His records
William James Freeman told his own story three times in old age: a Soldiers’ Home application in July 1899, a pension application in June 1901, and a second Soldiers’ Home application in September 1901. Together with his Union prison record and his grave marker, they are the foundation of this book.
| Fact | What the record says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Name | William James Freeman Jr.; a clerk noted he is carried on the roster as "William Freeman, Jr." | 1901 pension |
| Enlisted | April 27, 1861, at Tuckahoe precinct, Lenoir County, Co. D, 27th NC | 1901 pension; Sept 1901 Home application |
| Wound | At Bristoe Station, Va.: "wounded in shoulder right and ranged along back to left shoulder, where it came out" | 1901 pension |
| Rupture | "Was ruptured in war"; a physician confirmed it in 1901 | 1901 pension |
| Captured | Farmville, Va., April 6, 1865; arrived at prison April 14 | Union POW release record |
| End of war | "Was in prison at Newport News, Va." (his 1899 form said Appomattox) | Sept 1901 Home application |
| Released | June 27, 1865 | Union POW release record |
| Trade and build | Cooper; six feet tall, light complexion | All three applications |
| Eyesight | "Nearly blind" by 1901 | 1901 pension and Home application |
| Signature | Signed his 1899 and 1901 forms with his mark, an X, when he was by his own account "nearly blind" | All three applications |
| Comrades who vouched | John R. Howard and Wendal Harper (1899); Henry Cunningham and J. P. Gray, both Co. D (1901); William D. Taylor of Kinston | Witness certificates |
| Family | 1899: nearest relative "my son Charlie," Trenton post office. Sept 1901: widower | Home applications |
| Soldiers' Home | Admitted to the Home for Disabled Ex-Confederate Soldiers, Raleigh, approved by the executive committee; register later marked "Dead" | Sept 1901 Home application |
| Burial | Oakwood Cemetery, Raleigh, Dec 1906; marker reads Pvt Co D 27 NC Inf CSA | Memorial marker; state burial index |
