In 1853-1869 my 2GGF - Edmund S. Martin and family lived in St. Clair Co,AL. Recently I've been looking for a record for him in the CW, and all that I have is a letter recd. by a cousin of mine when she inquired at the AL Dept. of Archives & History (Mtgy.) in 1983 concerning Edmund S. Martin's possible CW service. Donald Watson, Military Archivist, stated in the letter that all he could find for him was an order of the Governor's correspondence (1863-64) showing " ...one Edmund S. Martin, Shoemaker, St. Clair County, Alabama - exempted from military service 1861-1865." For the Governor to exempt someone whom specifically named as a 'shoemaker', for the duration of the war, seems to indicate to me that the Gov. thought such an occupation was important enough to exempt him in order that he could be free to provide shoes for the population and for soldiers in that area. Sort of like a a gunsmith, a cobbler (shoemaker) was thought of as a 'Patriot' during the time of the Revolution. Along with other necessities, shoes were always in short supply in the Confederacy, especially when it came to outfitting the soldiers. Thanks for any light someone might be able to shed on this. Martha