Item No. 1778200

Monthly return document for June 1862 written out and signed by First Lieutenant John S. Wilson of Company D (Chester Troop), 1st South Carolina Cavalry, while on John’s Island on July 5, 1862. The document lists 2 commissioned officers and 59 enlisted men present, while also giving details about the numbers of sick, furloughed, or detached on other duty. Of particular interest:

• A note regarding Captain William A. Walker’s absence: “Absent Chester S.C. since April 12, 1862. Crippled by fall on Wadmalaw Island on night ___ day of April 1862.”

• Privates J.R.P. Wall and E.T. Wade: “Captured by enemy returning from Picket post, also his horse.”

• Sixteen men transferred to Company K by order of Lieutenant Colonel John L. Black.

The Chester Troop saw extensive service in South Carolina and Virginia, fighting at Pocotaglio, Fredericksburg, Brandy Station, and Gettysburg. Later, the company returned to South Carolina and was posted at the Florence Stockade, where they were responsible for tracking and recapturing escaped Union prisoners.

The document was written on both sides of a large pre-printed form measuring about 15 1/2” x 10 1/4”. Creased at the original folds. Some minor paper loss and soiling. It was part of the John S. Wilson family archive of Chester District, South Carolina.