On Jan 1, 1862 he entered the 31st TN Infantry regiment, "K" Company, as a Private. On the 8th of May, 1862 he was promoted to 4th Cpl.
From August 31st to December 31st he was wounded and at a hospital in Knoxville, TN.
Then he was in Atlanta, Georgia from March to April. On May 12th, 1863, at the age of 20, he was at the outpost at Shelbyville, TN, at Atlanta Hospital. He was then captured at Franklin, TN on the 17th of December. He was forwarded to Louisville, KY....then onto to Camp Chase, Ohio.
According to the records, he had fair skin, with light hair...his eyes were blue, and he was 5'7" tall.
He surrendered at Washington, GA on 14 May 1865...subscribed to oath 22 May 1865. His occupation was listed as: Teamster with a pay of 25 cents. A teamster was a wagon master, the guy in charge of driving the wagon and taking care of the horses that pulled it. May have pulled kitchenwares, food, ammo, etc.
Gleaning from roll of the 31st TN Infantry....William Smith Cavitt stayed with the 31st TN Infantry until surrender.
31st Tennessee Infantry's Battle Flag
The flag came from the great-grandson of the last flag bearer, Sgt. William Beliew, in Weakley County. During the Battle of Nashville a large group of the 31st were captured and Sgt. Beliew ripped the flag from the staff and hid it under his cloths. He was sent to Camp Chase where he sewed the flag in the lining of his jacket and it remained there until his release. He then carried the flag to several UCV reunions after the war.
The flag has some UCV reunion ribbons sewn on the reverse side from the reunions. It is a beautiful Dalton issue and was last heard of in a collection out west.
Photos courtesy of Ronny Mangrum
Lotz House Museum
111 Columbia Ave.
Franklin, TN 37064
(615) 791-6533
The 31st (A.H. Bradford's) Tennessee Infantry Regiment
Organized Oct. 12, 1861, reorganized May 8, 1862; formed Company G 3rd Consolidated Tennessee Infantry Regiment April 9, 1865; paroled at Greensboro, NC, May 1, 1865.
Field Officers
Colonels- A.H. Bradford, Egbert E. Tansil
Lt. Colonels- C.M. Cason, Mansfield D. Jinkins, F.E.P. Stafford, Samuel H. Hudson, Samuel Sharp
Majors- John F. Smith, F.E.P. Stafford, Samuel H. Hudson, Samuel Sharp.
Captains-...[edited]John Elliott, John A. Hatler, George C. Thomas
Co. K; Men from Weakley County.
Assembled at Camp Trenton, Gibson County, moved to Camp Price; from there on Nov. 29, 1861 to Columbus, KY under the command of Brig. Gen. J.P. McCown. Jan. 18, 1862 put under command of Maj. Gen. Leonidas Polk as a part of 3rd Div, which included 5th, LA Battalion, 12th & 12th LA Inf Reg., three troups of cavalry and three batteries of artillery. Feb. 28, 1862 at New Madrid, MO. Mar 17, 1862 Gen. McCown report he was leaving Island No. 10 for Fort Pillow with them. April 6, 1862 Brig. Gen. John B. Villepigue at Fort Pillow reported the 31st armed with Enfield rifles, well clothed, arms and accoutrements in satisfactory condition, but their camp police (cleanup) was in bad order and discipline and instruction could be improved. April 30, 1862 still at Fort Pillow, reported 621 for duty out of 765 present.
Remained at F. Pillow until after the Battle of Shiloh April 6-7, 1862 then moved to Corinth, MS and placed in Polks Corps. Four Tennessee regiments remained together throughout the war, the 31st, and 33rd were together at times as a field unit, and the 4th and 5th Tennessee remained and were placed under Maj. Gen. Genjamin F. Cheatham.
Regiment moved with the brigade from Corinth toTupelo, to
Chattanooga, with Gen. Bragg in the invasion of KY, culminating in the Battle of Perryville Oct. 8,1862 (this is a reenactment battle annually now). Here the 31st suffered 100 casualties. It retreated to Murfreesboro and was engaged in battle there Dec. 31, 1862. The 31st/33rd reported 379 engaged, and suffered 87 casualties.
It winter quartered at Shelbyville and vicinity until retrograde movement to Chattanooga began June 1, 1863. April 1 Colonel (later Brg. Gen.) Otho F. Strahl commanded until his death at Franklin, Nov. 30, 1864.
Next engaged at Chickamauga, Sept. 19-20, 1863. (My note: A William A. Cavitt of El Paso Co, TX, member of Co "A". 4th Texas Infantry, CSA, also fought in the Battle of Chickamauga, and had his leg amputated as a result.) 250 casualties reported by
the brigade; moved to Sweetwater until just before the Battle of Missionary Ridge where it suffered 21 casualties.
Winter quarters at Dalton, GA Dec. 14, 1863, 137 effectives out of 157 present. Lt. Col. Stafford in command. Brigade returned to Cheatham's Div. Feb. 20, 1864 where it remained for the duration of the war. Almost daily engaged in the fighting from Resaca, GA to Atlanta, to Joneboro, the return to Tennessee as part of Gen. Hood's Army, and the Battle of Franklin, where it lost 286 souls, including Gen. Strahl and Lt. Col. Stafford of the 31st. Col. A.J. Kellar was put in command of the brigade
on Dec. 10, 1864 and the 31st was under Lt. Col. Luke W. Finlay.
It participated in the Battle of Nashville Dec. 15, 1864 and then retreated to MS. Survivors were given a furlough to visit home in West Tenneessee and only a few got back in time to make the final move to NC. to join Gen. Joseph E. Johnston.
In the final reorganization of Johnston's Army, 21 men from the 31st remained to form Company G of the 3rd Consolidated Tennessee Infantry Regiment, commanded by Col. James D. Tillman. As part of this regiment, they were paroled at Greensboro, NC May 1, 1865.
Thank you to Lian Thomas for the above information, taken from TENNESSEANS IN THE CIVIL WAR, A Military History of Confederate and Union Units with Available Rosters of Personnel. Part 1, Published by the Civil War Centennial Commission, Nashville, Tennesee 1964. Reprinted by The University of Tennessee Press, 4th printing 1989. Paraphrased from pages 240-242.
Lian's website, listed below, has many wonderful Civil War links.
Civil War Links
Lian Thomas' Kentucky/Tenneesse Page
Camp Life during the Civil War
US Civil War Center
Whitley County, KY
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