Genealogy Q&A: Tracing a Confederate Navy Ancestor

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Q. My ancestor supposedly fought in the Civil War for the Confederacy, but he’s not in the Civil War Soldiers and Sailors database. Any ideas?

A. Consider the possibility that your ancestor may have been a sailor rather than a soldier. Although the Civil War Soldiers and Sailors site is quite complete for soldiers, it includes records of only about 18,000 African-American sailors.

To verify a Confederate sailor’s service, consult the Subject File of the Confederate States Navy, 1861-1865. Its records relate to ships and personnel during the Civil War era, including paymasters’ vouchers. You can search this collection at subscription site Fold3 and in National Archives microfilm publication M1091.

From the January/February 2015 Family Tree Magazine

Military