You wrote: >>>It was interesting to read your reply; I also have the records of his CSA service. But I didn't know about his going to North Carolina and I don't understand why he couldn't return home. I wonder how he got to Greensboro.<<<

It has been three years since I responded to Tom Elmore's query, so I had to reread my posting. I re-examined Richard Thomas Edwards' Compiled Military Service Records just to be sure and refresh my memory. I was able to confirm that I had placed JTE's records in correct time line sequence in my 2009 response to Tom. I can only speculate why Richard's name appeared as a signature to a "Parole of Prisoners of War belonging to the Army of Northern Virginia, and surrendered by General Robert E. Lee, CSA ---. Paroled dated Greensboro, North Carolina May 12, 1865." If you have a copy of Richard's Compiled Military Service Records, you will find this record. This CMSR card is an extraction of the actual parole list, so you will not see his actual signature.

I also looked up Halifax County, Virginia via Wikipedia which I had not done back in October 2009 when I responded to Tom. Halifax County is located in south central Virginia on the border with North Carolina and was not an area under Union control until the very end of the war. Richard was enrolled at South Boston, Halifax County, Virginia as a Private in Captain D. A. Claiborne's company, the Dan River Rifles, on 14 MAY 1861. This company became Company K, 14th Virginia Infantry. He was 18 years of age according to the military records.

The Richmond & Danville Railroad ran through Halifax County. Danville in adacent Pittsylvania County was a major collection and distribution center for the Confederates. I think they did some manufacturing there as well. The Richmond & Danville connected with the Piedmont Railroad at Danville and this railroad ran between Danville and Greensboro, North Carolina. I am using Robert C. Black, III's "The Railroads of the Confederacy" (UNC Press, 1952, Broadfoot Reprint 1987) to identify these railroads.

In hind sight, I apparently jumped to the conclusion that Halifax County was under Union control in September 1864 and that was the reason that Richard's name appeared on the "List of soldiers (transferred, furloughed, &) to whom passports were issued". The issuance of "passports" to soldiers furloughed home from the Richmond hospitals needs some further research.

Since other people are reading this posting, let me restate the time line that I see in Richard's Compiled Military Service Record.

Richard was paroled for exchange at Point Lookout on 18 SEP 1864 and delivered to Confederate authorities at Aiken's Landing on 22 SEP 1864. He was examined in the Receiving & Wayside Hospital (General Hospital No 9) in Richmond on 22 SEP 1864 and forwarded to Chimborazo Hospital No. 2 the next day. The Chimborazo records show that he was admitted on 23 SEP 1864 suffering from diarrhea and furloughed home to Halifax County for 60 days beginning on 28 SEP 1864. He was given a clothing issue the day before (27 SEP 1864) and signed for it by making "his mark". Now that I know where Halifax County is located and that it was not then under Union control, I will speculate that Richard was able to get home on furlough with no problem by traveling on the Richmond & Danville Railroad. Perhaps the meaning of the "passport" issued at the Richmond hospital is that he was given a government paid transportation pass. To be given a furlough usually implies all of this, but this may be a new understanding of the meaning of "passports" for me!

Richard's 60 day furlough did not expire until the end of November. Yet on 15 NOV 1864 he was back at Camp Lee in Richmond where he was paid for his services from 1 MAY 1863 to 8 JUN 1864 (13 months & 8 days, a strange period, but there it is). Again, he signed by making his mark. His status at the time was that of a paroled prisoner of war (so stated on the pay record) which meant he was still awaiting an exchange declaration which would have relieved him of his parole promise to the Federals and allowed him to return to duty. Camp Lee was the collection center for able bodied paroled and exchanged prisoners waiting to be returned to their units. It is possible that Richard got word that he was about to be declared exchanged and returned before his furlough was up. Or perhaps, he had recovered sufficiently to report back to Camp Lee to be ready for an exchange declaration. Or perhaps he had applied for transfer to the Invalid Corps based the issue with his eyesight and had to return to Camp Lee to complete the process.

His name next appears on a Register of the Invalid Corps, PACS showing that he was retired from service with the 14th Virginia Infantry on 12 DEC 1864. The remarks section of this card shows "T. D." which I can only guess meant "total disability". If anyone else reading this has a better suggestion for the meaning of "T. D.", I would love to hear it. I am uncertain if this records means he was reitred "to" the Invalid Corps for further limited duty, or that he was retired "from" the Invalid Corps - i.e. discharged from the army and able to go home for good.

The final parole dated 12 MAY 1865 at Greensboro, NC is for "Private R. T. Edwards, Company K, 14th Virginia Infantry" whose name "appears as a signature". This final parole is puzzling given his retirement to/from the Invalid Corps. But, again, there it is.

I know that individuals assigned to the Invalid Corps were put to work in various military related assignments which relieved able bodied men for service in the active duty ranks. The only explanation that I can offer is that Richard was somehow involved in government work either at Danville or Greenville when the end came. Absentees at home from the regiments surrendered at Appomattox Court House (9 APR 1865) and at Greensboro, North Carolina (26 SEP 1865) were required after the surrenders to report into a Federal provost marshal posted in a community near their homes (or place of absence) to be documented and released on parole. This was a means to account for all former Confederate soldiers and have them acknowledge that the war was over. Had Richard been at home in Halifax County, there would have been no need for him to go all the way to Greensboro for his final parole. He could have done that at South Boston or Halifax.

Crute's unit history (see the National Park Service's soldiers & sailors website) states that the 14th Virginia Infantry was with Lee's army at the end and "lost many" at Five Forks and Sayler's Creek. It went on to state that "7 officers and 40 men [were] surrendered" on 9 APR 1865 at Appomattox Court House. Richard's retirement to/from the Invalid Corps on 12 DEC 1864 and his final parole at Greensboro, North Carolina on 12 MAY 1865 tells us that he did not rejoin the regiment. And if he did, it was only for a brief couple of weeks at the end of November and in early December 1864.

I hope I have anwered your questions.

You indicated that you have pictures of Richard. The Fort Delaware Society would very much appreciate receiving a good quality digital scan of one of these images so that we can display his likeness on our Photo Display Board. You can send that to me at society@fortdelaware.org and I will send you back a copy of the image formatted for display.

Thank you for the query and the chance to re-examine Richard's records!

Hugh Simmons
Fort Delaware Society
E-mail: society@fortdelaware.org
Website; www.fortdelaware.org