In searching Fayette County, WV records I discovered letters from a man who
had been imprisoned as a "civilian" prisoner in Castle Thunder in Richmond then
in the Salisbury, N.C. Military Prison. Imprisoned in mid-1863, he claimed
that he had been denounced "by a "refugee," that he had a brief hearing before
a "Commissioner," that he had no charges filed against him, that he had no
chance even to "prove his innocence," and that an injustice had been committed
against him by the Confederacy.
I've been trying to discover, without success so far, if there was a set
procedure in the Confederacy by 1863 by which civilians or "political"
prisoners received some form of due process. Also are there records extant
showing the disposition of civilian prisoners in the Confederacy as opposed to
the records of those of Union POW's? Any help will be welcome. Thanks.
Lou Athey
(l_athey@acad.fandm.edu)