At Dennis Brooke's request, I looked up the entries under the name "John Bestler" in my 1920 print copy of Booth's "Records" and found the following:

(1) Bestler, John, Private, Company E, 3rd (Wingfield's) Louisiana Cavalry. Enrolled May 25, 1861 at Camp Moore, Louisiana. Present on roll dated June 1st, 1862. There was no further record of service noted.

(2) Bestler, John, Private, Old Company G, 6th Louisiana Infantry. Enrolled May 25, 1861 at Tangipahoa, Louisiana. Present on all rolls to December 1861.

I found no record stating that "John Bestler" of "Old Company G, 6th Louisiana Infantry" was of African Descent. How did you come by this information? With the current drive to document the existence of "black" Confederates, a lot of false records are being created and published as if they were authentic records.

Camp Moore and Tangipahoa are the same site. May 25, 1861 at Camp Moore is the organization date of the 4th Louisiana Infantry. The 6th Louisiana Infantry was organized on June 4, 1861 at Camp Moore.

James P. Gannon recently wrote "Irish Rebels, Confederate Tigers," a regimental history of the 6th Louisiana Infantry. He re-created the company rosters for this regiment from the microfilmed Compiled Military Service Records for the 6th Louisiana Infantry at the National Archives. There is no listing of a soldier named "John Bestler" nor of "Old Company G."

Dr. Art Bergeron's "Guide to Louisiana Confederate Military Units 1861-1865" (LSU Press, 1989) shows that 1st Company G (the Beaver Creek Rifles from St. Helena Parish), 4th Louisiana Infantry (organized May 25, 1861 at Camp Moore near Tangipahoa, Louisiana) was transferred to the 9th Battalion of Louisiana Partisan Rangers organized under the command of Lieutenant Colonel James H. Wingfield at Camp Moore on or about May 28, 1862. Wingfield had been the Captain of the Beaver Creek Rifles which became Company E, 9th Battalion, Louisiana Partisan Rangers. In January 1864, the battalion was designated the 3rd Louisiana Cavalry Regiment with Wingfield promoted to full Colonel.

You wrote: >>>I'm told he's my 3rd great grandfather [John Bestler of Wingfield's 3rd Louisiana Cavalry]. Hoping to find his military record if it exists and a pension file, tho I don't believe he received a pension. He allegedly lost an arm.<<<

I am inclined to think that the one line entry in Booth for "John Bestler" in "Old Company G, 6th Louisiana Infantry" actually belongs to John Bestler of the Beaver Creek Rifles (which could be called "Old Company G, 4th Louisiana Infantry") and that Booth's archivists, or the state printers who published Booth's "Records" in 1920, mistakenly transposed a "6" for what should have been a "4." This record should have been combined with the record of "John Bestler" in Company E, Wingfield's 3rd Louisiana Cavalry.

John Bestler of the Beaver Creek Rifles would likely have been a resident of St. Helena Parish. Have you found him in the 1860 Federal Census for that parish? Some basic genealogy work should establish whether this soldier from St. Helena Parish is likely to be your ancestor.

Louisiana provided free land to Louisiana residents (or their widows) who lost a limb or were otherwise disabled by their Confederate military Service. I did not find anyone surnamed "Bestler" listed.

If your ancestor was a resident of Louisiana when Confederate pensions became available in the 1890's, and if he or his widow filed a claim, the records of this will be in the Louisiana State Archives in Baton Rouge. They have a searchable database online now. Again, I did not find the name "John Bestler" listed. See http://www.sec.state.la.us/archives/gen/cpa-alpha.htm

Bergeron's "Guide" contains a short narrative of the service highlights of each of these units. The Beaver Creek Rifles maintained their identity throughout these organization changes. You can get a good feel for what your ancestor experienced during the war from these narratives.

Hope all this helps!