According to the Camp Chase Records and the Compiled Military Serive Records Private W.H. Lastinger of the 29th Georgia Infantry was captured on August 7, 1864 during the battle for Atlanta, GA and taken to the Camp Chase Prison where he died on August 29, 1864 of pnuemonia and was buried in grave # 225 at the Camp Chase Cemetery.

Normally there would be nothing more to this story. However, in 1898 William H. Knauss the future author of "The Story of Camp Chase" made a list of all of the Confederate dead and sent it to S.A. Cunningham and the Confederate Veteran Magazine. The list was published and within a few months a strange letter appeared in the Confederate Veteran Magazine. I shall list part of the letter to S.A. Cunningham. ROLL OF THE CONFEDERATE DEAD W.H. Lastinger writes from Waco, Texas., that among the dead Confederate prisoners buried at Camp Chase, published in the January Veteran, is "W.H. Leatinger," Twenty-Nine Georgia Regiment, of which he was a member. Knowing nothing of the name "Leatinger", Mr. Lastinger supposes it was intended for himself. He is glad to report that he is "still on the top side of terra firma, and in the enjoyment of good health.

This of course is a problem and I did not know whom to believe, the man or the records. After researching this is what I found.

There were two seperate W.H. Lastinger's from the state of Georgia. Furthermore they were 2nd cousins. 1) was a William Hart Lastinger and 2) was a William Hiram Lastinger.

According to the Lastinger from Waco, Texas his obituary stated that he was 73 years old and died on December 23, 1918 in Waco, Texas. It also stated that he served with Company I of the 29th Gerogia Infantry. In his letter to the Confederate magazine he stated that he was with Company G of that regiment. In fact Lastinger said "I can call the roll of Company G by heart, having comitted it to memory from hearing it called so often by Serg. Anderson."

William Hart Lastinger was born in 1834 in Georgia and was indeed with Company K of the 29th Georgia Infantry. It is my opinion that he is the one buried under grave 225 of the Camp Chase Cemetery. His wifes names was Eliza M. Martin and they were married in Bullock County Georgia on December 7, 1859. Eliza remarried after his death and died in on September 19, 1922. They had four children.

Since Eliza remarried she was not eligiable for the widow's pension.

William Hiram Lastinger was born on April 27, 1845 in Ware County, Georgia. Both W.H. Lastinger's shared the same great-grandfather who was Johannes Lastinger.

William Hiram Lastinger died on December 23, 1918 in Waco, Texas. He married Georgia Augusta JONES on December 13, 1866 in Cat Creek, Georgia. She was born on July 15, 1849 in Carrolton, GA., and died February 24, 1932 in Waco, Texas. Her fathers name was Rev. John Jones. They had six children.

In 1867 William Hiram Lastinger signed an Oath as did others in the State of Georgia at that time.

Georgia Lastinger also applied for a widow's pension after the death of her husband Willam Hiram Lastinger. It was denied.

In my opinion the Camp Chase records and the CMSR's were correct and why William Hiram Lastinger would say such a thing is still a mystery. Perhaps it was popular to be a former Confederate in Texas at the turn of the century?