A presentation before the Stonewall Jackson Civil War Roundtable January 14, 2025
Unrest
As the decision to draft men unfolded in 1863, people rioted. When the government tried to institute the draft in New York City in July 1863, things quickly got out of hand. Government buildings were torched, and rioters fought in the streets against troops. At the time, it was claimed over 1,000 people were killed in the incident. It is now believed around 120 people died in the riots. About 300 people were injured with around half of them police and troops of the Union Army.
The Surgeon General (Song New Christy Minstrels Version)
I got my call to go to war
I went to be enlisted
The Surgeon General looked me ‘oer
And loudly he insisted!
You cannot wear the uniform
Your lungs are much affected
It’s plain to see your eyes are crossed
And otherwise affected!
So now I’m with the invalids
I cannot go and fight Sir
The Surgeon General told me so
Of course it must be right Sir
He said you’ve got an itchy scalp
Your hair is getting thinner
And tell me Sir, with teeth like that
How Do you eat your dinner?
It’s plain to see you’re overweight
Your pressure is alarming.
I said with much alacrity
The Ladies find me charming.`
So now I’m with the invalids
I cannot go and fight Sir
The Surgeon General Told me so
Of course it must be right Sir.
I would have liked to have gone to war
But Sir I was prevented
So now I’ll have to stay at home
And keep the girls contented
Because of my conditions Sir
War would be a bother
The Surgeon General ought to know
Because he is my Father!
So now I’m with the invalids
I cannot go and fight Sir
The Surgeon General Told me so
Of course it must be right Sir.
Drawing for the Draft
Throughout the next few months, the Office of the Provost Marshal published daily reports of enlistment and to which county they were credited to,
Daily report of enlistments.
Office a. a. P. M. G. West VA
Wheeling, February 20, 1864
7th VA Infantry
Harrison County – Thomas G. Downey
1st Va. Artillery – Batteries A and D
Harrison Co. – Bosley Humphreville
1st Va. Cavalry (Not Mustered)
Harrison Co. – Gilbert S. Brown, William Bartholomew, Joseph Douglas
12th Va. Infantry
Harrison Co. Jason C. Robinson, Alex C. Sweeney
That same day, in another article, Harrison County was credited with the reenlistment of 18 men and the initial enlistment of one soldier into the 1st West Virginia Cavalry.
Daily (Wheeling) intelligencer, February 22, 1864 (note for sake of brevity I have only listed Harrison County enlistments. The original article contains the names and units of other Counties and cities in the area.
DAILY REPORT OF ENLISTMENTS.
OFFICE A. A. P. M. G. WEST VA
WHEELING, FEBRUARY 20, 1864
7th VA Infantry
Harrison County – Thomas G. Downey
1st Va. Artillery – Batteries A and D
Harrison Co. – Bosley Humphreville
1st Va. Cavalry
Not Mustered
Harrison Gilbert S. Brown, William Bartholomew, Joseph Douglas
12th Va. Infantry
Harrison Co. Jason C. Robinson, Alex C. Sweeney[1]
That same day, in another article, Harrison County was credited with the reenlistment of 18 men and the initial enlistment of one soldier into the 1st West Virginia Cavalry.
Was the Draft effective?
- It stirred enlistment into the Union Army.
- It raised money to support the war effort
- It led to increased enlistment by newly freed black citizens
- It resulted in a small percentage of ‘draftees’ in the Union Army It created a new type of scam ‘bounty jumping’It created the mechanism for Drafts after the Civil War.
In America, the draft has always been a controversial subject. Many people support it, as they feel it is necessary for a country at war, while many people are against it, as they feel they should not be forced to go to war. Whatever your stance is, the draft has always created controversy, from the Civil War through to the War in Vietnam.
Is the DRAFT Constitutional?
The US Supreme Court: The highest duty of the citizen is to bear arms at the call of the nation. This duty is inherent in citizenship; without it and the correlative power of the State to compel its performance society could not be maintained. (Vattel, Law of Nations, Book III, c. 2, §§ 8, 10).
It is a contradiction in terms to say that the United States is a sovereign and yet lacks this power of self-defense. Hence, the power was expressly granted by the Constitution. Art. I, § 8. It is found in the power to declare war, which means a power to carry on war successfully, i.e., with the means necessary.
The Southern Draft
The Confederate states draft began in 1862, not too long after the war broke out. It differed from the North’s draft. At first men between the ages of 18 and 35 were called up and were required to serve for three years if selected. Th age group grew as the war went on, with the final draft covering those aged 17 and 50 years with an unlimited period of service. With the increased age group, there came more ways to get out of serving if selected.
On October 11, 1862. A new exemption act, soon dubbed the Twenty Negro Law, was approved. The Third Conscription limited the number of reserved occupations, but, although much criticized, kept the “Twenty Negro Law” in modified form.
The debate over conscription reflected the political struggle in the Confederacy between those who saw it as another example of the threat to freedom posed by the centralization of power, the suspension of habeas corpus being another. Their opponents viewed a strong central executive and these measures as essential to preserve Southern independence.
The Northern Draft
At first, some of the Northern States used the threat of the draft to increase enlistment. If people were scared, they might be more inclined to sign up. It helped, but government officials knew it would not be enough.
The Militia Act of 1862 (12 Stat. 597, enacted July 17, 1862) was an Act that authorized a militia draft within a state when the state could not meet its quota with volunteers. The Act, for the first time, also allowed African-Americans to serve in the militias as soldiers and war laborers. Previous to it, since the Militia Acts of 1792, only white male citizens were permitted to participate in the militias.
The Enrollment Act of 1863; the first genuine national conscription law. The 1863 law required the enrollment of every male citizen and those immigrants who had filed for citizenship between ages 20 and 45 and making them liable for conscription
The act gave the Union a boost in soldiers, but still, there were not enough volunteers. They needed more troops. The Enrollment Act of 1863, sometimes called the Civil War Military Draft Act, was the answer to that problem.
It came with a lot of controversies, mostly due to who had to enroll, which was every male that was a citizen, between the ages of 20 and 45. Included, were immigrants who had requested citizenship. If called to duty, they had to go. One exception was that married men could not be drafted until all available unmarried men had been drafted.
How Did the Union Draft Work?
All men in the appropriate age groups were required to register with the Marshal’s Office.
The State of West Virginia was assigned a quota of men for service in the Army. These quotas were then passed down to the counties to fill.
If a County (or subdistrict in larger states) couldn’t fill the quota based upon enlistments it would draft soldiers to fill the ranks.
Names were usually placed in a large drum and drawn by a ‘disinterested’ official. Often a legally Blind person, or someone wearing a blindfold would draw names from the drum.
The names would be posted and sent to the local newspaper for posting.
Draftees would report to the Provost Marshal’s Office for physical and mental inspection and if found fit drafted into the Army. If there were enough enlistees or substitutes provided by the county
they were exempt until the next draft call.
Exemptions and Substitution
The overall idea of this draft caused a lot of issues and rioting, but there were ways to get out of it if selected. For example, a draftee could call in a substitute. If his brother had not been drafted but was more suitable, he could be substituted.
Exemptions:
Elected public officials Clergy
Steamboat pilots Iron workers/craftsmen
Ferry boat operators Telegraph operators
Railroad men Men previously discharged
Sole surviving sons of a widow Teachers/Professors
Paid Exemption
A draftee could pay his way out of the draft, but it was a hefty price. If he wanted out, he had to pay a $300 fee. (About $9,100 in 2025) Most servicemen received just $10-$15 a month
There was a catch. The payment only exempted a draftee from that lottery. If called up again six months later another payment would have to be made. Some historians estimate around 160,000 to 200,000 men either paid the $300 fee or found a substitute to avoid being drafted.
The ability to cash exemption was repealed in the Spring of 1864. While $300 is a lot of money, it was cheaper than hiring a substitute. Estimates for hiring a random sub are around $1,000; an enormous amount of money. ($30,300!)
Towns could choose to raise their taxes, and the increased revenue paid for substitution fees. They did not want to lose their local workforce. If most of the men went to war, the town would suffer in loss of workers and loss of revenue.
By December 1863, the draft was going to have to take some of the young men from Harrison County and involuntarily put them into the Army. To try to prevent this from happening Harrison County offered an additional $200.00 bounty (about $6,000.00 in 2020) for any man who would volunteer, this was on top of the US Government bounty that was being offered.
The (Wheeling) daily register, December 21, 1863
The citizens of Harrison County wanted to make sure that their citizens were exempted from the draft. But the only way that they could avoid this was to ensure that the county met its enlistment quotas. On February 15, 1864, there was a meeting chaired by John Hussey, with James Denham serving as Secretary. At this meeting Judge William Harrison and Attorney for the Commonwealth, A. P. Davisson explained the upcoming draft regulations to those assembled. After discussions took place, the assembly passed a resolution that requested the county Supervisors to pass a special property levy to encourage enlistments so that the county could avoid the draft. “Whereupon it was resolved that the supervisors of this county be requested to levy upon the property of said county for a sum sufficient to pay each man who has volunteered under the two last calls of the president of the United States, and such as may hereafter volunteer under said calls the sum of $303.00 each.”, Harrison Counties quota for the 200,000 draft call was 137 men!
The daily (Wheeling) intelligencer, February 18, 1864
About $1,000 in 2020 dollars.
The draft was still on everyone’s mind during the spring of 1864. One of the issues with the draft that many felt was unfair was that a drafted man could provide, if he could find one, a substitute. With the formation of the 45th USCT Regiment a white man from the county who was to be drafted could hire an African American substitute to take his place. The legislated price for a substitute was $300.00 (about $10,000.00 in 2020 dollars) but there were instances where other inducements were used to procure a substitute. In a newspaper story a Harrison County farmer who was looking for a substitute found an escaped slave who agreed to substitute for him.
“The farmer brought the man into his home and treated him royally giving him a new suit of clothes and feeding him at the farm and giving him “light and easy work.” Before the substitution took place there was an alarm and the local militia was called out – the farmer responded. “There was great excitement among the people. There were rumors of the near approach of the rebels, and bayonets were being brightened up in all directions. The contraband smelt something afar off but said nothing. That night he disappeared, and the next heard from him he was down near Middlebourne, in Tyler County, “just everlastingly making tracks” for the Ohio River.” The story ends there and does not say whether or not the farmer ever found a substitute or if he had to personally face the draft.”
Daily (Wheeling) intelligencer, August 19, 1864
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