A Georgia Rebel Goes AWOL and Joins the Union Army

14 May 2019 Off By James Gardner

The Confederate Congress passed a conscription law in April 1862, which made all men aged 18 to 45 eligible to be drafted into the military.  One way to escape the draft was to find a “substitute” – a man to take your place and serve in the military in your place.  Substitutes had to be paid and it could cost up to $3,000 to secure one ($60,000 in today’s dollars).

William B. McHan, of Pickens County, GA,  was 19 years old in 1862 and decided to hire a subsitute.  According to the conscription law, the subsitute had to be less than 18 years old or more than 45 years old – somebody not eligible for the draft themselves.  William found such a man – John Cutcher – a military veteran, no less.

John Cutcher had enlisted twice during a previous U.S. war:  the War of 1812.  John Cutcher was 82 years old !

He was found to be a “good and efficient substitute” and he was definitely over the age of 45.  He was mustered into Captain Morris’ Company of Infantry as the Drum Major and Chief Musician – he was referred to as Major Cutcher.  He joined the Confederate Army on 10 Aug 1862.

William McHan was provided an “Exemption Certificate”, which kept him out of the draft – at least for 1862.

John Cutcher did not last long.  After only 4 months of service, he was found “unfit for duty” for 20 days in a row, and he was referred to the medical authorities.  A medical board determined that he should be discharged for disability, namely rheumatism and the “infirmities of old age”.  He was sent home on 19 Dec 1862.

It’s unclear how Cutcher’s discharge affected McHan’s eligibility for the draft.  Was he still exempt, because his substitute (if only briefly) had served honorably; or, was he (again) eligible to be drafted, because his substitute was no longer serving?  In Jan 1864, the Confederate Congress abolished the substitute option and even those men who had paid for a substitute in 1862-1863 became eligible for the draft again.

In Nov 1863, William McHan was minding his own business in Pickens County, GA, when a roving “recruiting officer” came to town.  Sgt Magill belonged to Capt Maxwell’s Light Battery of the Georgia Artillery, which was camped near Savannah.  He traveled over 300 miles to end up in Pickens County.  While in Pickens County, he accosted McHan and arrested him in an attempt to force him to enlist through intimidation.  McHan insisted that he was exempt from service because he had paid for a substitute, but he didn’t have his exemption certificate on his person.  

Magill had no powers to “enroll” or conscript recruits; obstensibly, he was canvassing the area for “voluntary” recruits.  In fact, he threw several candidates into jail with threats of prison and worse.  

McHan, with the help of a friend, was able to have his exemption certificate brought to him in jail.  However, somebody else told Magill that John Cutcher (McHan’s substitute) was no longer in the Army – and Magill used this fact to argue that McHan’s exemption certificate was void.

Eventually (1 Nov 1863), under duress, McHan “signed some forms”, which he was told, were not binding and that he could assert his rights later – relative to his exemption status.  In fact, these were “voluntary” enlistment forms – he was now a voluntary member of the Confederate States Army – a new member of Capt Maxwell’s Battery.  Magill confiscated McHan’s exemption certificate and refused to return it to him until he was ordered to do so a week later.  Not surprisingly, McHan was immediately transferred to a second unit, Capt Daniell’s Battery – probably to separate McHan from Magill. Not long after his return to the unit, Sgt Magill was promoted to Lieutenant.

On 7 Nov 1863, McHan was granted a 7-day furlough (probably unheard of – since he’d only been in the army for 6 days), so he could travel to the state capital, Milledgeville.  Apparently, he was going to plead his case to state military authorities there.  Quickly, affidavits supporting his case were gathered and forwarded directly to the governor and his father, Alanson McHan wrote a personal letter to the governor.  At some point, Alanson was told that a discharge for his son was pending, but it never happened.

In December 1863, McHan was reported AWOL from furlough and on 21 Jan 1864 he was declared a deserter from the CSA.

TURNCOAT

William McHan next surfaces in Cleveland, TN, where he enlists in the Union Army on 1 Dec 1864.  He is mustered in with Company K, 5th Tennessee Mounted Rifles to serve for one year.  Normally, his enlistment would be credited to his place of residence, but McHan was credited as an “at large Tennessee” enlistment.  This may suggest that he did not have had a permanent residence in Tennessee.

His Union Army records make no reference to his prior service in the Confederate Army.  His service in the Union Army appears to have been uneventful.  The digital copy of his muster-out sheet is not legible, but it is likely that he mustered out with the regiment on 17 Jul 1865 at the end of the war.  

Is This the Same Person?

  1. William McHan, the rebel, was born in Rutherford County, North Carolina – although he was a resident of Pickens County, GA, in 1860
  2. William McHan, the Union soldier, declared his birthplace as Rutherford County, North Carolina
  3. Alanson McHan, the rebel’s father, who wrote several letters in his defense, was living in Louisville, Kansas, in 1870
  4. Alanson McHan, the father of the Union Army veteran, was living in Louisville, Kansas, in 1870

Post-War Life

William McHan returned to Pickens County, GA, after the war.  He signed an official loyalty oath (“Reconstruction Oath”) that was filed there on 15 Aug 1867.  I’m curious to know if his neighbors knew that he served in the Union Army.

He had left his brand new wife there, when he was shanghai’d by Sgt Magill.  He and Sarah Jane Bearden had been married in Pickens County on 5 Sep 1863.

By 1870, he was living in Kansas with his wife and three young children – all born after the war.  Also in the same town are his parents and at least two of his siblings and their families.

Sarah McHan passed away in 1875, possibly during the birth of her last child that year.  William now had 5 young children under the age of 10 – although he had plenty of family in the area.  Their children: William, Ida, Leonard, Catherine, and Samuel.

In 1886, he married a local widow, Mrs Laura Herboldsheimer.  She had four children of her own at home.  They then had two children of their own, Edgar in 1888 and Edna in 1891.

In 1895, William and Laura were living apart.  Edgar was living with William and Edna was living with Laura.  In 1900, Laura reported her marital status as divorced.  She was then working as a live-in housekeeper for Robert Shannon.  She later marries Shannon and they move to California.

William McHan died at the age of 57 on 10 Feb 1900.  He is buried in Wamego, Pottawatomie County, Kansas; where a veteran’s headstone is installed – a Union stone.