Hugh

I can assure you this is not the Norfolk case whatever that is.

One of William's cards states that he was "exempted" on the same date that he was forwarded to Fort Columbus, July 3, 1862.

Your reference to company muster rolls and their delay in being completed until after a battle etc, may be part of the answer to the missing parole records.

Due to a major reorganization of William's regiment at this particular moment in time and also the battles taking place around Richmond the roles were not updated. The company muster roles from March to August, 62, approximately are incomplete and in some cases incorrect. William is not on any of these rolls, even though he was assigned to the regiment and exempted within this period of time/disorganization. He is listed as "missing" on a card sourced from a Confederate record, which would suggest he was known or on a roll of sort.

I believe that when these company muster rolls were finally processed the officers involved did not add William's and others whose names who should have been to them. This error is maybe why William's parole and his discharge are not recorded in the confederate records. But this does not answer why the Federal record of the exchange is missing.