Jesse Harper Shelton was born around 1826 in Mecklenburg County, Virginia. He married Mary Louisa Land on December 17, 1857, and they had at least seven children: Louisa, born around 1859; Margaret, born around 1861; Nancy, born around 1863; John, born around 1866; David, born around 1868; Ruth, born around 1876; and Robert, born around 1879. He worked as a sawyer in Sussex County, Virginia, and by 1860, he owned $1,500 of real estate and $5,000 of personal property.

 

He enlisted in the Confederate army on May 24, 1861, and he mustered in as a private in Company A of the 41^st Virginia Infantry. According to his service records, he was 5 feet, 9 inches tall, with light hair and gray eyes. The regiment took part in the Seven Days’ Battles and the Second Battle of Manassas. He reportedly “refused to reenlist,” and he mustered out on September 6, 1862.

 

He settled in Waverly, Virginia, after leaving the army, and he earned a living as a farmer. By 1870, he owned $2,500 of real estate and $500 of personal property. He moved to Newville, Virginia, in the 1870s. He died on December 14, 1909.

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