During my genealogy research journey, I undervalued many records, such as the land deed index books, looking for homestead files that were never earned and Supreme Court Cases files. However, one of my current favourites is the Union Civil War Pension file.
Each file I’ve ordered so far contains between 180 and 300 pages, chock-full of witness statements, marriage licenses, listings of children and wives, and sometimes facts that they temporarily moved to Illinois to avoid conscription.
One of the reasons I didn’t turn to them earlier was the time and cost involved in obtaining them and the frustration of trying to order them through NARA. I had bad experiences where it took them 18 months to tell me they simply didn’t have the file, although I had a pension number for the application and certificate. Then again, the high costs for each one turned out to be private-owned companies that would do the work for you at about 50% of the price and have a monthly turnaround time. I’ve chosen https://gopherrecords.com/ as their flawless track record, with about 20 orders for various documents. (There is no kickback to me for recommending them, other than that I trust them and want you to have the same experience).
With your roots in DeKalb County by 1850, chances are that one of your great grandfathers or great uncles fought in the Civil War. Surprisingly, the Union Soldiers’ count was higher than the Confederate Soldiers. We are lucky that Will Hale left us a list of known soldiers in his work; those names have been transcribed, and as profiles are being added on WikiTree, their profiles are being tagged to the solider they are believed to be, said if they appear to be missing, and noted if a tombstone has been placed for them and if there is a pension file. We are hoping that, eventually, we can order all of the pension files for DeKalb soldiers.
Confederate soldier records are a bit more challenging; some exist and are available at the TSLA, Fold 3, and NARA; unfortunately, in many cases, the records simply did not survive the last 160 years. We are lucky in DeKalb, as William Freddy Curtis has undertaken a historical project focusing on these records. I look forward to speaking with him and hearing more about it. When one person can focus on such an important area, it truly helps us uncover records that may be missed.
Civil War pension files have helped me clarify a confused identity between Tilmon Joines and Tilmon Jones, both with ties to Dismal. They have also clarified the children and timelines for the family of Stephen Bane and Deliah Crook, and Matlock Robert’s son Paschal was known as Charlie Roberts in his adult days.
However, what has helped the most is adding validation to the parents, siblings, children, and spouses to meet the genealogical standards and avoid errors. While we can think we have the lines correct through census records and marriage records, there is always room for error, where Joines becomes Jones through someone’s transcription, where there are 3 William Crooks’s the same age, and where people don’t know how to spell their own last name, or what their birthdate is. They can help confirm if there was a family bible and, if so, where it was last seen.
In the case of Tilmon Crook, it contains a copy of the divorce decree for him and Dovie Johnson and, for some reason, a lot of Dobson Johnson’s file; I haven’t yet figured out why it’s in there; I’m sure I will sort that out when I read it. They can also provide us clues to mysteries that we do not expect; in the case of William R. Crook’s File, much to my shock, I found the first name of his uncle John Crook’s(1815-1888) first wife is likely Inez(still working on the transcription) as William’s 2nd wife was John’s 4th wife.
As we receive these, they are being added to the WikiTree profiles, and I’m happy to share the original PDF with anyone who can assist. I want to ensure we remove the financial costs from the equation and that they are shared with others, which will help add greater clarity to our collaborative efforts.
We are also working on the first Civil War Tombstone as a part of this. I thank Kurt at Avant Funeral Home for figuring out how to order the honorary tombstone. William R Crook will be the first, as we know he is buried in Dismal; his exact location is unknown, and a mapping project of Dismal will be underway soon to try to identify the most logical place he is at, as his likely won’t be the only new tombstone place there.
As for me right now, I have 4 civil war Pension files to work through; 3 are for the sons of Robinson Crook and the other is Zenith Cripps. Through William R Crook’s file, we know there was a family bible that existed at one time, where it is we don’t, perhaps new clues will be found in the files. Perhaps find our link to the other Robinson line in DeKalb will live amongst it that will help me correct mistakes, and add confidence to other facts. For Zenith, his is the first file I’ve ordered that isn’t related to me, I’m excited to be reaching that stage.
There is another thing the pension files provide us, other then answers and corrections, and that’s richness to the lives of our ancestors. We get to learn about about their neighbors, their health struggles, their journies, their last days, and from what I hear on occasion pictures are found in them, and isn’t that what genealogy is about? While we can have all the facts we want, genealogy would be boring if we stuck with census records, and just the facts.
If you have an ancestor who was in the civil war, see if you can find a pension file for them, their widow, their children, their siblings, and take the jump to order it, you won’t regreat. Please also keep in mind if funds are an issue, let me know and we will see about ordering it for you, as our ancestors should not be hidden behind a pay wall, as no one owns them.
DeKalb County, Tennessee Genealogy Association 