Hi all, I received the following post from another list. It is being forward to ya'll for 2 reasons. 1.. there is info in here that could help others 2.. there is info in here that someone needs help on If you can help, please email me. kemis [email protected] ----- Original Message ----- Sent: Sunday, November 14, 2004 6:19 PM Dear readers, I am including a letter from a visitor to one of my sites. Perhaps one of you (or more) will have more solid information than I have. I welcome your comments. Barbara Timm cc: Peach, Macon, Coweta webmaster: Bartow Co. CSA In a message dated 11/9/2004 5:49:53 AM Eastern Standard Time, Msrow writes: Do you have any information about slave tags? I recently got one at a country auction house. It is brass and has CSA embossed on it, then 1862, then Slave, then No. 441. Where should I look for more information on this item? Any help from you would be deeply appreciated. Kay Dear Kay, Well, I'm sure not an authority, but it sounds like you have a very interesting and possibly valuable piece. Here are some sites that might help: _http://www.exonumia.com/slave.htm_ (http://www.exonumia.com/slave.htm) _http://www.museum.state.sc.us/culturalhistory/AfricTag.html_ (http://www.museum.state.sc.us/culturalhistory/AfricTag.html) _http://www.relicman.com/mis.htm_ (http://www.relicman.com/mis.htm) The first two sites tell about tags used by "hired-out" slaves in Charleston, S.C. These, however, don't sound like what you have since you didn't mention an occupation engraved on your tag and the Charleston tags don't mention a date included. The third site tells about the Charleston slave tags, but the "Relic Man" also has much material about the Civil War as well. The fact that your tag has "CSA" (probably initials for Confederate States of America) engraved on it and has no occupation engraved on it leads me to believe that slaves who fought in the Confederate army may have been issued such tags. The year, 1863, definitely falls in the Civil War period. Perhaps the owner's name and information was recorded and a number assigned to the slave who would be returned to his master after the war was over. I'm just guessing on this. Many African-American soldiers fought with the Confederate Army in the Civil War: 180,000 to be exact. _http://americancivilwar.com/colored/histofcoloredtroops.html_ (http://americancivilwar.com/colored/histofcoloredtroops.html) If African-American soldiers were issued tags such as these, and I've not yet found a site which suggests this, they were certainly ahead of the time. Dog tags were not being used yet, and the white troops were supposed to keep an identification paper on their person in case of injury or death. That plan didn't work too well because the Civil War graveyards are full of unidentified soldiers. _http://military.gabartow.org/cassvillecm.shtml_ (http://military.gabartow.org/cassvillecm.shtml) I hope this dab of information will help set you on a successful journey. I would be very interested to learn what you find out. I will also keep my eyes and ears open for more information. May I post your letter on my Bartow Co. CSA site? Also, could I have a scan of both sides of your tag? Maybe someone will come along who knows more than I do. I will also pose your question to the County Coordinators of GAGenWeb Project sites. They're a varied group with many interests and talents. Perhaps one of them can help. Barbara