Family History Information about
Charles H. Jones (1833-1891)
and
Elizabeth Margaret David Jones (1831-1887)
and Related watts/david/stafford/macon/
brown/benson Families
in sumter county, South carolina

            Edward (Toby) Terrar and Family
(301) 598-5427
15405 Short Ridge Ct.
Silver Spring, Md. 20906
August 1988

 

Contents/Partial Index

 

I Charles H. Jones

Boyhood Farm ...............................................................	2
Eli Jones Death in 1839	5
Civil War	7
Company I, Seventh Regiment, S.C. Cavalry .............................	11
Reconstruction and Family Raising	16
Farmland & Liens	17
Butcher and Last Years .....................................................	19

 

II     Elizabeth Margaret David Jones

Childhood & Adulthood .....................................................	20
Bibliography	25
Appendix 1: Pictures of Charles & Elizabeth Jones	29
Appendix 2: Family Tree Charts........................................	30
Appendix 3: Maps of Dalzell and Sumter, S.C.	38       40

 

 

Charles H. Jones (1833-1891)

            This is a supplement to one section of Lena Hill's History of the Jones-Weldon Family of Sumter County, S.C. (June 1982). This account deals with what some of the records of the nineteenth century say about the life and times of first, Sumter County citizen Charles H. Jones (1833-1891). It will then take up Charles's wife, Elizabeth Margaret David Jones (1831-1887) They were some of the common working people who lived a good life and helped Sumter, S.C. and America progress in economic, spiritual and democratic terms. Those who enjoy life today stand on the shoulders of and can learn something from the achievements and mistakes of Charles and Elizabeth and those like them.

            BOYHOOD FARM. Charles H. (Hartwell? Hampton? Henry?) was the fourth of six children of Eli (d. 1839) and Barbara Stafford Jones (1795-1880s).^[1] The family farm on which Charles grew up was recorded at the Sumter County courthouse in 1830 (Sumter County, South Carolina Deed Book H, page 439). The farm was described as 100 acres on the headwaters of the Black River, bordering the land of Dr. Haynsworth, Captain Thomas Baker, Jesse Heartwell and Josiah (Isaiah?) Haynsworth. The land was part of a tract originally granted to Asa Dinkins. Eli Jones paid $300 to Tyre Jennings for the farm in 1830. By the time Eli's estate was administered 15 years later in 1845, the neighboring farms were listed as owned by C. C. Jackson on the south, James R. Spann on the north, James D. Graham on the west and the Gailard family on the east (Sumter Co. Wills, Bundle 113, no. 13). The farm was said to be near Providence in Sumter County.^[2]

            The 1850 U.S. census listed Barbara Jones, Eli's widow, as still living on the family farm. Those neighboring the farm were Elizabeth Jennings (age 60) and Tyra Jennings (age 37), Penelope Jones Black (age 63), George Black (age 23), William Barkley (age 64, a blacksmith) and his wife Harriet (born about 1786, age 64), J. C. Stafford (born about 1810, age 40, Barbara's brother?) and his wife Marianna (age 30), Robert Jones (age 26, an overseer, who was living by himself), S. M. Spann (age 40), Elizabeth Benenhaly (age 70, a mulatto), Francis Benenhaly (age 48, a wheelwright), James R. Spann (age 58) and his wife Emily (age 48), and John R. Pollard (age 63) and his wife Martha J. (age 40).

            The 1880 U.S. census lists Eli's widow and Charles's mother, Barbara (age 81) as infirm in health but still living on the farm in Providence (U.S. Census, Sumter County, 1880, p. 197). Living with her were Robert Frederick Jones (age 25), his wife Fannie E. (Francis Ellen, age 22), and their son Charles H. (L.?) (age one). Fannie was Barbara's granddaughter and Charles H.'s daughter. Robert Frederick was farming the place. In the same house was another of Barbara's grandchildren and Charles H.'s children, Thomas Jones (age 22, occupation of farm laborer). Also in the house and farming the place was Ellerbe H. Jones (age 52) and his wife Kate (Brunson?) (age 42). Ellerbe was another of Barbara's sons. Four houses away was Robert Lorenzo Jones (age 56), his wife Videau A. (age 47) and their son James Henry (age 6). Robert Lorenzo Jones (1823-1896) was the father of Robert Frederick Jones (1854-1935). Mary Elizabeth (Liz) Jones Troublefield (1887-1971), whose mother, Fannie, was Eli's granddaughter, said Robert Lorenzo Jones was a cousin to Eli Jones. Thus Robert F. and his wife Fannie were cousins.

            Living in the same area as Barbara were many cousins. They included William T. Watts (age 63) and his wife Susan E. (age 56) who lived next door to Robert L. Jones. Living with William Watts was Ellen Black (age 73). Not far was Hartwell E. Stafford (age 32) and his wife Francis J. (age 26) and children and in the same house, Marinna Stafford (born about 1815, age 65) and her son Frank B. Stafford. Nearby was Elizabeth Jones (age 75), who was Barbara's sister-in-law and Eli's sister. Elizabeth Jones never married.

            There is a reference to Eli's tract in an 1891 deed. On January 13, 1891 Robert F. Jones recorded a tract of land that he had bought from James D. Graham on February 3, 1864 (Sumter Co. Deed Book DDD 580). It was described as at Providence and bordered on the east by lands formerly belonging to Eli Jones, on the north by land of Misses Spann, on the south and west by the land of Robert F. Jones.

            There has been no luck so far in locating the farm in Mills Atlas, which has an 1825 map of Sumter District. Probably the farm on which I'Ans and Robbie Jones live at Dalzell is Eli's old farm? Perhaps Charles lived where the Negroes' house is, or where I'Ans house is. Liz Troublefield said her grandfather Charles grew up in Clarendon County. But it is possible Liz was talking about her father's, not her mother's people. She was a Jones on both her mother's and father's side. The censuses in 1850, 1860 and later had the Jones's place in Sumter County. The county of Clarendon was created in 1856 from part of Sumter County. However, earlier in the nineteenth century there was a Clarendon district and Dalzell may have been part of it. The Jones in Dalzell probably go back to at least the 1830s.

            ELI'S DEATH. When Charles was about six years old in 1839, his father died. According to the probate records, Eli left an estate of $611, that consisted of "a Negro boy, five head of cattle, one lot bed steads, crockery, one chest, two trunks, kitchen furniture, ploughs, loom" (Sumter Co. Wills, Bundle 113, no 13). Out of the estate, Barbara, the 39 year old widow, was granted a heifer named Sully, Charles and his two brothers each got a cow, his sister Mary Placida (b. 1836) got two head. The will says nothing about what became of the slave. The 1850 and 1860 census records suggest Barbara and family farmed without slaves (U.S. Census, Sumter Co., S.C.: 1850, p. 392; 1860: p. 152). Being a single female head of household and breadwinner is hard enough with New Deal social security legislation. Barbara managed without such help, and more importantly, without doing it on the back of slaves.^[3]

            The probate record states that Barbara produced and sold a slab of bacon for $1.75. The loom indicates Barbara may have made her own cloth. On the buying side, she made many payments to D. Solomons, who probably ran a country store. Other bills included $3.00 to Ozias Mathis for making a chimney and tuition to J. P. Cook and W. Evleigh for the children's schooling. A goal of the Democratic party in the Andrew Jackson (1828-1836) and Martin Van Buren (1836-1840) period was universal free public education. Barbara was not allowed to vote, but was probably a Jacksonian Democrat and looked forward to the day of free education.

            Barbara did not remarry after Eli's death in 1839; she continued the farm. The children, especially Charles's two older brothers and sisters, Ellerbe H. (age 12 in 1839), Elizabeth C. (age 10), Washington Nicholas (age 9) probably took on many of the farm chores, along with Barbara, which their father would have done.

            By the time of the 1850 census Charles H. Jones's childhood farm was worth $500 (U.S. Census, Sumter Co. 1850, p. 392). Ellerbe (age 24) was still living at home but his occupation was listed as "merchant". Nicholas (age 22), also at home, worked for the railroad. They helped supplement the farm income. Charles (age 18) was a student. He may have had a love for learning, as he kept at it longer than many of his time. Elizabeth (age 20) and Mary (age 14), were on the farm, helping run it.

            In the 1860 U.S. census of Sumter County, Barbara (age 60) was listed as farming in Providence (U.S. Census, Sumter County, S.C.: 1860, p. 152). Her place was worth $6500. Her children had all moved away, but there was one woman living with her, Sarah Graham (age 45), a pauper. Next door was James R. Spann (age 62). One of his daughters was Videau (age 27). Next to the Spann's was Betsie (Elizabeth) Jones (age 57), who was Barbara's sister-in-law. Betsie had also been living next door to Barbara in the 1850 census.

            When Charles was about 23 in 1855, he married Elizabeth Margaret David (1831-1887). They had five children, two of whom were born in the 1850s: Thomas M. (L.?) Jones (b. 1856) and Francis Ellen (Momma) Jones (1858-1931). Charles and his young family do not seem to be in the 1860 U.S. census records for Sumter or Clarendon County. Perhaps the census was not searched close enough. Or perhaps they had immigrated west where farm land was cheaper.

            CIVIL WAR. Charles's military service records are at the U.S. Archives in Washington, D.C. and perhaps are available in local libraries on microfilm. Abraham Lincoln, probably without Charles's vote, had been elected president in November 1860. Soon thereafter on December 16, 1860, the South Carolina legislature, dominated by the low country, provided for ten regiments. In February 1861 the Confederate government was organized at Montgomery, Alabama. Fort Sumter was taken on April 12, 1861.

            In November 1861 Holcombe's legion was organized as a South Carolina state army with ten companies of infantry and four of cavalry. The legion was organized according to one account because the fort at Hatteras, N.C. had fallen. It was thought the Union's plan was to get positions on the coast to harass the Southern states. It was believed a large union army was preparing to attack South Carolina at Port Royal.^[4]

            On April 15, 1862 Holcombe's legion entered the service of the Confederacy. Several weeks later and twelve months after Fort Sumter was taken, Charles (age 29) was drawn into history. On May 5, 1862 he enlisted in Holcombe's legion of the Confederate Army for the duration of the war. Charles joined Captain Thomas V. Walsh's company, a cavalry unit, as a private. Captain Walsh (age 28) was Charles's brother-in-law, the husband of Mary Ellen David Walsh. Walsh had enlisted on November 18, 1861 and seems to have been more enthusiastic about soldiering than Charles. Once involved, however, Charles remained stable at the job.

            Walsh's company at first was called the Claremont Cavalry, but soon was designated simply as company A, Holcombe's Legion, South Carolina Volunteers. Walsh and many others in company A were from Sumter and Clarendon Counties. There were from 80 to 125 soldiers per company. Ten companies (800-1250 soldiers) comprised a regiment or legion. A brigade (about 2200 soldiers) was made up of two or three regiments. Four brigades (8800 soldiers) made a division. Above Walsh in command during the first year was Brigadier General Wise and Major General Smith. By June 1, 1862 company A Holcombe's Legion was at Camp Capers.

            Company A, Holcombe's Legion, perhaps even before Charles enlisted, was part of the Department of Richmond, Army of Northern Virginia. The duty of Holcombe's Legion for almost and perhaps all of the war was the protection of the eastern approach to Richmond, the Confederate capital. The legion maintained a 24 mile picket line on the York River near Williamsburg, Va. This area is part of Virginia's Peninsula. The activities conducted there were called the Peninsula campaign (March-April, 1862). The legion's camp and headquarters was about a mile from Forage Bridge. Just months after enlistment, Charles, as part of Holcombe's legion, was involved in the Battle of Williamsburg on September 9, 1862. Among company A's duties, as mentioned in Walsh's service record was to arrest several Virginians near Williamsburg who were inciting the slaves to revolt and helping Confederate soldiers to escape to the North. The South was not unanimous about dissolution of the Union.

            Another and more regular part of the cavalry's duty was caring for the horses. Captain Walsh's service record during one period, for example, has receipts for 77 bushels of corn and fodder. Daily allowances for Company A's 88 horses was apparently 12 pounds of corn and 14 pounds of hay. There are receipts for other necessities of army life: three army tents, four shovels, 15 pounds of rope for halters, 33 pounds of manila rope, seven pounds of nails, one mule, one flour wagon, four collars, 50 halters, one set of horse gear and candles.

            Charles was paid $12 per month or $24 every two months, which included pay for the use of his horse. These wages helped provide for his family during his three years of service. In his service record there are receipts for wages received on October 31, 1862 ($24), December 31, 1862 ($23.60), February 28, 1863 ($24.40 for March and April 1863), June 30, 1863 ($24.40), $49.20 for September and October 1863, October 31, 1863 ($24.40 for November and December 1863), April 16, 1864 ($24 for January 1 to February 29, 1864). There are also receipts for clothing: September 15, 1864 (third quarter), and November 16, 1864 (fourth quarter). Clothing included shirt, boots, overcoat and socks.

            Charles got a furlough from the departmental headquarters for 30 days starting August 31, 1863. The furlough may have been connected with a 15 acre plot in the town of Sumter which Charles had obtained from Lawrence Brunson (Sumter Co. Deed book S 149). It was recorded on August 3, 1863.

            Charles was detailed as regimental forage master by 1864 and perhaps as early as 1862. Captain Walsh's service record mentions lack of food as a big problem. In a report to headquarters dated September 27, 1862, he complained that his men were not getting enough to eat, only what they could forge. Lack of food may have been one reason that several confederate soldiers, as Walsh noted in the same report, "escaped to the enemy." Charles had a tough and important assignment as forage master. Perhaps the food supply improved as time went by. Captain Walsh's service record has receipts for salt, vinegar, fresh beef, pork, flour, beans, rice, coffee, molasses, as well as for two camp kettles, 12 tin plates, 12 tin cups and three mess pans.

            The harsh winter cold of 1862-1863 in Virginia was also a problem. The cavalry, as Captain Walsh's report noted, spent their time "in the saddle riding the picket line, exposed to the rigorous climate." Walsh contracted chronic bronchitis with a deposit on the right lung during the fall and winter of 1862-1863. He was absent in January and February 1863 due to the sickness. By the summer of 1864, he had lost 30 pounds due to the bronchitis, was too weak to work and was given a medical discharge.

            Elizabeth (Liz) Jones Troublefield (1887-1971) was Charles's granddaughter. Florence Ross Creighton (b. 1874) was Charles' niece. Lena Hill interviewed Florence (age 95) at the Solomons' Retirement Home, Sumter in 1969. Both Florence and Liz told of a family tradition that Charles sometimes worked as a spy for the southern forces. This probably meant he rode behind enemy lines to find out where they were stationed and what their strength was. There was also mention that he may have killed a few Yankee captains.

            Information about Holcombe's legion from the Union perspective is contained in the U.S. War Department, The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies (1880-1901). On November 24, 1863 Union Col. Robert W. West wrote from Fort Magruder, Va. to Brigadier General I. J. Wintar at Yorktown that cavalry should be sent to Bottom's Bridge at three in the morning.^[5] They should cross and have a run of 12 miles. Holcombe's legion would be surprised and captured or driven pell-mell into Richmond. This would allow the Union to free prisoners whose positions were known. Col. West noted that the auxiliary force around Richmond had not been so small since the war began. Holcombe's Legion of cavalry was about one mile from Bottom's Bridge. It had two pieces of artillery and no more than 250 troops. Bottom's bridge was opposite the Chickahominy River.^[6]

            An abstract from the tri-monthly return of the Department of Richmond stated that Holcombe's legion on February 10, 1864, had 17 officers, 375 aggregate troops present and absent of which 284 were present and 201 actually effective.^[7] On March 31, 1864 Holcombe's cavalry had 15 officers, 396 aggregate troops of which 279 were present and 188 were effective. The legion by 1864 was part of Brig. General Eppa Hunton's command, which in turn was under the general leadership of Major General Arnold Elzey. Col. W. Pinkney Shingler headed Holcombe's legion.

            COMPANY I, SEVENTH REGIMENT, SOUTH CAROLINA CAVALRY. On March 18, 1864 Holcombe's legion along with four others including Trenholm's and Tucker's Squadron, South Carolina Cavalry, and Co. A of Boykin's Squadron, were consolidated to form the Seventh Regiment of the South Carolina Cavalry.^[8] Charles's company A, Holcombe's legion became company I, Seventh Regiment South Carolina Cavalry. There were about ten companies in the Seventh Regiment. The Seventh Regiment (800 troops) was commanded by Col. W. Pinkney Shingler. The Seventh was one of three or so regiments that made up the Cavalry Brigade (2200 troops) commanded by Brig. General Marion (Martin?) W. Gary. The brigade was one of four that made up Fitzhugh Lee's Division (8800 troops), which was under the Department of Richmond, Lieutenant General Richard S. Ewell (1817-1872) commanding. Also in the brigade commanded by Gary, as of June 13, 1864, was Hampton's legion and the 24th Regiment Virginia Cavalry.^[9]

            General Robert E. Lee (1807-1870) wrote from Headquarters, Army of Northern Virginia to the Honorable James A. Seddon (1815-1880), Secretary of War, on January 23, 1864 to explain the reason for the consolidation. His letter stated:

The cavalry of the army, by its hard service, summer and winter, and through deficiency of forage in the latter season, has become very much reduced. This is especially true of the two southern brigades (Holcombe's and another), which have not the same opportunities of maintaining themselves as those from Virginia. The enemy have always had on this line a cavalry force greatly superior in numbers, and will doubtless recruit their cavalry divisions largely before the next campaign. I hear no recruits coming to this army, and see but little prospect of any, as they all choose the regiments and companies (already filled to overflowing) which are not called upon for active duty. . . I recommend that some portion of the cavalry in South Carolina and Southwestern Virginia be sent to this army so soon as the grass begins to grow.

            I know that the commanders of these departments will make objections to this, but I think it for the department to decide whether our forces are to remain scattered over the country or to be concentrated to meet the superior forces of the enemy. I recommend that a South Carolina regiment be formed of Holcombe Legion (five companies) in the Department of Richmond, and four companies under Major Whitman in Southwestern Virginia, and one of the detached companies in South Carolina. This and one regiment from South Carolina will be added to the two South Carolina regiments in this army to form a South Carolina brigade. I would recommend that General Butler be sent to South Carolina to complete this brigade and to recruit the two regiments here from the excess reported in the regiments and companies in that state. . . I think the proposed arrangements would bring together and make effective troops which in detached companies and regiments are now of but little service.^[10]

            In 1860 South Carolina had allowed a relatively small group of secessionists to set the state's policy. Lee indicated in his letter of January 23, 1864 the lack of commitment of many from South Carolina who resisted service in active military units. Major General Wade Hampton (1818-1902) from Charleston, S.C. on March 29, 1864 made the same observation in a letter to General Cooper. It was Hampton's duty to recruit inactive South Carolina units into active service in the new Seventh Regiment South Carolina Cavalry for Virginia service. In a number of ways his efforts were subverted. Hampton complained that the companies had been cut to 80 men by the resistors. The law required that there should be 125 per company. This meant that "Butler's brigade will be smaller even at the commencement of the campaign." Hampton noted that the Cavalry was badly equipped and the saddles were condemned. He commented:

I hope to move the men out by April 15, 1864, but an effort is being made to keep them at Charleston. They are more needed in Virginia. I want the order to bring them to Virginia to be enforced.

            The spring and summer of 1864 was not easy for the Seventh Regiment South Carolina Cavalry. A report made by the commander of the Union Army at Bermuda Hundred noted its encounter with the Seventh on May 8, 1864:

The Brigade took up the line of march about daylight. It went toward Jarrat's station on the Petersburg and Welden Railroad. On arriving at the station we were met by a portion of the Holcombe legion. We were repulsed after a desperate conflict.^[11]

            Shingler's cavalry together with others did reconnaissance on the turnpike road leading to Petersburg, Va in early May 1864. They wished to learn the strength of the enemy near Winfree's farm.^[12] The Seventh also did scouting along the line of the Southside Railroad near Nottoway at Gill's Bridge.^[13] The scouts reported on May 16, 1864 that the enemy was encamped at Jonesborough and had burned down the Crallis mill. Later it was reported that the enemy had not encamped at Jonesborough and no mills were burned.

            General Pierre Gustave Toutant Beauregard (1818-1893), who entered service from New Orleans, wrote from Drewry's farm on May 15, 1864 that Col. Shingler's Seventh Regiment South Carolina Cavalry would move with Beauregard's reserve division in a large action to cut off the enemy from their base of operation at Bermuda Hundred and capture their position. The Union's right flank was on the James River.^[14] In his report of Monday May 16, 1864, Col. Shingler listed one soldier killed and three missing in an engagement near Drewry's Bluff.^[15] On May 17, 1864 Major Trenholm's squad with 190 troops, which was part of the Seventh Regiment South Carolina Cavalry, was ordered to assemble at Black and White on the Southside Railroad that night. They were to proceed by rapid marches to Richmond, going by Bevill's Bridge in Appomattox.^[16]

            In a report made by Union General Benjamin F. Butler to the Secretary of War on May 30, 1864, the Seventh Regiment South Carolina Cavalry was believed to have gone to Charleston, S.C. The report, which may have been mistaken, stated:

I learn from a reliable deserter from the enemy that the Holcombe legion, consisting of 300 or 400 men, have gone to Charleston and that Colquitt's brigade is to follow behind them. They were sent in pursuance to a telegram received by General Beauregard on Saturday, saying that by the time he (Beauregard) received the dispatch Sessionville would be in the hands of the enemy.^[17]

            General Beauregard wrote to General S. Cooper on July 25, 1864 saying the Union army headed by General Butler was threatening the capital with a force bigger than his own. He only had the Seventh Regiment South Carolina Cavalry and several others to help him.^[18]

            The resistance to the war in South Carolina had its counterpart among those on active duty in Virginia. Charles had his own ideas and his superior, Alexander Cheves Haskell did not like them. In August 1864 Charles was elected lieutenant of Co. I, but Haskell refused to let him take the position. After Haskell was wounded in October 1864 and out of service, Charles took command and was officially designated lieutenant in February 1865. When Haskell came back on duty in the spring of 1865, he forced Charles to seek a transfer to General Wade Hampton's command of cavalry. In Charles's military service file is a letter of March 6, 1865 in which Haskell attacks Charles:

This lieutenant (Charles H. Jones) was elected in August 1864. I did not consider him as one fitted for commission and would not allow him to go on duty until he had been examined by a Board announced by Brigade Command. He did not feel capable of standing examination. For this and other reasons, it was delayed. On 7 October 1864 I was wounded and disabled and obliged to leave my company. During my absence, Charles Jones succeeded me and went on duty without examination.

Upon my return to duty I found C. H. Jones a lieutenant but he had been absent without leave for several weeks with a number of men from his company. The whole business was censured by a certificate. This was disrespectful of a cavalry officer to receive and showed him not only ignorant but incapable of appreciating his duty. For this he has been court martialed.

I certainly request the acceptance of his resignation as this will render unnecessary to call upon the Boards after the company has tried this officer but I cannot approve his application for transfer. I am quite willing for him to go but regard it as a wrong principle.

            In a letter also dated March 6, 1865 Charles tended his resignation to General S. Cooper:

I hereby tender my resignation for reasons of a private nature and respectfully ask a favorable consideration thereof, and also to be allowed the privilege of joining General Hampton's Command of Cavalry.

                                                            Very Respectfully Yours

                                                            Your Obt Servant

                                                            C. H. Jones

            In Charles's service record there is a notation for February 23, 1865 saying Charles was subject to C. M. (court martial?). The title of the record or perhaps of the Confederate military legal code under which he was charged was G. O. 5 Par. 23, Dept of Richmond/Elzey. The reason for the court martial in the February 23, 1865 notation was not stated. If "subject to C.M." means he was tried, there is no indication that he was convicted. Perhaps "subject to C.M." only meant he was charged by someone (Haskell). If so, the charge may never have progressed to trial and adjudication.

            Lieutenant General. James Longstreet (1821-1904), who was from Edgefield, S.C. approved Charles's resignation on March 10, 1865. It is not clear if Charles left the Confederate army at this point or merely transferred to General Hampton's command. One entry, however, seems to say he was "promoted on March 16, 1865" and gives a reference, "remarks: S. O. 62, Confed. Arch. chap. l, File No. 92, page 459." On March 12, 1865 at the time Charles's resignation was accepted, the Seventh Regiment South Carolina Cavalry was at Goochland Courthouse. It took prisoners near Columbia and Louisa Courthouses not far from the Rivanna River. Three weeks later the Confederate forces surrendered. In the file of some veterans of company I, Seventh Regiment South Carolina Cavalry is a notice that the soldier had been surrendered by General Robert E. Lee to Lieutenant General U. S. Grant and was paroled at Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865. There is no such entry for Charles. Perhaps he never surrendered.

            Liz Troublefield, Charles's granddaughter, mentioned there was a battle in Sumter, sometime during the war, perhaps at Dingle's mill. She thought Charles might have been involved in that battle.

            RECONSTRUCTION AND FAMILY RAISING. After the war Charles returned home to Sumter and took up farming once more. In addition to Thomas and Francis Ellen, who were born before the war, Mary was born in 1866, Joseph in 1869 and Ellerbe in 1873. Charles was a good worker, but like many in the South, the years immediately following the war were hard. For example, on July 6, 1868 Charles registered as a bankrupt in the office of the register of bankruptcy, No 72 Broad St., Charleston, S.C. David J. Winn was appointed assignee of his estate under "an Act to Establish a Uniform System of Bankruptcy throughout the U.S. of 1867."

            A few years later things were better. In the 1870 census Charles (age 37) was listed as a farmer (U.S. Census, Sumter County: 1870, roll 1509, p. 56; also cited as vol. 15, p. 284). His farm was valued at $1000 and the value of his personal property was $500. On the farm with him was his wife Elizabeth Margaret (age 39) and children: Thomas M. (age 14), Francis E. (age 10), Mary E. (age 4) and Joseph (age one).

            Despite his listing as a farmer, Charles and Elizabeth lived in the town of Sumter. Living in town was not where farmers usually lived. Living close by was Charles's brother-in-law and former captain, Thomas V. Walsh (age 37). Walsh was a dry goods merchant owning $700 in personal property and living with his wife and six children. Another neighbor and brother-in-law was Isaac David, a tailor. Isaac had two children.

            Charles and Elizabeth had had their place in town at least since 1863, when it consisted of 15 acres. They had purchased it from Laurence M. Brunson (Brown?) on August 3, 1863. It was described in 1863 as bounded on the west by Main St., on the north by L. M. Brunson's lot, on the east by the Road to Pocotaligo and on the south by Thomas Hoyt's land. The deed was recorded February 27, 1869.

            In February 1871 Charles and Elizabeth sold two acres of their lot to Robert M. Andrews. The part sold was described as in the south part of Sumter town, between Main St. and the road from Manning and bounded on the north by L. M. Bramenson on the east by Phillie Rd., on the south by C. H. Mues and on the west by Main St. In exchange Robert Andrews gave a mortgage (Sumter Co. Deed book S 109, T 517).

            Charles's place in town was described in 1871 as 3 and 4/10 acres (Sumter County Deed book TT 68). It was bounded on the north by Robert Andrews, on the east by Main St., on the south by Col. T. V. Walsh and on the west by the public road leading from Vances Ferry to Sumter. The plat was made for the property on March 16, 1871. In 1873 Charles and Elizabeth granted to Peter Ellis for $300 a lot on the northwest intersection of Sumter and Dingle St. (Sumter County Deed book UU 322). Charles had apparently received the lot from Francis Ellen Dingle (Sumter Co. Deed book UU 385).

            On August 4, 1874 Charles sold a six and 3/10 acre lot in the town of Sumter to Ben P. Cuttino for $225 (Sumter Co. Deed book U 279). It was described as bounded on the north by Mrs. Ellen J. Walsh, on the east by the public road from Vances Ferry to Sumter, on the south by Oliver F. Hoyt and on the west by the land of Elizabeth  M. Jones and George Hartwell David.

            In 1883 Elizabeth M. Jones, Charles's wife, bought a lot on Church St. with a 100 foot frontage and 300 ft. deep. She paid $100. It was described as bounded on the north by H. Oxlade, on the east by Church St., on the south by Mrs. Smith (Mrs. Parton) and on the west by A. J. Maes (Horace Harby) (Sumter Co. Deed book Y 633). In 1886 Elizabeth deeded the same land to Horace Harby (Sumter Co. Deed book Z 288).

            FARM LAND. In addition to his lot in town, Charles owned some farm land. On December 23, 1868 he recorded ownership of a farm which he had purchased or inherited at an earlier date (Sumter Co. Deed book SS 193). Charles's farm was described as:

A 144 acre plantation bounded on the north by Robert S. Mallette, on the east by Robert S. Mellett and R. J. Dick, and on the south by the Run of Cain Savannah Swamp and on the west by land of the estate of John S. Bradford and Robert S. Mellett.

This was the same land that had been deeded by Emily E. Daigon on January 24, 1860 (Sumter County Deed book QQ 575 and 576). Charles recorded the land in the process of selling it for $450 to Collin C. Parker of Jefferson Co., Virginia.

            On October 4, 1869 Thomas J. Coughlan conveyed 100 acres to Charles for $355 (Sumter County Deed book SS 707, U 285). It was bounded on the north and east by Porcher Gaillard's land, on the south by land of Dr. Rembert and on the west by the land of John Phillips. On January 3, 1870. Charles conveyed the same land to Stephen Richardson.

            LIENS. To do his farming, Charles made loans and gave liens on his crops. On April 30, 1867 Charles gave a lien on his crop to L. G. Pate in exchange for a $2000 loan (Sumter County Deed book RR 52). He gave another lien to Pate on 1/3 his crop the following year on April 10, 1868 in exchange for $1000 (Sumter County Deed book 441). Both years he was farming at Annie M. Bradford's plantation.

            On December 7, 1868 Charles deeded over to James R. Kendrick his 144 acre farm adjoining the land of Thomas M. Mellette, the estate of John S. Bradford and Robert Dick (Sumter Co. Deed book RR 674). The land was deeded as collateral for a $128 debt. The deed would be void if the debt was paid.

            In a deed for February 8, 1869 Charles gave a lien to G. W. Williams on his crop and promised to pay 12 percent yearly interest on the loan (Sumter Co. Deed book S 109). Several weeks later on February 27, 1869 Charles recorded that he was "about to engage on cultivation of land" bought from Brunson (15 acres) (Sumter Co. Deed book S 140). He gave a lien to E. W. Moise, who had loaned him $200 cash and $50 worth of supplies. On January 1, 1870 a lien was given by Charles on his cotton crop in  exchange for a $1000 loan from George W. Williams (Sumter Co. Deed book SS 307).

            In a deed of April 20, 1871 Charles gave a lien to Oliver Hoyt on six acres in the town of Sumter. The land was part of a larger 15 acre tract that had been purchased in 1863. The lot was described in 1871 as bounded on the east by Ellen J. Walsh (Charles's sister-in-law), on the east by the public road from Sumter to Manning, on the south by the land of Oliver F. Hoyt and on the west by Elizabeth M. Jones (Sumter County Deed book TT 187). Charles promised to pay Hoyt $600. In another transaction with Hoyt, Charles gave a lien on his lint cotton (one bail, weighing 466 pounds), one bay horse, one bay mare and 44 stock hogs (Sumter Co. Deed book TT 188).

            On March 14, 1890 land that had belonged to Charles was sold at public auction to satisfy a debt to Sarah Ann Dinkins (Sumter Co. Deed book CCC 310). The land was bounded on the north by the lot of Horace Holy, on the east by Mrs. Paxton, on the south by Miss Louise and Mrs. Flowers and on the west by Honby Ave.

            BUTCHER AND LAST YEARS. In the 1880 census Charles (age 49) was listed as a butcher (U.S. Census, Sumter Co., S.C.: 1880, p. 350). Living with him in the house on Main St. was Elizabeth (age 49), Mary E. (age 14), Joseph H. (age 11) and Elerbe H (age 7). Also in the house was Charles's oldest son, Thomas M. (age 25) and his wife, Hattie Bradford Jones (age 20). Many people in the last quarter of the nineteenth century, as earlier moved from agriculture to urban work. Newly invented machinery made agriculture less labor intensive. The marginal farmers ended up migrating to urban employment, which was more stable and remunerative than what was possible in marginal farming. Liz Troublefield said that Charles was keeper of the Sumter jail during his later years. David Cuttino (b. 1895) is a grandson of Thomas Walsh. Cuttino mentioned in 1972 that Walsh had been active in the local Confederate veterans organization. Perhaps Charles who was Walsh's brother-in-law, was also part of it.

            Charles's wife, Elizabeth, died at age 56 in 1887. Charles died eight years later at age 62 about 1891. He was buried in lot 108 S, Sumter Cemetery. The grave is unmarked. He bought the lot on December 18, 1884 (Sumter Cemetery Record, p. 106).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Elizabeth Margaret David Jones (1831-1887)

            CHILDHOOD. Elizabeth Margaret David Jones (1831-September 13, 1887) was the daughter of George B. David (1793-1849) and Lucy C. (K.?) Macon (1808-1852).^[19] She was the oldest of eight children. Her brothers and sisters were Mary Ellen Walsh (1832-1908), Isaac Macon (1834-1882), Manley J. (b. 1836), Loisa (b. 1840), William Henry (b. 1842), George Hartwell (b. 1848) and Ellerbe. All the David children were born in Sumter County.

            The farm on which Elizabeth grew up was the one which her grandparents, Isaac and Margaret David, had also farmed.^[20] Isaac died in November or December, 1832. Elizabeth was about two years old at the time. The farm passed to Elizabeth's father, George, in a will probated on January 24, 1833 (Sumter County Wills, Bundle 31, p. 7). The exact location of the farm was not mentioned in the will but in an 1855 deed it was described as:

A tract of 527 acres owned by George David in the fork of the Black River known as a grant from Isaac David to George B. David and bounded on the north by land of Samuel E. Plouden, on the east by Dr. R. R. Durant with children of James Mack and on the south by J. J. Nelson (Sumter County Deed book Q 532).

By tracing the land title down to its present owners, the location of the farm on which Elizabeth grew up could be learned.

            Elizabeth's girlhood home may have been composed in part of a 106 acre plot which her grandfather Isaac purchased in 1807 from William Taylor for $106 (one dollar per acre). It was described as on Crow Bay in the fork of the Black River, bounded by the lands of General Sumter, William Taylor and Major Prescot (Sumter County Deed book C 158).

            In addition to the farm, Elizabeth's parents received in 1832 a share in other property mentioned in Isaac's will. The estate included 13 slaves, among whom were at least two Negro women, Libby and Gene. In the estate also were three horses, 26 hogs, 63 head of cattle, one riding saddle, one shot gun, one lot of plantation tools, one lot of plows and gear, one corn mill, 10 cotton baskets. Among the farm products were one lot of potatoes, two bushels of rice, three gallons of vinegar, 450 bushels of corn, one lot of lard, and one lot of fodder. Interior domestic furnishings mentioned in Isaac's estate were one side board, six chairs, one small table, two bed stead, bed and furniture, one lot earthen ware, one lot glass ware, one coffee mill, one lot of demijohns, one dozen knives and forks, one lot of iron pots, two spinning wheels, and one loom and furniture. Finally there was one bible and hymn book and two bank slips. The value of the estate amounted to $4753.75. George David was the executor.

            As is generally the case with people of some wealth, Isaac David achieved his by thieving the value produced by the poor and weak. Some glory in the number of slaves their ancestors owned. Such greed in fact was shameful. It is at least some comfort that Isaac's worth was small compared to the low land slavocracy. The slave system is gone now, but living on the back of the poor and weak is basic to capitalism - and it too will pass.

            Elizabeth went to school and was literate. She grew up in the 1830s and 1840s in the Methodist Church. Her mother, Lucy, was a charter member of the Sumterville Methodist Female Benevolent Working Society (Women's Aid Circle) (James M. Burgess, Chronicles of St. Mary's Parish: Santee Circuit and Williamsburg Township: 1731-1885, Columbia, S.C.: 1888, p. 107; Clarendon County Historical Society, Report: 1968, Sumter Co.: Wilder and Ward Printing, 1968; "Members of the Methodist Church, South Carolina Conference, Sumter, 1832," Historical Society of South Carolina Archives, Wofford College, Spartenburg, S.C.). Such reform societies in the nineteenth century provided some of the services which the social security system now provides, such as financial aid to widows, orphans, and retired ministers. They also raised money for the upkeep of church and Sunday school buildings and provided a forum where women could organize and look to their own interests.

            ADULTHOOD. The 1850 U.S. census listed Elizabeth (age 20) as living with her parents and brothers and sisters (U.S. Census, Sumter Co.: 1850, p. 331). Her mother, Lucy (age 42), was said to be unable to read. Four of the children were at school: Isaac (age 17), Manly (age 14), Louisa (age 10) and Henry (age 8). Next door was Elizabeth's aunt Linora or Linna (age 43). Linora had originally been called Leah. She was George's sister, and was married to Carter G. Capell. They had eight children in 1850. Living close by was D. W. Cuttino (age 30, a school teacher), his wife and five children. Thomas B. Walsh (age 17), a student, was also living close by.

            Elizabeth's father, George (age 58) died about 1850. He was listed in the census as "insane" and without occupation. George was also referred to in an 1846 document as incapable of business because of weakness of mind (Sumter County Equity Roll 96).^[21] George left an estate worth $7840 by one account or $11,000 by another (Sumter County Equity Roll 488). Included in it was the 520 acre family farm and 22 slaves.

            Elizabeth's mother, Lucy, had died two years after George, in the early part of 1852. She was only 44. Elizabeth (age 21) was the oldest child and probably helped to raise her younger brothers, George Hartwell (age 4), William Henry (age 10), Ellerbe and sister, Loisa (age 12). In this she would have had the help of her sister Mary Ellen (age 20), and brothers Isaac Macon (age 18) and Manly J. (age 16). William Henry was born a normal child, but during his early childhood, he had a serious illness, which involved "brain fever." After this illness he was mentally unbalance and never married, but he was well enough for the army.

            Elizabeth's sister, Mary Ellen married Thomas Walsh the same year her mother died in 1852. Thomas Walsh bought the family farm from George's estate in 1855 for $700. This was less than it was worth (Sumter Co. Equity Roll 488). On February 8, 1859 Thomas Walsh sold the farm to William C. Chandler for $1500 (Sumter County Deed Book Q 532). Walsh wanted the heirs to get the full value for the estate.^[22] After the sale Walsh gave up farming. In the 1860 census he and his wife Mary Ellen were living in the town of Sumter. Walsh was working as a merchant. They had three children of their own (U.S. Census, Sumter Co., S.C., 1860, p. 176).

            Elizabeth married Charles H. Jones about 1855. Elizabeth and Charles, along with her brothers and sisters except Mary Ellen and her husband were not found in a search of the 1860 Sumter County census. Perhaps the search missed them, or perhaps they had migrated to Alabama, Texas or elsewhere.

            On August 5, 1855 James H. Dingle and his wife Frances Ellen Dingle had conveyed a four acre tract in Sumter District to Isaac Macon David because of "love and affection." It was to be held in trust for his sisters and brothers: Elizabeth M. Jones, Manly J., William Henry and George Hartwell. On George's 21st birthday in 1869 it was to go to Elizabeth Jones for life and then to her children. The land was described as bounded by A. Anderson and F. Hoyt in a plat made by W. H. Brisson on December 10, 1854 (Sumter Co. Deed book PP 74). In another deed James H. Dingle on April 13, 1856 gave Isaac M. David a plantation of 111 acres on the east side of Turkey Creek, water of the Black River, bounded on the north and east by land of Thomas I. Coghlan and on the south by land of S. Dingle and on the west by the estate of William Webb (Sumter Co. deed book PP 417).

            During the Civil War Elizabeth's brothers, Isaac Macon, William Henry, and Manly J. served in Co. C 3 (Palmetto) Battalion., S.C. Light Artillery, also known as White's Battalion, S.C. Light Artillery. Isaac Macon, however, soon joined Co. A, Cavalry Battalion, Holcombe's Legion, which became part of the Seventh Regiment South Carolina Cavalry in 1864. Isaac's two brothers-in-laws, Charles Jones and Thomas Walsh were in this outfit (Service Records of William Henry, Manly J. and Isaac Macon David, U.S. Archives, Washington, D.C.).

            While the war was going on, Elizabeth kept the family together and raised her children. In the 1870 census Elizabeth (age 39) was listed as living in the town of Sumter and "keeping house." Her two older children, Thomas M. (age 14) and Frances E. (age 10) were attending school. The two younger ones, Mary E. (age four) and Joseph H. were too young for school. In the 1880 census, Elizabeth (age 49) was living with her husband Charles (age 49), her daughter Mary E. (age 14) and son Joseph H. (age 11) and Elerbe H. (age 7). Also living in the same house are Thomas M (age 25) and his wife, Hettie B. (age 20).

            By the 1870 census William Henry David (age 23) was living with his sister Mary Ellen Walsh and her family in Sumter (U.S. Census, Sumter Co. 1870, p. 284). Elizabeth's brother Isaac M. (age 35) in 1870 was working as a tailor in the town of Sumter, had a wife and two small children and was living several doors away from Elizabeth and her family. (U.S. Census, Sumter Co. 1870, p. 285). Isaac M. and Elizabeth's familiers were living in the same place in the 1880 census.

            Elizabeth died on September 13, 1887 at age 56. She was buried in the Sumter Cemetery.

 

BIBLIOGRAPHY

            The following books may offer further information about the life and times of Charles and Elizabeth Jones. They can be obtained by an interlibrary loan. They would be useful to anyone wanting to expand and improve the present article:

Beals, Carleton, War Within a War: The Confederacy Against Itself (Philadelphia: Chilton Books, 1965, 177 pp.).

Boykin, Edward M., The Falling Flag: Evacuation of Richmond, Retreat and Surrender at Appomattox (New York: E. J. Hale, 1874, 67 pp.) (Hale was an officer in the Seventh Regiment, S.C. Cavalry).

Bradbeer, William West, Confederate and Southern State Currency: Historical and Financial Data (Mount Vernon, N.Y.: 1915, 162 pp.).

Brooks, Robert P., Conscription in the Confederate States, 1862-1865 (Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1917, 442 pp.).

Capers, Ellison (1837-1908), Confederate Military History: South Carolina (Atlanta: 1899, 424 pp.).

Cauthen, Charles E., South Carolina Goes to War, 1860-1865 (Chapel Hill, University of North Carolina Press, 1950, 256 pp.).

Daly, Louise Porter, Alexander Cheves Haskell, the Portrait of a Man (Norwood, Mass.: Plimpton Press, 1934, 224 pp.) (Haskell was a member of the Seventh Regiment).

Dumond, Dwight L., Southern Editorials on Secession (New York: Century Co., 1931, 529 pp.) (commentaries and samples).

Hall, Wade H., Reflections of the Civil War in Southern Humor (Gainesville: University of Florida Press, 1962, 82 pp.) (has the humor of white and black working people).

Hanna, Alfred J., Flight into Oblivion (Richmond: Johnson Pub. Co., 1938, 306 pp.) (study of exodus from Richmond).

Jones, Katherine M., When Sherman Came: Southern Women and the "Great March" (Indianapolis: Bobbs Merrill, 1964, 353 pp.).

May, John Amasa, South Carolina Secedes (Columbia: University of South Carolina Press, 1960, 231 pp.).

Moore, Albert B., Conscription and Conflict in the Confederacy (New York: Macmillan, 1924, 367 pp.).

Nightengale, Florence, Directions for Cooking by Troops in Camp (Richmond: J. W. Randolph Co., 1861, 35 pp.).

Owen, Dock, Campfire Stories and Reminiscences (Greenwood, 47 pp.) (he was a member of Holcombe's infantry).

Ringold, May S., The Role of the State Legislatures in the Confederacy (Athens: University of Georgia, 1966).

Rivers, William James (1822-1909), Rivers' Account of the Raising of Troops in South Carolina for State and Confederate Service. . . (Columbia: Bryan, 1899, 44 pp.).

Tatum, Georgia Lee, Disloyalty in the Confederacy (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1934, 176 pp.).

Todd, Richard C., Confederate Finance (Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1954, 258 pp.) (Confederate treasury department, its sources of revenue).

United Daughters of the Confederacy, South Carolina Women in the Confederacy (Columbia: State Pub. Co., 1903-1907, 2 vols) (excerpts from diaries).

Wiley, Bell Irwin, The Plain People of the Confederacy (Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1943, 104 pp.) (contribution of civilians to the war and the waning morale as the war progressed).

Wooster, Ralph A., The Secession Conventions of the South (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1962).

            The above books were taken from: C. E. Dorenbusch, Regimental Publications and Personal Narratives of the Civil War: A Checklist (New York: New York Public Library, 1961) and Allan Nevins, Civil War Books: A Critical Bibliography (Baton Rouge: Louisiana University Press, 1967). There is plenty more relevant material that has been published since 1967.

            The obituaries of Charles H. and Elizabeth Jones are probably contained in the Watchman which was published in Sumter between 1850 and 1932. Most its back issues are at the University of South Carolina library on microfilm. Perhaps they can be ordered through interlibrary loan by a local library. The back issues might have other information of intersest about Charles and Elizabeth. There are other old newspapers that might also be of use. Some of them are listed, together with the libraries at which they are deposited, in Winifred Gregory (ed.), American Newspapers, 1821-1936: A Union List of Files Available in the U.S. and Canada (New York: Wilson Co., 1937), pp.639-645. Below are some of them:

 

 

Appendix 3: Notes for Further Research on Charles and Elizabeth Jones

            This article could probably be turned into an article for publication in an historical journal or, in the least, could be made more interesting, if some of the following additions were made and if some of the material already in the article were shortened. There are a lot of studies dealing with the points mentioned below. The studies could be examined and adopted for what they say about the lives of Charles and Elizabeth and those like them.

            An important source of information about Charles and Elizabeth both generally and particularlly would be the Sumter and other South Carolina newspapers of the nineteenth century. What papers existed and what issues are still in existence and where they are housed now is something that should be a priority for research. Perhaps there are some Jones descendents in school now that would take a project on to look through the old papers that exist for information.

            Another important source would be the court houses in the counties neighboring Sumter which existed prior to Sumter County. They would have the records of the Jones, Davids, Staffords, etc that lived in the Sumter area prior to Sumter's existence as a county.

            Some points to elaborate on in an updated and revised article for publication would be:

            (1) The economic status of the South Carolina majority - the small farmers who owned no slaves. Charles and Elizabeth in the four or five years of their family life prior to the Civil War apparently owned no slaves. Charles's mother, Barbara may have had several slaves but not many. What resistance was there to the slavocracy and its politics from the small farmer? What was the the bankruptcy rate before and after the war? the price of cotton?, the general prosperity? the good and bad years?

            Where was Charles's house on the map? the one he grew up in and the one he lived in, in Sumter? What was the typical house of the small farmer like? How big? What shape? etc. What information from the newspapers and city director and records is there on Charles as a butcher and jail keeper. Where is his and Elizabeth's obituary?

            Who were the politicians in Sumter? Which ones would Charles have been for? Who were the politicians in the state and nationally which he would have favored? Did he lose his vote with the defeat of the Confederacy? How did he get it back and when?

            (2) What was the attitude, relation and ideology of slaves toward the small white farmers? What was the situation after the Civil War? In what ways did blacks (and small white farmers) show hostility toward the slavocracy and resist it? What was a slave life like? Their education, housing, health, income, clothing, food, religion? What was the situation after the war?

            (3) What was the attitudes and ideology of the small farmer to the Civil War amd to service in it? How did the small farmer resist? Did they see their interests as different from that of the big slave owners? Did at least some of them see the difference?

            Were the $12 per month wages considered good? How did they compare with normal income? Did the wages allow the small farmer to save up and buy land? Annual income of $60 to $100 was typical in the North for most people in the 1780s. One survived modestly on this. A farm would represent how much in value in earnings? Could small farmers get into farming? Or were they being squeezed out by the big operators and lack of land and capital? Were they like Charles, forced to urban work because the nature of the economy required one to be born with land? Was Charles trying to go west in 1860? to have his own farm? Did Lincoln represent an economic threat to him? Did he spend the rest of his life resenting the fact that he would never be a rich planter? Never be able to live off the back of others? How willing were the small farmers to fight without pay? or with low pay? Did wages continue at the same level thoughout the war? What was the amount of inflation and how did it enter in? How realistic was Charles if he expected to become a relatively big slave owner by successfully establishing a Confederate States of America? How many small farmers were going toward relative prosperity in the decades prior to the war?

            Did the rich pay big taxes to finance the war? Did this bring a re-distribution of wealth? Or was the war mainly supported by loans? with the rich refusing to pay much to support it? did the rich put up their wealth as collateral for the confederacy?

            (4) What was the nature of the press in Sumter and S.C.? Which newspapers and groups were opposed to or not enthusiastic about secession? Who were for ending the war once it started? What was their strategy and achievements? How did the secession occur? by legislative act? by convention? by coup d'etat?

            (5) What was the northern war strategy at first? What was the southern Civil War strategy? How did it evolve? How did Charles fit in? What was the strategy for the defense of Richmond? Was Richomnd ultimately abandoned? When? How did Charles's regiment fit in? What was the life of the cavalry soldier? their life in camp? training, songs, religous services, newspapers etc. What maps are available showing where Holcombe's legion and the Seventh Regiment South Carolina Cavalry served? When did Holcome's legion become part of the army of Northern Virginia? Did Charles know when he signed up he was going to Virginia? Where is Camp Capers?

            What was the Peninsula Campaign? especially in May-July, 1864? What did the earthern works which Charles help make look like? What photographs are available? What role did those who worked as spies behind enemy lines, such as Charles play?

            What do the records on the Union army that fought on the Peninsula say about Holcombe's legion and the war there? What union folk were stationed in the same area?s

            Why did soldiers go absent without leave? What percentage were court-martialed?, what percent deserted? What percednt did not serve? or did not serve in active units? Was there an evolution in consciousness by the rank and file soldiers so that they became a factor (by deserting, by refusing to fight, by refusing to follow orders, etc) in ending the war? Did they refuse to be canon fodder and state good reasons for doing so? Refuse to die for the slavocracy? or even fight for it? Why were one-half of the troops on the average not effective? Was there high or low morale? Did it change with time?

            Were officers elected? Was Charles popular with his fellow soldiers? Was there a draft? Did soldiers toward the end of the war se the end and refuse to take risks?

            Who was Alex Haskell - Charles's superior who had him court-martialed? What is in Haskell's military record that would give an idea as to why Charles was court-martialed? Why did he have it in for Charles?  Did Charles get court-martialed merely for personality reasons? or because of being anti-the dominant policy? Was there a lot of resentment that built up as the war dragged on and as soldiers saw they had nothing to gain? That is, did they see that it was the poor fighting the rich person's war? How many soldiers died from the war? in the years after the war from disease resulting from the war?

            (6) What type of battles were fought in the Sumter area? What evidence is there for Charles's fighting in the battle at Dingle's Mill What danger did Sherman's army do? What was the economic condition on the home front? What did the people like Elizabeth have to put up with? What did Confederate women do in war? What was the nature of reconstruction in Sumter? Was there an army of occupation?

            (7) What church did Charles and Elizabeth attend? What are the church records in Sumter that are available? Since Lucy Macon David was Methodist, maybe Elizabeth was? What was Charles?

            (8) How prosperous was Isaac David? in comparison with the average planter, in the Sumter and Charleston area? How common was Jewish intermarriage and assimilation? Where was Isaac's farm on the map?