This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Classification: Query Message Board URL: http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec/msg/an/xhC.2ACE/839.1 Message Board Post: Linda -- There's really not very much on the subject available, so this was an interesting research project. As established by law on March 6, 1861, infantry and cavalry companies were allowed four sergeants and four corporals each. Congress added a 5th sergeant on Aug. 21, 1861. Monthly pay was established at eleven dollars for privates, twelve dollars for musicians, thirteen dollars for corporals and seventeen dollars for sergeants. As the senior non-commissioned officer, the 1st Sergeant had a specific set of duties. Sergeants and corporals were numbered according to seniority. As vacancies occurred, they were customarily promoted by seniority. However, since appointments were made at the discretion of the company commander, we sometimes see a 3rd Corporal move to 5th Sergeant, or something like that. Other than the specific duties given to the 1st Sergeant, I'm unaware of any duties assigned to other non-commissioned officers. This source -- the best on line I could find on the subject -- suggests that duties of corporals were little different from those of sergeants, except thay they were considered assistants to sergeants. This is a reenactor website, but the detail you may want is here: http://www.17thgeorgia.com/duties.html You might consider posting this query on the Alabama in the Civil War Message Board, or one of the other associated state sites listed on the Civil War Monitor: http://history-sites.com/cgi-bin/boards/alcwmb/index.cgi? A number of knowledgeable people read these queries daily and will be happy to respond to questions like these.