Doyle,

Thanks so much for your response. Joseph was a nephew of my g,g, grandfather David Land. My g,g, grandfather and other Land ancestors, along with those that intermarried with the Lands in the Western North Carolina counties of Alexander, Caldwell, and Wilkes served in the Confederate Army. Joseph is the only one I've run upon a dead end in attempting to research his record. It's quite possible I suppose, that he was shot for desertion. But the only thing stated for sure in his Confederate record is " deserted to the enemy." In family genealogy records it's stated " he died in the Civil War," only a " Company G "( no regiment given " as to how he served. The only Confederate Joseph Land from North Carolina served in Co.F, 45th N.C.Inf. In the 1880 U.S. Census of Shelby County, Indiana ( township of Moral ) There is a Joseph Land with several children and " widowed " He states both his parents were from North Carolina as do his children. ( the oldest, a son is 20. He gives his birth year at 1829. Genealogy records have Joseph Land born 1830. If this was our Joseph Land chances are very good he never returned to the mountians of North Carolina. I thik that would be very sad. Probably a mystery I'll never figure out.

Thanks, Glenn