John Wesley Smith
John Wesley Smith was born around 1839 in South Carolina to William and Elizabeth Smith. His father was a farmer who owned $1,200 of real estate by 1850. He grew up and attended school in Marlboro District, South Carolina, and his father died in 1858.
 
He enlisted in the Confederate army on April 13, 1861, and he mustered in as a sergeant in Company K of the 8th South Carolina Infantry. He expressed devotion to the Confederate cause. In October 1861, he wrote that it "is true that we who have volunteered have to undergo many hardships but if we get back safe from the wars we will have our reward in the gratitude of a grateful people. I could never stay at home and leave my friends and others to fight the battle of independence alone while I was enjoying myself at home. I should feel that I could be justly accused of cowardice." Later that month, he added that the "soldiers of the Confederate States are fighting for life home liberty, all that is dear to them." 
 
He fell ill in the summer of 1861 and spent several months recovering at home. He rejoined the regiment sometime in 1862. His health deteriorated again that fall, and he spent several months at a hospital in Lynchburg, Virginia. He was reduced to the ranks in April 1863, and Confederates assigned him to work as a clerk on the examining board. He later became a hospital clerk in Richmond, Virginia. Union forces captured him in Richmond on April 3, 1865, and he received a parole on April 24, 1865.
 
He returned to Red Hill, South Carolina, after the war, and he earned a living as a lawyer. He later worked as a custom house clerk. In November 1916, he applied for admission to the Confederate Infirmary in Columbia, South Carolina. He died on November 21, 1917.
4303
DATABASE CONTENT
(4303)Smith, John Wesley18391917-11-21
  • Conflict Side: Confederacy
  • Role: Soldier
  • Rank in: Private
  • Rank out: Private
  • Rank highest: Private
  • Gender: Male
  • Race: White

Documents - Records: 20

  • (11896) [writer] ~ John W. Wesley Militia Drilling Instructions, 22 September 1860
  • (11897) [writer] ~ John W. Smith to Elizabeth Smith, 25 April 1861
  • (11898) [writer] ~ John W. Smith to Elizabeth Smith, 12 May 1861
  • (11899) [writer] ~ John W. Smith to Sister, 25 September 1861
  • (11900) [writer] ~ John W. Smith to Sister, 7 October 1861
  • (11901) [writer] ~ John W. Smith to Sister, 10 October 1861
  • (11902) [writer] ~ John W. Smith to Sister, 18 October 1861
  • (11903) [writer] ~ John W. Smith to Susan E. Smith, 8 June 1862
  • (11904) [writer] ~ John W. Smith to Susan E. Smith, 30 July 1862
  • (11905) [writer] ~ John W. Smith to Mary J. Smith, 29 October 1862
  • (11906) [writer] ~ John W. Smith to Susan E. Smith, 30 September 1862
  • (11907) [writer] ~ John W. Smith to Mary J. Smith, 24 November 1862
  • (11908) [writer] ~ John W. Smith to Mary J. Smith, 24 January 1863
  • (11909) [writer] ~ John W. Smith to Mary J. Smith, 4 July 1863
  • (11910) [writer] ~ John W. Smith to Elizabeth Smith, 23 July 1863
  • (11911) [writer] ~ John W. Smith to Mary J. Smith, 3 November 1864
  • (11912) [writer] ~ John W. Smith to Elizabeth Smith, 9 March 1865
  • (11914) [associated with] ~ Report, 6 May 18XX
  • (11937) [associated with] ~ Unknown to Gabrielle (?), 26 November 1882
  • (11939) [associated with] ~ Manuscript Fragment, undated

People - Records: 6

  • (4304) McLeod, Ellen is the [aunt/uncle of] (4303) Smith, John Wesley
  • (4305) Smith, Susan E. is the [sibling of] (4303) Smith, John Wesley
  • (4306) Smith, Mary J. is the [sibling of] (4303) Smith, John Wesley
  • (4307) McLeod, John W. is the [aunt/uncle of] (4303) Smith, John Wesley
  • (4308) Horn, Isabella J. H. is the [aunt/uncle of] (4303) Smith, John Wesley
  • (5579) Smith, Elizabeth is the [parent of] (4303) Smith, John Wesley

Places - Records: 1

  • (429) [birth, death] ~ South Carolina

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Regiments - Records: 1

  • (1017) [enlisted] [K] ~ 8th South Carolina Infantry
SOURCES

1850, 1860, and 1870 United States Federal Censuses, available from Ancestry.com; Military Service Records of John W. Smith, available from Fold3.com; South Carolina Confederate Home Records, 1909-1958, available from Ancestry.com; John W. Smith to Sister, 10 October 1861, DL1747.006, Nau Collection; John W. Smith to Sister, 18 October 1861, DL1747.007, Nau Collection