Ernest's musket probably belongs to H. H. Sample from Shreveport who appears to have returned to Louisiana after service with the Dreux/Rightor 1st Special Battalion and Nelligan's 1st Louisiana Infantry. He enrolled in the State Guards and was paroled on 8 JUN 1865 at Natchitoches. Company D of the Dreux/Rightor Battalion was the Shreveport Greys which was assigned to Nelligan's 1st Louisiana Infantry regiment on 27 JUN 1862. Dr. Art Bergeron has done a wonderful job tracking and documenting all these units in his "Guide to Louisiana Military Units 1861-1865" (LSU Press, 1989).
1st Sergeant Hiram SAMPLE, Company I (the Catahoula Guerrillas of Wheat's 1st Special Battalion, aka the Louisiana Tigers), 15th Louisiana Infantry was captured at Gettysburg on the morning of 4 JUL 1863 at the top of Culp's Hill where he had been wounded the day before but could not withdraw under fire. Apparently his wound did not require a hospital stay and he was sent off to Fort McHenry arriving 6 JUL 1863. From there he was forwarded to Fort Delaware arriving sometime in the 7/12 JUL 1863 time frame.
A single entry with the name "J. Sample" appeared on the 30 JUL 1863 parole roster of sick and disabled prisoners who were sent from Fort Delaware to City Point for delivery and exchange. War Department archivists threw this item in Hiram's file not knowing what else to do with it. It is possible some other prisoner of war was using a made up identity to get away.
Hiram remained a prisoner of war at Fort Delaware for almost twenty months until released on a "humanitarian exchange" in the spring of 1865. He was paroled at Fort Delaware on 7 MAR 1865 and delivered to Confederate authorities in the time window 10/12 MAR 1865 at Boulware's & Cox's Wharves on the James River in the neutral ground near Fort Harrison. In order to qualify for this release, a Union army surgeon had to make the determination that a candidate would likely be unfit for duty for at least 60 days upon his return. There is nothing further in Hiram's CMSR, but, based on my study of other returnees with more complete records, it is likely that he was examined in the Richmond receiving hospital and furloughed for 60 days. He would have gone home to Louisiana. The war was over before he could recover his health and return to duty.
The Society would be very much interested in learning more about this Confederate soldier's life. If anyone has a photograph of Hiram, we would be happy to add that to our Public Display board.
Hugh Simmons
Fort Delaware Society
Website: www.fortdelaware.org
E-mail: society@fortdelaware.org