Personal Information

Son of Thomas McGill Boyd (1805-1872) and Tirzah (Tersa) Clark Faires (1818-1875), Jesse A Boyd was born around 1842, in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina.[1] He is white and of Irish descent, as ascertained by the birth of his maternal great grandfather around 1740 in Antrim, Ireland, and the birth of his paternal great-great grandfather around 1730 also in Antrim, Ireland.[2] Both relatives immigrated to the United States, where their children were born, sometime after the two dates listed. One of seven children, Boyd’s siblings include William Monroe “Buster” Boyd (1838-1912) John James Boyd (1840-1865), Isaac David Boyd (1844-1927), Alfred (Alpheus) King Boyd (1848-1920), Mary Boyd (1850-before 1860), and Martha A Boyd (1858-).[3]According to the 1860 census, prior to his enlistment into the North Carolina 13th Infantry in 1861, Boyd worked as laborer in the Western Division, Mecklenburg County, North Carolina.[4] His four years of military service for the Confederate States of America reflect his commitment to preserve his southern upbringing, a period that included service in four different regiments in both South Carolina and his home state until his death on April 29th, 1865.

Civil War Service

According to a Company Muster Roll card for the NC 11th Infantry, Jesse A Boyd enlisted as a Private (his rank in all military units) in the North Carolina 13th Infantry, Company B, at Charlotte, North Carolina by Captain Chalmers Glenn on May 5, 1861.[5] He remained in NC 13th Infantry for ten months, where he was involved in five battles that amounted to fifty-four wounded soldiers, but no deaths.[6] His assignments included the Department of Norfolk.[7] Then, according to North Carolina military records, Boyd was enlisted and mustered into the South Carolina 18th Infantry, Company H, on February 1, 1862 for reasons unknown.[8]Here, his assignments were the 2nd Military District South Carolina Division in the Department of South Carolina, Georgia and Florida.[9] A period of five months ended in Boyd’s transfer to the North Carolina 18th infantry, Company H on July 15, 1862.[10] During his stay in this regiment, Boyd worked in the Branch's/Lane's Brigade, A.P. Hill's Division, 2nd Corps, in the Army of Northern Virginia until May 1863, whereupon he fought in the Lane's Brigade, Pender's/Wilcox's Division, 3rd Corps, Army of Northern Virginia.[11] Lastly, according North Carolina military records, Boyd was transferred for causes unknown to the North Carolina 11th Infantry (Company H) also known as the 11th Bethel Regiment NC, on November 15, 1864;[12] he fought in the Pettigrew's/Kirkland's Brigade, Heth's Division, 3rd Corps, the Army of Northern Virginia[13] until his capture at Petersburg, Virginia by Union soldiers on April 2, 1865.[14] His membership in the North Carolina 11th Infantry experienced one of the most crucial battles in Civil War history, the Battle of Petersburg. This not only resulted in the end of the Civil War, but also precipitated the capture and death of Jesse A Boyd as a POW.

Petersburg: History and Jesse A Boyd

After Boyd’s mustering in to the NC 11th Infantry on November 15, 1864, Commanding General Ulysses S. Grant of the Union reaffirmed his goals to destroy the Confederacy in a war of attrition. Although Richmond was the Confederate capital, the Union focused their attention on the manufacturing city of Petersburg, located 24 miles south of the capital.[15] The capturing of Petersburg would give Union control over the five railroads that joined there, thus ending one of Richmond’s major communication centers.

The initial assault on Petersburg lasted from June 15-17, 1864.[16] Under the supervision of Major General George G. Meade (Army of the Potomac) and Major General Benjamin Butler (Army of the James), Petersburg became under attack on June 15.[17] The Confederate defenders, under General Pierre G. T. Beauregard, were unable to stop the Union takeover of many Confederate defense. However, with reinforcements from the Army of Northern Virginia, the Confederates were able to withstand further assaults by the Union army. The siege would last ten more months until the Union Sixth Corps breached the defenses on April 2, 1865, whereupon General Lee requested the evacuation of both Petersburg and Richmond.[18] Seven days later on April 9, 1865, General Lee surrendered to General Grant at Appomattox Court House, thus ending the war.

The 2nd of April also effectively ended the war for Jesse A Boyd. Following the Union takeover, Boyd was captured as a Prisoner of War, and, according to a Prisoners of War roll card, arrived at Point Lookout, Maryland, from City Point, Virginia (Union headquarters during Petersburg siege), on April 4, 1865.[19]He died on April 29, 1865, from disease contracted in the Point Lookout Prison Camp for Confederate soldiers. Boyd was one of approximately 3,000 soldiers captured or missing from the Battle of Petersburg,[20] and one of 177 POW’s captured from the NC 11th Infantry[21]—the highest number of POW’s experienced during any battle of this regiment. In total, the NC 11th Infantry lost 716 soldiers as POW’s during its three years in the war.[22] The entire Petersburg operation resulted involved 180,000 soldiers, with about 42,000 Union casualties and 28,000 Confederate casualties.[23]

Point Lookout Prison Camp and Death of Jesse A Boyd

According to a Prisoner of War roll card, Jesse A Boyd arrived at Point Lookout, Maryland, on April 4, 1865, located in the southern tip of Maryland.[24] Established in August 1863 after the Battle of Gettysburg for Confederate soldiers, this camp housed the largest number of Confederates in the Union, and was protected by the surrounding Chesapeake Bay and Potomac River.[25] Confederate prisoners at Point Lookout experienced unsanitary and inhumane conditions; Union officers shot Confederate soldiers at will, and food was given in minimal amounts, forcing prisoners to eat raw, dead animals.[26] Additionally, flooding in the summer bred mosquitos. The above conditions resulted in an area rife with disease, eventually causing the death of Jesse A Boyd on April 29, 1865.

[1] Ancestry.com. Boyd Family Tree, Jesse A Boyd, Pvt, Co. H, 11th North Carolina [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA:Operations, Inc., 2009. Accessed June 7, 2017

[2] Clayton Hickock Genealogy Site-Person Sheet. Alexander Faires [database on-line]. Accessed June 7, 2017. Last modified October 24, 2011. http://heathcock.org/genealogy/ps23/ps23_136.html

Ancestry.com. U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012. Find A Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi.

[3] See note 1 above.

[4] "Civil War Service Records, Confederate Records," digital images, Fold3 (http://www.fold3.com : accessed 7 June 2017), Eleventh Infantry, pg. 7, headed "1860 U.S. Federal Census - Population," entry for Jesse A Boyd; citing NARA microfilm publication Population Schedules for the 1860 Census, compiled 1860 - 1860 , M653, roll 0906.

[5] Compiled service record, Jesse A Boyd, Pvt., Co. H, Eleventh Infantry; Carded Records Showing Military Service of Soldiers Who Fought in Confederate Organizations , compiled 1903 - 1927, documenting the period 1861 – 1865, Record Group 109; National Archives, Washington, D.C.

[6] "Historical Data Systems, Inc." Jesse A Boyd, Pvt, Co. B, 13th North Carolina. “Regiment Casualty Analysis.” Civil War Data. Accessed June 7, 2017. http://www.civilwardata.com.

[7] "Historical Data Systems, Inc." Jesse A Boyd, Pvt, Co. B, 13th North Carolina. “Regiment Assignments.” Civil War Data. Accessed June 7, 2017. http://www.civilwardata.com.

[8] "North Carolina Troops 1861-65," Jesse A Boyd, Pvt, Co. H, 18th South Carolina. Civil War Data. Accessed June 7, 2017. http://www.civilwardata.com.

[9] "Historical Data Systems, Inc." Jesse A Boyd, Pvt, Co. B, 18th South Carolina. “Regiment Assignments.” Civil War Data. Accessed June 7, 2017. http://www.civilwardata.com.

[10] "North Carolina Troops 1861-65," Jesse A Boyd, Pvt, Co. H, 18th North Carolina. Civil War Data. Accessed June 7, 2017. http://www.civilwardata.com.

[11] "Historical Data Systems, Inc." Jesse A Boyd, Pvt, Co. B, 18th North Carolina. “Regiment Assignments.” Civil War Data. Accessed June 7, 2017. http://www.civilwardata.com.

[12] "North Carolina Troops 1861-65," Jesse A Boyd, Pvt, Co. H, 11th North Carolina. Civil War Data. Accessed June 6, 2017. http://www.civilwardata.com.

[13] "Historical Data Systems, Inc." Jesse A Boyd, Pvt, Co. B, 11th North Carolina. “Regiment Assignments.” Civil War Data. Accessed June 7, 2017. http://www.civilwardata.com.

[14] “Compiled Service Records of Confederate Soldiers Who Served in Organizations from the State of North Carolina,” digital images, Fold3 (http://www.fold3.com : accessed June 6, 2017), Eleventh Infantry, pg. 4, headed “Prisoners of War at Point Lookout, Md,” entry for Jesse A Boyd; citing NARA microfilm publication Carded Records Showing Military Service of Soldiers Who Fought in Confederate Organizations , compiled 1903 - 1927, documenting the period 1861 – 1865, roll 0191

[15] "Petersburg: Assault on Petersburg." Civil War Trust. Accessed June 6, 2017. https://www.civilwar.org/learn/civil-war/battles/petersburg.

[16] Ibid.

[17] Ibid.

[18] "10 Facts: The Petersburg Campaign." Civil War Trust. Accessed June 05, 2017. https://www.civilwar.org/learn/articles/10-facts-petersburg-campaign.

[19] See note 14 above.

[20] "Historical Data Systems, Inc." Jesse A Boyd, Pvt, Co. B, 11th North Carolina. “Battle Directory: Petersburg, VA.” Civil War Data. Accessed June 7, 2017. http://www.civilwardata.com.

[21] "Historical Data Systems, Inc." Jesse A Boyd, Pvt, Co. B, 11th North Carolina. “Regiment Casualty Analysis.” Civil War Data. Accessed June 7, 2017. http://www.civilwardata.com.

[22] Ibid.

[23] See note 18 above.

[24] See note 14 above.

[25] McFarland, Wayne. "Prison History." Descendants of Point Lookout POW Organization. October 27, 2008. Accessed June 06, 2017. http://www.plpow.com/PrisonHistory.htm.

[26] Ibid.