Since the early Mississippi settlers were obliged to serve in Militia units I am wondering if a lot more Mississippi Confederate vets could claim Mexican War service than what we think. Maybe they never left Mississippi and were simply "called up" but could still claim to have been active during that time (Mexican War). For instance my great-grandfather John Roberts was 18 years old when the war with Mexico started. I have never seen any reference to him involving military service before April 1861 but I've always been curious as to why he would volunteer for duty at age 33. Remember, he enlisted in a Misssissippi unit, not a Confederate unit. Since these companies were raised in the spring of 1861 would this indicate the idea of local militia had ended sometime before? Is it possible these new companies were formed (in some cases) by old militia companies?
All this is a long way of asking if you know when mandatory service in the Militia ended in Mississippi. Was it prior to or after the Mexican war. If you can help with this I would sure appreciate it.