Gathering information on what our ancestors did during the Civil War is a difficult task indeed. From what my parents and grandparents have told me, the veterans spoke of it little. And even the official records that attempt to document what the various Mississippi military organizations did is disappointingly sketchy, at least the ones that my ancestors were a part of. The reason for this is clear. They lost the war and wanted to forget about it and get on with their lives. However, I have read that after 25 to 30 years, the vets began to come out of their shell and write and talk about their colorful experiences. At least one group that did this was "The Prairie Guards" of the Columbus/Starkville, Miss. area. This group even met periodically and one of its members wrote a history of their war experiences. I have been fortunate enough to get my hands on this fantastic document. Even though I do not have a direct ancestor in that organization, there are some familiar names there and I have kept a copy in my Wilkins file.

I had two direct ancestors that fought during the Civil War. One was my great-grandfather, Peter Early Spinks. The other was my mother's maternal grandfather, Alexander Trotter Hand.

Mary W. Spinks, my wife, had at least one ancestor that fought. He was Charles James Wilson who died at the Battle of Gaines Mill, just north of Richmond, Virginia.

Peter Early Spinks (1821-1906) joined Perrin's Regiment, Mississippi Cavalry in Kemper County, Miss. This was also known as the Eleventh Regiment of Mississippi Cavalry. There are 3 cards about him on microfilm in the Jackson, MS, archives. Per those cards he rose to the rank of 1st Sgt. of Company A. The earliest card documents his enlistment by Capt. Perrin, Oct 6, 1863; one card documents his re-enlistment by Capt. Perrin, Mar./Apr., 1864; and the third card reports that he took a leave of absence, March 30, 1864. Dunbar Rowland in "Military History of Mississippi, 1803-1898" on page 133 talks of Captain Perrin's company. He makes it sound as if the organization went to Virginia and may have been with Jeb Stuart's cavalry in the Gettysburg campaign. But I seem to remember that, during the Gettysburg battles, Lee wondered where Stuart was He was out scouting or something and did not get into the main battle at all.

After further study of Rowland's "Military History of Mississippi," I believe that Peter Early Spinks was not involved in the organizations whose descriptions begin on p. 133. Those actions began in 1861, but documentation claims that P. E. Spinks did not enlist until 6 Oct 1863. I believe that it is more likely that he was in the Perrin organization whose description begins on p. 422. There the Eleventh Cavalry Regiment is described. It was organized in mid 1863 which corresponds to the P. E. Spinks documentation. Per the descriptions given on p. 422 thru 424, this 11th Cavalry fought in the south only, first in Miss. around Meridian and Starkville; then in Georgia in the defense of Kenesaw Mountain and Atlanta, and against Sherman's march to the sea. Part of the organization was in the escort of President Davis in his flight to Florida through Georgia. Federal records document the capture on 2 APR 1865 of the organization flag of the Eleventh Miss. at Selma, Ala.

Sally Brame Harrell, one of my father's first cousins, told me in 1980 that she remembered her Grandfather Spinks, but did not remember him talking about his war experiences. I got the impression that he rode his own horse in the war. Sally said she knew it was grey because she had seen a "horsehair flower" made of the horse's tail. The "flower" had been placed in a shadow box, behind glass, for hanging on the wall.

Peter Early Spinks had four brothers who also fought for the Confederacy. Their names were Presley N. Spinks (1823-?), Dr. John C. Spinks (1831-1910), Raleigh W. Spinks (1833-1875), and Dr. Enoch Ephrim Spinks (1835-1911). All five brothers survived the war.

Dr. John C. Spinks served both in the trenches and as a surgeon. He served from Richmond to Gettysburg to Petersburg, and is listed as one of the officers that surrendered with Lee at Appomattox.

Ephrim Enoch Spinks joined Company A of the 35th Miss. Regiment. He was first a sergeant, then in 1862 was appointed second lieutenant. He was badly wounded at Franklin in 1864 which rendered him unfit for further military service. He later became a dentist in Meridian.

Alexander Trotter Hand (1835-1898), one of my grandfathers on my mother's side, enlisted with the 4th Mississippi Cavalry [later the 2nd] which was commanded by Col. James Gordon. He rose to the rank of sergeant. My mother, Helen Fox Spinks, has written that A. T. Hand fought in the Battles of Iuka, Corinth, and possibly in the Battle of Chickamauga, and in Alabama. Col. James Gordon has documented his campaign at Corinth, (P. Miss. Hist. Soc. IV, p. 63) so one can assume that A. T. Hand was with him. There are several documents on microfilm in the Jackson Archives concerning A. T. Hand. Per those documents, he was a sergeant in Co. F of the 2nd (mistakenly first known as 4th) Regiment, Miss. Cavalry, having enlisted 19 APR 1862. It is also recorded that he surrendered at Citronelle, Ala., May 4, 1865, and was paroled at Gainesville, Ala., May 14, 1865. Family tradition has it that A. T. Hand walked home from Alabama. My mother has written that since A. T. Hand survived the war unscathed, his children always joked with him that he must have fought from behind a pine tree. Rowland gives a good description of activities of the 2nd Miss. Cavalry starting on p. 402 of Military "History of Miss." The organization fought in Miss., Tenn., Ala., Ga., and finally again in Ala. where they surrendered in southern Ala.

My other two great-grandfathers, Nathan Jackson Fox (1815-1891) and Charles Edward Brame (1823-1892), were preachers and would not have fought actively in the Civil War. However, their allegiance was with the South, and it is known that they did their part by preaching to and counseling the troops whenever possible.

My great-grandmother, Mary Elizabeth Lloyd (1828-1900), who married the above Peter Early Spinks, had a brother Joseph Cowling Lloyd (1840-?). Joseph Lloyd served in Company C of the 13th Mississippi Infantry from Manassas to Gettysburg, where on the second day of battle he was severely wounded in his left arm which had to be amputated. He was captured during Lee's retreat and sent to a hospital on David's Island, N. Y. After six weeks, he was paroled. I have a picture
of Joseph Lloyd with most of his brothers and sister in which one can observe thru the coat he is wearing that his left arm is missing.

My great-grandmother, Eliza O'Ferrall (1835-1908) , had a brother, John William O'Ferrall (1823-1895), who was active in the Civil War. Per Rowland's "Military History of Miss.", John O'Ferrall formed an infantry company in early January, 1861, The Enterprise Guards, which became a part of Abert's Regiment and went to southern Alabama and western Florida to take a part in taking over United States installations in that area. This was before the formation of the Confederacy and the regiment was mustered out during February 1861. John O'Ferrall remained active, however, and was appointed 'brigadier-general of state troops.' Later, in August of 1864, he enlisted another infantry company of 72 men, Company A of the 2nd Mississippi Infantry Regiment from Enterprise and Macon, and was listed as their captain.

Mary Wilson Spinks, my wife, has a great-grandfather, Charles James Wilson (~1833-1862), who fought for the Confederacy. He was killed at the Battle of Gaines Mill, north of Richmond, Va., 27 JUNE 1862. It is said that he was accidently shot in the back of the head by one of his own fellow soldiers. As the story goes, they were firing at the enemy from two lines, one behind the other. One line would fire while the other would drop down and reload. In the excitement, someone got out of sync and was up at the wrong time and the accident happened. He belonged to the Chickasaw Guards, Co. H of the 11th Mississippi Infantry.

Charles James Wilson had a brother, Samuel Leroy Wilson (1838-1911), who also served in Co. H of the 11th Miss. He was wounded twice, the second time at Gettysburg, where he was shot in the thigh. He survived the war and later became a prominent member of the Chickasaw County community.

The Wilson brothers and Co. H are well coverered by "Duty, Honor, Valor--The Story of the Eleventh Mississippi Infantry Regiment" by Steven H. Stubbs.

The above information was gleaned from family records, family tradition, records in the Mississippi Archives, the North Carolina Archives, the Virginia Archives, and from tombstone inscriptions. The author can provide more exact sources upon request.

Albert H. Spinks
May 31, 1996
Updated and place on the webpage
Nov. 18, 2001