tracing war relatives

R

ripley rebel

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I was wondering where one might go to trace back relatives who may have fought in the civil war. I have checked the local libraries and found a great great grandfather who owned land during the war and can't go any further. He would have been 21 years old in 1863 and I have typed his name in the OR with no results. I went to the grave sight and there is nothing to associate with his involvement. Name is James M. Hudspeth and if you could tell me where I might find information I would appreciate it.
There were 9 other CSA graves in the cemetery and none are related. Trying to piece things together.
Tim
 
Tim,
I'm no genealogist but, I did a quick check of the National Park Service's Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System and found the following.
Pvt. James Hudspeth, No Co., 18th. U.S.C.T.
Pvt. James Hudspeth, Co. I, 20th. N.C. Inf. CS
Pvt. James Hudspeth, Co. E, 33 Ark. Inf. CS
Pvt. James Hudspeth, U.S. Signal Corps
Capt. James H. Hudspeth, Co. K, 8th. Ky. Cav. US
Pvt. James J. Hudspeth, Co. I, 42nd. Miss. Inf. CS
You could check with any local genealogical society for possible assistance.

This is not related to the subject, but has anybody else been having trouble getting on to the site? There are times when I only get a blank gray screen, or I don't see pictures others are refering. I thought it was my outdated computer but I tried the computer lab at the local tech college and had the same results.
Tom
 
thanks

Tom,
Thank you for your effort. I will continue my search. About the problems I am also having the same thing happen to me. If you go to different sites within the bullet it will delete my log-in and it will not let me post pics everythime. Maybe a bug in the system. It shows something about a debug error. Don't know how to fix it but it is aggravating.
Tim
 
I have done genealogical research on my relatives and can pass on some tips. There are multiple sources of information that can be check, but it will take time to do so.

Check with the MS State Library & Archives for information regarding military units raised in the county where your relative lived. Look at the 1870 Federal population census. One of the items listed on the census was whether the males of voting age had taken the oath of allegiance to the US government. Not taking the oath might indicate that he had been a soldier in Confederate service, but many veterans did. The L & A should also have information on any pensions awarded MS soldiers. Look for published regimental histories for locally raised military units and letters or diaries written by members of these regiments. The Confederates were somewhat lax when it came to record keeping, but also many records were lost in battle and during troop movements, but check with the National Archives in Washington, DC. where many of the captured Confederate records and service records are on microfilm.

Your local library and genealogical societies are good sources of information. Check on published county histories that include profiles of local individuals, such as Goodspeed's County history series. Check postwar newspapers, for obituaries and news about veteran gatherings. In Tennessee, some counties raised militias prior to the start of the war which are listed in county records, so check out with local county records at the court house or the genealogical society for any similar activity.

Hope this helps.
 
There was a Corporal J. M. Hudspeth in Company I, 35th Mississippi Infantry. This Company was raised in Lowndes County.
 
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