Ham's Regiment, Mississippi Cavalry

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Brief History

Ham's Cavalry Regiment (previously known as Ham’s 1st Battalion, Mississippi Cavalry (State Troops) and 16th Battalion State Cavalry) was organized in May, 1864, by transferring the 16th Mississippi State Cavalry along with a number of state companies to regular service. Many of the men were from Southeastern Mississippi. It served under Generals Gholson and F.C. Armstrong in the Department of Alabama, Mississippi, and East Louisiana. The regiment was active in various conflicts in Mississippi, Tennessee, and Alabama, but many were captured at Selma. Very few were included in the surrender on May 4, 1865. The field officers were Colonel T.W. Ham, Lieutenant Colonel William P. Curlee, and Major George W. Bynum.

See Ham's 1st Battalion, Mississippi Cavalry (State Troops) for additional history and a list of companies with their counties of origin.

Regiment Companies with the County of Origin

Men often enlisted in a company recruited in the counties where they lived though not always. After many battles, companies might be combined because so many men were killed or wounded. However if you are unsure which company your ancestor was in, try the company recruited in his county first.

Other Sources

• Beginning United States Civil War Research gives steps for finding information about a Civil War soldier. It covers the major records that should be used. Additional records are described in ‘Mississippi in the Civil War’ and ‘United States Civil War, 1861 to 1865’ (see below).
  

• National Park Service, The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System, is searchable by soldier's name and state. It contains basic facts about soldiers on both sides of the Civil War, a list of regiments, descriptions of significant battles, sources of the information, and suggestions for where to find additional information.
  

• Mississippi in the Civil War describes many Confederate and Union sources, specifically for Mississippi, and how to find them.. These include compiled service records, pension records, rosters, cemetery records, Internet databases, published books, etc.
  

• United States Civil War, 1861 to 1865 describes and explains United States and Confederate States records, rather than state records, and how to find them. These include veterans’ censuses, compiled service records, pension records, rosters, cemetery records, Internet databases, published books, etc.