"But I KNOW my Great-Great-Grandaddy served in the Civil War!"

About four or five times a month I receive E-mail that asks how best to research a Civil War ancestor. The benefit of this research whether personal or for membership in organizations such as the United Daughters of the Confederacy or the Sons of Confederate Veterans, can be thrilling to find. Page County has several sources that can be accessed to aid in this venture and make it relatively uncomplicated. They can be found in the Page County Public Library to start. However, there are exceptions to the less complicated route. First there are several books that have been written as a part of the Virginia Regimental Histories Series published by H.E. Howard, Inc. of Lynchburg, Virginia. All of the units formed in Page County have been covered in books written or that are on the verge of publication. In Page County there were several units formed in which Page men served throughout the war including Company D, 7th Virginia Cavalry; Company K, 10th Virginia Infantry; Company H, 33rd Virginia Infantry; Company E, 35th Battalion Virginia Cavalry; Captain William Henry Chapman's Dixie Artillery, the 97th Virginia Militia, and Captain Peter J. Keyser's "Boy Company." The benefit of these books is that the rosters of the units have been nearly entirely transcribed, the only exception usually being the pay records. Furthermore, these books will also provide maps, photos (in some instances) and a unit history of some depth. Readers will note that some books are of greater length than others due to the availability of actual letters and diaries of the veterans of the units being available to the authors when writing these books. Unlike the advertisements often seen for "capsule histories" that usually costs about $20 each, at $19.95 each the regimentals provide much more information for the buck. While the regimental series is a great source for information on your particular veteran's service with the unit, do not however rely upon the book to give a full genealogical tree as it was not the focus of these books. Another source for information is found in a book entitled Page County Men in Gray. This book list the names of the men alphabetically, gives the unit in which they served and in some cases parental information, the names of the spouse and/or the names of some of the children. Mr. Thomas Spratt, the author of the book, also took the opportunity to scan all cemetery books for Page County to give birth and death dates of the veterans. Usually, with the regimentals, this work was also completed except in the completion of the 35th Battalion Virginia Cavalry. There is a benefit to this book in that it provides a handy cross-reference guide for further research into the regimentals. Do not however "put all of your eggs in one basket" with Spratt's book and become disappointed when you do not find your ancestor's name that you KNOW served in the war. In his work he covered all units organized solely in Page County. A big disappointment in his book is the fact that he did not go through the Virginia pension records for Page County Confederate veterans. Upon examination of these records a number of years ago I found that there were men in the county who had even resided in the county at the outbreak of the war who served in other regiments such as the 7th Virginia Infantry (George E. Pickett's Division), the 23rd Virginia Cavalry, and the Stuart Horse Artillery, just to name a very few. I myself found an ancestor who served with Keyser's "Boy Company" and later enlisted with 2nd Company M, 62nd Virginia Infantry on May 4, 1864 and was fighting at new Market eleven days later. Upon close examination of Spratt's book I did not find his name however, although he was descended from a family who had been in Page County since its formation, resided there before, during and after the war and even died here. "So where do I start?" I started with a family story, as I have heard others have in Page County as well. First I found out that a Great-Great Grandfather had served in the war and the story behind his service. From there I figured out how he was exactly related to me and then I was off to the (then) Virginia State Library (now known as the Library of Virginia) in Richmond. Other people start with Harry Strickler's Short History of Page County and go from the incomplete lists of veterans published therein. Today with the aid of Spratt's book and the regimentals, one can "quick reference" and find a bonanza of information in seconds. However, if you want more, and there is more available from the pension records in Richmond, I would highly recommend a personal visit to the Library of Virginia for such research. For those who cannot find the ancestor they KNOW to have served in the war in the regimentals or Spratt's book, go first to the Library of Virginia or even the National Archives in Washington, D.C. From there you can begin with the Combined Service Records of Confederate veterans available on microfilm. First reference the cross reference microfilm - at Richmond there is a cross-reference microfilm for Virginia soldiers; at Washington there is one for all Confederate soldiers from all states including Virginia. Then, after you have found the name you were searching for you can go to the microfilm of the particular unit in which he served and find your veteran and his specific record. If your in Richmond and have found your ancestor's microfilm record, it would be good to also look for the pension record. Whether he survived the war or not, there may be a record for him or his widow that would give other vital statistic information otherwise unavailable from the service record. In the case of Union soldiers one would need to go to Washington and check the cross-reference of Federal soldiers in the war. There at Washington, one too can one find a pension record for a Union veteran. In addition to all of this, within one or two years and as the grand finale to the Virginia Regimental Histories Series there will be a set of books (now estimated at two to three volumes set) that will include all of the names of all of the veterans of all of the units from Virginia who served for the Confederacy. Therefore, by referencing this set of books one would be able to quickly reference the particular name and then find the unit specific book in which the ancestor's military record could be found. For those who look into the regimentals and, though they find their ancestor's military record, find there is no photo, there is still a way to rectify the situation. Each book is limited to 1,000 copies in its first edition, however, when the book goes into a second or third edition (limited to 200 copies each) which some have already done, new photos and new vital information provided by readers can be added. If you are one of those people who are concerned that there are letters or diaries that have yet to find their place in history in these books, or there is no photo of your ancestor in the books, whether a wartime or a postwar photograph, you can send a copy to the publisher of the series for future publication. The address is H.E. Howard, Inc., Rt. 2, Box 496H, Appomattox, Virginia 24522. Please reference the unit and name of the veteran for easier placement of the information or photo.