Monterey:

I had trouble posting a reply to your first e-mail over these past two days.

Yes - General Orders No. 109 provided for transportation by water and/or rail to a point nearest the released prisoner's home. This was not done out of kindness but rather out of a desire to get these men home and out of uniform as quickly as possible.

I am not up to speed on the movement of prisoners into and out of Rock Island during the war, but I would speculate that he traveled by steamboat from Rock Island which is on the Mississippi River down to Vicksburg. The railroad east from Vicksburg through Jackson to Meridian was operational as far as the Big Black Bridge when the war ended. It is my understanding that General Sherman's army destroyed much of the Southern Railroad between Big Black Bridge and Meridian during his raid to Enterprise in February 1864. I don't know how much of it had been re-laid by Confederate engineers during the last year of the war, or by Federal engineers after the Citronelle surrender on 4 MAY 1865. It may be that your Confederate soldier had to walk home from Big Black Bridge to Jones County. It likely took him two weeks to get home - 3 to 5 days by water and maybe 10 days walking cross country.

Hope this helps!

Hugh Simmons
Fort Delaware Society