KNOWLES / KNOLES / NOLES
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KNOWLES   HONOR ROLL

War Between the States

No other war in the history of the United States has had the impact on this country than the War Between the States, perhaps better known as the American Civil War.  The total number of soldiers engaged in this epic event in history was truly staggering, and the number of casualties from virtually every state and territory touched upon the realm of the unbelievable.  The Civil War resulted in the death of an estimated 623,000 soldiers who died as the result of battles or disease.  Fighting took place on each of the war's 1,396 days from the Spring of 1861 to the Spring of 1865;  Frederick H. Dyer tabulated that 10,455 military "events" took place during the war.

Dealing with the uncertainty and ravages of war are challenging enough for even the strongest of families.  In this war, the anxiety level for many families was even higher as brother fought against brother and neighbor raised arms against neighbor in many areas of the country.

Curt Witcher, the Historical Genealogy Manager of the Allen County Public Library in Fort Wayne, Indiana writes, "So significant was the War Between the States that if one has an ancestor in the country between 1860 and 1870, the chances of that person and his family being at least indirectly affected by the War are rather great.  It makes the event something every genealogist must be aware of when researching that period of the 19th century.  Fortunately, there are some very good tools for researching - chief among those tools being the Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System (CWSS)"

Much has been written about the American Civil War during the time of the war and since.  The perspective as to why a war was necessary (or not), in the first place, is hotly debated to this day.  And the modern day 'spin' on the events leading up to the war are still very much in the eyes of the beholder and to a great extent based on the geographic locations of their ancestors who either fought in the war or endured the consequences of the war, both during and after the actual conflict. 

It is NOT the purpose of this page to relive the Civil War from any political viewpoint, but to both honor those who participated (on both sides) and to recognize (catalog) the genealogical significance of the records concerning our ancestors' service in this great American tragedy.  It has been said "that the period of the war was romantic because of the youthfulness of so many of its officers and soldiers, and the desperate devotion of so many of them who seemed to have no real stake in the issues." 

So, in honor of the Knowles participants in the American Civil War, the following pages (use the links below) will be developed over time to list the service of as many of them as is possible from available records.  If your Knowles ancestor served in the American Civil War and is not listed here, or is incorrectly listed, please notify Robert B. Noles as soon as possible with the appropriate data and/or corrections.  

Honor Roll background design courtesy of www.westberry-moses.com

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Date of last edit:   Thursday, February 15, 2007
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