Alan, thank you for the information, it is a big help. I do understand what the purpose of the State Guards, what their duties were and their term of service. As to John D. Carpenter, there was a document of discharge for him in 1864, the date and the officer who signed it were very hard to read. One of my uncles was in posession of this document and some documents of other ancestors, this document was the only one that he had not made a copy of, and, unfortunately, my uncle's house was directly in the path of the tornado that hit Ringgold this past April. His house was destroyed and everything inside was blown away, so all the records are lost.
I really do thank all you guys at the message board, you really do a great job and have helped so many find answers that most cannot find. Thanks again