You could also get out of serving by paying someone to take your place. Of my four g grandfathers that served one age 38 needed money so he took the place of another left his wife and new born son in October 1864 and went to war. On the last day of the war for his unit, April 2, 1865 he was severely wounded in an early morning charge at Petersburg VA, he was never the same again. His commanding officer wrote about it years later. IN A CHARGE NEAR FORT HELL http://suvcw.org/mollus/warpapers/MEv2art008.htm Herbert A Rideout Fallbrook, CA ----- Original Message ----- From: "Cheryl" <cjordan3@cinci.rr.com> To: <ILSTCLAI-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Saturday, June 25, 2005 8:26 AM Subject: [ILSTCLAI] railroad workers and civile war >I have an ancestor that did not enlist in the CW although all of his >brothers did. I do know that he worked for the railroad and am wondering if >railway workers were encouraged to remain with the railroad instead of >enlisting. Does anyone have any knowledge of whether this would have been >the case? > Thanks in advance > Cheryl > Clinton County Ohio > >