Civil War Database for Montcalm County

Civil War Database for Montcalm County
This collection came about through my personal research of Civil War Veterans who resided in Montcalm County. Some entered service in Montcalm County, others passed through following the war. I found myself revisiting the same websites to view information. I needed a way to organize the data in one place. It evolved as I worked on it and items were added as new sources were discovered. I come across new names almost daily. It is by no means complete. Sources used include: Seeking Michigan-death records, Civil War Service Records, Civil War Volunteer Registries Fold3-Civil War Pension Index, Civil War Widows' Pensions, Civil War Service Records Find A Grave National Park Service Soldiers and Sailors Database Montcalm County MIGenWeb 1890 Veterans Schedules 1894 Michigan State Census GAR in Michigan, GAR records from Post #83 The Patriots-Montcalm County, Michigan Men Who Were in the Civil War 1861-1865 by William J. Delp, 1990 Headstones Provided for Deceased Union Civil War Veterans, 1861-1904 Men of the 3rd Michigan Infantry (search using Montcalm)
Abbreviations:
*	Soldier may be dead but information was given in this census, usually by a widow. See notes column.
ABT	About
FAG	Find A Grave
KIA	Killed in Action
POW	Prisoner of War
TWP	Township
VRC	Veteran Reserve Corp
I went through all the Montcalm County census records for 1890 and 1894. These were unreadable at times and often transcribed incorrectly in Ancestry and Family Search. I made many online corrections as I worked through the pages. Places are listed as they were on the census during that year. The person may not have moved but the way the census was taken may have changed for their area between 1890 and 1894.
Names varied across sources. If multiple spellings or versions of a name were discovered I listed those. If initials or middle names were found in another source, I listed those in red. Many men had the same or similar names. If you don't see the name you are looking for you may want to try ctrl+f and search for it. It may be listed nearby.
One thing that surprised me in my research was that many men served in more than one regiment, company or even branch of service. It was quite common. The units listed are what I found for each soldier. I probably did not find all the regiments for these men; especially those from out of the state of Michigan.
The date entered column usually refers to the date of enlistment. Some records did not specify whether it was the enlistment date or the muster date. Sources sometimes varied by a few days. Whether this was record-keeping, memory or transcription errors, we may never know.
If the birth date is listed with abt it was determined from the age given at enlistment. Men often lied to say they were older. Some even lied to say they were younger than they actually were at the time. Use it as a guide, not a fact.
Death dates were sometimes listed on the Pension Index cards. These did not always match official death records or gravestones. Death records and gravestones may not match as well.
If you have any questions or additions please email Paula Johnson.