Thanks, Alan, for your insight. I too, think he was a casualty after the BIG battle. A mystery to me is how his widow in Pontotoc, MS had an old condolence letter, from Columbia, TN, all but the 5th page missing, but describing a burial and the grave being marked, etc, sent by Cornelia F. Warfield, wife of Maj. Amos Warfield, of Columbia, TN...very southern people, and she is noted locallly as having helped care for their sick/dying soldiers, and 'helping with burials' in the War. I went to Columbia, visited the library there, and discovered after coming home, that there were old graves on the Warfield plantation...Beachlawn....told it could be soldiers, or could have been slaves...but I've thought some unusual thing happened that he was carried North, rather than south, and dropped off at a place to care for him...Vance's widow also had his razor and a leather 'pouch' that goes on the belt, with a flattened 'mini-ball'? inside it...I think his items were sent home by Mrs. Warfield. Just my musings.