I read your discourse about this topic some months back in this forum, and the good advice that a number of people provided to you. I was surprised and disappointed to notice that nobody recommended you get in touch with the Sons of Confederate Veterans. The SCV has a number of active chapters in Missouri, and one of their major goals is to provide appropriate gravestones for Confederate graves that do not already have a stone that reflects the deceased's Confederate service. Since you already seem to have research that documents your ancestor's Confederate service, I would recommend you get in touch with the closest SCV chapter to the place in Missouri where your ancestor is buried. You can look up the SCV in the Internet, determine the closest chapter, and contact them. Decorating and marking Confederate graves seems to be the SCV's chief goal. I am not a member, but I have met several who discussed this with me.

Forget that nonsense in your ancestor's record about him being a deserter. From what I read in your earlier replies, that was applied to this man's record by some clerk after the serviceman was forced to surrender by enemy action. This was common to the records of many Missouri Confederates. I don't think that has any play in your attempts to get an appropriate stone for the man's burial place.

I hope this reply will direct you to where you can get what you need.

Bruce Nichols