You're giving me way too much credit. Stir in a little speculation with a dab of reasoning, and the two CSRs provide all the ingredients needed for my post. Unless a pension application exists for either one, there might not be much more on these boys.

You're right about pensions being the next step (some folks do it the other way around). Since they were made decades after the events, veterans (and especially widows) can be well off on dates. We may suspect that some exagerated a bit, too.

Descendants who start with pension applications often treat every word as the Bible. Trust me -- you can't pry them loose from wrong unit designations, wrong events and wrong dates with a crowbar. They'll come burn your home first. Most if not all of the facts are in the CSRs. The PAs can be used to fill missing parts of the story, but you have to be careful there, too.

You're going about this the right way.

Assuming both were life-long residents of Mississippi, someone on this board can tell us what's available for the two Vandivers. If a pension application exists for either one, you can order copies right here.