Hi Marty and Greg -
here is the info from the April 7, 1862 loyalty/security bond for George Wesley Byrd (see URL below):
"....R.M. BYRD [handwritten] and HENRY HICKS [handwritten]....as securities, hereby acknowledge ourselves to be held and firmly bound unto the United States of American, in the sum of ONE THOUSAND [handwritten] dollars for the payment of which, well and truly to be made, we hereby bind ourselves, and each of his heirs, [unintelligible here], administrators and assigns...."
R.M. Byrd is Riley Marion Byrd, the younger brother of George Wesley Byrd. What is the relationship of Henry Hicks to James Madison Hicks?????
Here is the info re both Hicks and Sills in CSA units:
...from Lynn (2002) re KY CSA units:
Hicks, J. 12th KY Cav. Co. A
Hicks, James Quirk's KY Scouts
....from Part 2 of Tennessee In The Civil War:
Hicks, James 20th Tenn. Inf. Co. A
Hicks, James Allison's Tenn. Cav. Co. C
Hicks, James McClung's Tenn. Lt. Artill.
Hicks, James M. 30th Tenn. Inf. Co. E
Hicks, J.M. 12th Tenn. Consol. Inf. Co. D
Hicks, Jones 50th Tenn. Inf. Co. B
Hicks, Leander 50th Tenn. Inf. Co. D
Hicks, Shadrach 50th Tenn. Inf. Co. I
Hicks, Thomas T. 50th Tenn. Inf. Co. H
Hicks, W.B. 50th Tenn. Inf. Co. D
*Note: all of the 50th Tenn. companies listed above were apparently raised from Stewart County, TN.
I also checked Iris Hopkins McClain (1965) "History of Stewart County Tennessee" - there was no listing of any James M. Hicks as a CSA vet/soldier.
HOWEVER.....I found the following listings in TITCW Part 2 which may be useful to the puzzle:
Sills, Daniel Co. D 50th Tenn. Inf.
Sills, E.G. Co. D 50th Tenn. Inf.
Sills, Hardy I Co. F 50th Tenn. Inf.
Sills, John E. Co. F 50th Tenn. Inf.
Sills, Wiley Co. D 50th Tenn. Inf.
Sills, Willis C. Co. D Holman's Tenn. Cav. Battalion
Question: is it possible that the family stories you described for James Madison Hicks may have actually been for one of your Sills ancestors???? All of the Sills in the 50th Tenn. listed above were apparently from Stewart County.
Greg - what info do you have on the 50th Tenn. Sills listed above?????
cuzzin Ken