmington, Delaware on the Delaware River. As soon as the men were convalescent, they were paroled for exchange and sent down to City Point and delivered to Confederate authorities to await exchange.

Most of us are inclined to use the terms "exchanged" and "delivered for exchange" interchangeably. Legally, they were not the same thing. Prisoners were first "paroled for exchange" at the POW camp meaning they gave their sworn personal promise not to take up arms when returned to their own side until "properly exchanged". They were then "delivered for exchange", i.e., handed over to their own side. If in need of hospital care, they were sent to military hospitals run by their own army. If not, they were sent to parole camps where they awaited a personal exchange declaration. Usually their presence in parole camp is documented by a clothing issue. Once present in their own parole camp and ready to return to duty, their names were submitted to an accounting process in which they were, by name, traded "man for man, or equivalents". When an exchange list was accepted by both sides, a "proper exchange" was deemed to have been concluded. The men named on the list were automatically released from their parole obligations, and returned to their units.

In Leslie C. BLANKENSHIP's case, his name may have appeared on the 15 MAY 1864 delivery document and his "proper exchange" delayed until after August 1864. The "escaped at City Point" story might well explain the delay. But to sort this all out, we need to see his CMSR.

I am keeping a file of all of these postings and will put them in the Society archives. But it will be most helpful if the Society could get a photocopy of the CMSR for these two men, especially if they were deposited at Fort Delaware for any length of time. That way, our database will be as accurate as possible for any future queries about these two Confederate soldiers.

Hugh Simmons
Fort Delaware Society