Timeline

One of the best ways to get a handle on the events of an ancestor's life is with a timeline.  From a disparate bunch of records I pull together an orderly timeline to see what, when and where events of their life took place.  Better yet I can place my ancestor's activities in historical context by comparing it to events of, say, the Civil War.

Below is a timeline of records for William Hunter Davis from 1861-1865.

Date	Location	Comments	Source
18 July - 31 August 1861	Tybee Island	Enlisted as Sargeant in Olmstead’s 1st Infantry, “Way’s Company” also known as the Forest City Rangers.	Compiled Service Records (CSR) see sources below)
11 November 1861	Fort Pulaski	Special Requisition receipt for supplies (1 hatchet, 2 buckets, 1broom)	CSR
18 September -18 November 1861		Copyist noted receipt for payment signed by W. Hunter Davis	CSR
13 February 1862	Savannah, Chatham County, GA	Marries Annie Rebecca Graham	Georgia. Chatham County. Marriage Books, (see below)
17 February 1862	Savannah, GA	Enlists in 5th Georgia Cavalry, Co. B by Richard F. Akin for the period: “War”	CSR
Jan-Feb 1863		Absent “Sick in Savannah, GA”	CSR, Muster Roll
11 Feb 1863		Elected 2nd Lt. Jr	CSR, Muster Roll
28 Feb 1863		Subject:  Sick	“Insp. R. #60”, CSR
Mar-Apr 1863		Present	CSR, Muster Roll
May-June 1863		Absent.  “Detached as Recorder for Board Examiner.”	CSR, Muster Roll
July-Aug 1863		present	CSR, Muster Roll
31 Aug- 1 Nov 1863		Present (note AWOL below on 25 Sept 1863)	(CSR, Muster Roll
25-26 Sept 1863		AWOL	CSR
October 1863	Pocotaligo	Present	CSR, Muster Roll
16 Dec 1863	Bivouac near Green Pond (South Carolina?)	Request for leave of absence Leave was approved.  Other date on record	Handwritten note from Confederate Service Records
17-18 Dec 1863	Greenpond	Paperwork noting approval of leave request	CSR
31 Dec 1863 – 30 Apr 1863		Present	CSR, Muster Roll
May – June 1864		present	CSR
20 Dec 1864	Near Savannah	Reported missing in action	CSR, Muster Roll
1 February 1865	Arrived Hilton Head, South Carolina	Captured 21 Dec 1864.  “Transferred to Washington, DC Feby 1, 1865.	“Appears on Roll of Prisoners of War, CSR)
2 Feb 1865	Washington, DC	“Appears on a register of Prisoners of War at Old Capitol Prison, Washington, D.C. When committed: Feb 2, 1865 Where captured: near Savannah When:  Dec. 21, 1864 Remarks: Sent to Ft. Del Feb. 7-65”	CSR
8 Feb 1865		Special Order 32/7, Subject: Dropped	CSR
8 Feb 1865		Appears on Roll of Prisoners of War received at Fort Delaware, Del., from Old Capitol Prison, Washington, D.C., February 8, 1865.	CSR
17 June 1865	Fort Delaware, Del.	Name appears as signature to an Oath of Allegiance to the United States, subscribed to at Fort Delaware, Del.  Place of Residence: Chatham, GA Complexion:  Dk : hair:  Dk Eyes:  Bck; height:  5ft 101/2 in. Remarks: Released June 17, 1865	CSR

You'll notice on 16 December 1863 W. Hunter asks for 2 weeks leave.  He does so with a note that shows up in the Fold3.com records.  I believe it's the original.  In it he asks permission to "visit the communities of Chatham and Effingham on business of the utmost importance."

The absence for May-June 1863 causes me to wonder:
What did it mean to be a Recorder for the Board of Examiners?  Was it because of his excellent penmanship?

One of the gaps in the records is from July-December 1864.  I know from other sources such as regimental histories and Civil War histories that W. Hunter's cavalry unit (5th GA, Company B) was involved in the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain and the Atlanta campaign, so perhaps they were a bit too busy to take roll and tend to clerical duties.  You can visit the site of the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain today and still see the remains of the bunkers that the Confederates built.

There's so much to explore that could give me a better idea the world W. Hunter was living in, including his experience as a P.O.W.  I'll show more of that in my next post.

Sources:

Georgia. Chatham County. Chatham County Marriage Book, Microfilm. Georgia Archives, Morrow, GA.

Compiled Service Records of Confederate Soldiers Who Served in Organizations from the State of Georgia. M266. : National Archives (United States). Sargeant, Way's Company, Forrest City Rangers, 1st (Olmstead's) infantry, 1861 and also 2^nd Lt., Co. B, 5^th Georgia Cavalry 1862-1865.  Accessed 3 March 2012 at http://www.fold3.com.