Well, I've got some of the story.

First, I found George Chamblin in the 1860 census living in the Francis M. Green household (1860 series M653, roll 626, page 988) of Madison Township, south Johnson County, MO. Green was a farmer, age 34 (I think), moderate income, born KY. George was 17, born in MO.

Second, I found him also in the Missouri Secretary of State's website, MO State Archives as a former member of Co. D. 16th Missouri Infantry (CSA) attending the 6th Annual Reunion of United Confederate Veterans, John N. Edwards Camp No. 733, at Higginsville, MO (Lafayette County), on 24 July 1902.

Third, in Joanne Eakins' 1995 "Missouri Prisoners of War" I found two entries for a George Chamberlain captured as a bushwhacker in Henry County 1 August 1862, then sent to Gratiot Street Prison in St. Louis, transferred to Alton, IL Military Prison, then transferred to Sandusky, Ohio (I forget the name of that prison) where George was exchanged as a regular Confederate soldier for another Yankee POW. I think this is your George Chamblin, and the Yankee clerk goofed up his surname because Henry County is close to Madison Township, Johnson County, and the dates tend to match what you wrote. George Chamberlain or Chamblin must have been able to prove himself not a bushwhacker to get exchanged at Sandusky, Ohio, or he would have been executed instead. I'm not sure this is your guy, but it is awful close to your guy.

Fourth, I don't think that skirmish was in St. Charles County, since that is all the way across the state. I strongly suspect that took place in St. Clair County, which is south of Henry County.

Five, 200 guys in 1862 was a company, which would normally have been one twelth of a regiment. No group. There is a problem with that. See the next paragraph.

Six, the Confederacy conducted a huge recruiting drive in west-central MO during July and August 1862, and lots of the recruits were not yet organized into anything more than companies until their recruiters got them back by horseback to Arkansas. Not until they got to Arkansas were they placed into regiments, by and large. Those that didn't make it to Arkansas with the rest were not in regiments like the rest of the Confederate Army. The problem was that all of MO was under Union occupation that summer, so those recruiting commands had to ride like the devil to stay ahead of the Yankee cavalry, and a lot of the new recruits got separated during the wild chases and later captured. This is what I think happened to George A. Chamblin. That Iowa regiment was the 1st Iowa Cavalry that was stationed in Henry, St. Clair, and other nearby Counties in July and August 1862. Clinton is the county seat of Henry County and part of the 1st Iowa Cavalry was garrisoned there. From my reading I see that the 1st Iowa captured scores of the new Rebel recruits all through this period. This is lucky for George, since some of the Missouri cavalry regiments didn't take as many prisoners, if you follow my drift. By the way, I wrote about this in my 1862 book, that you can see via Interlibrary Loan whereever you live.

There, clear as mud, right? Does this help? Pardon the guesswork, but sometimes that is all we have to paste the pieces back together.

Bruce Nichols