James Wilbur Michael (1839-1882) Civil War Service Records

James Wilbur Michael (1839-1882) is another of my 3rd-great grandfathers who served in the Confederate Army, as did John O. Jackson (1834-1861) and David Franklin Averett (1837-1927), discussed before. As are Jackson and Averett, James Michael is related to me through my maternal grandfather, William O. Jackson (1909-1988).

(Click images to enlarge)

According to information found at www.findagrave.com Memorial # 40468536, James Wilbur Michael served as a Private in Company F of the 19th Georgia Volunteer Infantry Regiment. The following two photos were uploaded to that site by findagrave.com member “James Lee”. James' grave is in the Martin Cemetery in Carroll County, Georgia. The inscription on the monument is as follows:

Pvt. James W. Michael

Co. F, 19th Regiment GA. Volunteers Inf.

(Photo by James Lee)

(Photo by James Lee)

I have yet to find muster roll information for the 19th Georgia Infantry Regiment that includes his name. But I did find what I believe are his Civil War service records on fold3.com. His name is given as “J.W. Michael” in those records and his records include what I believe to be an incorrectly filed record for a “John McMichael” who belonged to Company F of the 10th Georgia Infantry Regiment. It appears to be on that basis that fold3.com identifies these records as belonging to a “John Michael” in the 19th Georgia. But until I can find muster roll information that includes his name, I can’t be completely sure.

As the following images make clear, James spent a lot of time in the hospital from disease and then he survived a head wound received on 13 December 1862. Records have been initially more difficult to find than they were for David Averett and John Jackson so I am not currently certain where he was wounded. However the Battle of Fredericksburg, Virginia was fought 11—15 December 1862. He was hospitalized at Chimborazo Hospital in Richmond shortly thereafter, which lends weight to my working hypothesis that he was wounded at Fredericksburg.

If James and the 19th Georgia were at Fredericksburg, they were there when David Averett was there with the 15th Alabama Regiment. However, they could not have been aware of each other as they would not become related by marriage until my great-grandparents, William Joseph Jackson (1881—1956) and Monnie Ethel Watts (1885—1985) married forty-six years later in Louisiana on 1 January 1908. William Joseph Jackson was a grandson of James Wilbur Michael and Monnie Ethel Watts Jackson was a granddaughter of David Averett. David Averett didn’t pass away until 1927 so it does not seem unlikely that he would have become aware of James Michael and his war service by the time of their marriage.

James enlisted in the Confederate Army for the duration of the war on 4 March 1862 in Carrollton, Georgia. He first appears in the National Archives Confederate Records Archive on 24 April 1862 and appears for the last time on 22 February 1864. The Carroll County Times newspaper reported on 10 February 1882 that “Mr. James Michael is very low.”

(USGenWeb Archives)

The same newspaper reported on 17 March 1882 that “J.W. Michael, living some three miles west of Carrollton, died last Wednesday from the effects of a wound received in the head, during the war.”

(USGenWeb Archives)

The civil war service records below mention a head wound sustained on 13 December 1862, which tends to confirm that the “J.W. Michael” in the fold3.com records was, in fact, James Wilbur Michael. The date 17 March 1882 fell on a Friday, which means that he died on Wednesday, 15 March 1882. 

The following images show the transcribed content of his war service records at the National Archives.

Image 1 of 14 

The first image is of the folder containing his service records.

(National Archives)

Image 2 of 14
(Side 1 of 2)

“J.W. Michel [sic: Michael], Pvt. Co. F, 19 Regt Ga. Appears on a Register of Chimborazo Hospital No. 4, Richmond Virginia. Disease: Measles & ("Hern. ing. sing. reduc. is written on the opposite side of the card; see the image below.) Admitted Apr. 24, 1862. Remarks: Lynchburg May 22.” I do not currently know the purpose of the reference to Lynchburg, presumably the city of Lynchburg in Virginia. According to the Encyclopedia Virginia web site:

"On the eve of the American Civil War (1861–1865), Lynchburg was Virginia's sixth-largest city and a major transportation center, with access to the James River and Kanawha Canal, as well as the Virginia and Tennessee, the South Side, and the Orange and Alexandria railroads … During the war, Lynchburg women established the Ladies' Relief Hospital, and the Confederate military made the city a major hub of supplies and transport, which Union troops attempted to disrupt at the Battle of Lynchburg in June 1864."

So it is possible that James was transported to Lynchburg to rejoin his regiment at the end of his convalescence.

(National Archives)

According to the Civil War Richmond web site, Chimborazo Hospital “was on land bounded by the present streets of Clay on the north, 30th on the west, 34th on the east, and the bottom of the hill on the south.” And inspection of the Richmond Civil War Centennial Committee map of Richmond, appears to show that the bottom of the hill on the south approaches but does not reach the railroad line to the south.

(Richmond Civil War Centennial Committee)

Based on these two sources, here is what I currently think the bounds of the Chimborazo hospital look like on a map of present-day Richmond.

The argument for the southern boundaries are buttressed by viewing the satellite image of the same area. I have outlined what I think must be the hill area to the south.

To verify this, I need to go visit the area at some point in the future. Here is a zoomed-out view, to allow the reader to orient himself or herself with respect to the rest of the present-day Richmond Area.

Finally, here are two 1865 photos of the Chimborazo Hospital taken from the Civil War Richmond web site. The first is from the Library of Congress: "Chimborazo Hospital, (Confederate) Richmond, Va. May 1865.” Print at Library of Congress (LC-B8184-10369).

(Library of Congress)

The second is credited to Levy & Cohen, Philadelphia: Chimborazo Hospital, 1865.

(Levy & Cohen, Philadelphia, 1865)

Image 3 of 14
(Side 2 of 2)

I do not know what "Hern. ing. sing. reduc." means.

(National Archives)

Image 4 of 14

J.W. Michael appears on a Register of General Hospital, Farmville, Va. due to illness. He was admitted on 23 May 1862 and he returned to duty on 14 June 1862. The Richmond Sentinel newspaper issue of 1 Dec 1863 indicates that a “Wayside” hospital was located at Farmville, Virgina — see the map pasted below. Recall the Wayside and Receiving Hospital (General Hospital No. 9), which I discussed at length in my earlier post on “Searching for Averetts at the Receiving & Wayside Hospital in Richmond in 1864”. General Hospital No. 9 appears to have been a receiving hospital in Richmond for incoming casualties, which would evaluate and then send them on to other Richmond hospitals segregated by State. For example, Alvis Averett was subsequently sent from Wayside Hospital/General Hospital No. 9 to the General Hospital at Howard’s Grove in Richmond because that was where casualties from Alabama regiments were treated. In the present case, it appears that James Michael was kept at the Farmville General Hospital for the duration of his convalescence.

(National Archives)

Image 5 of 14

J.W. Michael appeared on a register at the Farmville, Virginia hospital on 14 June 1862. The “returned” notation appears to mean that he was discharged to rejoin his regiment on that day.

(National Archives)

Image 6 of 14

By 31 October 1862, however, James was back in the hospital, this time at the Winder Hospital in Richmond. It is not clear whether this was to recover from disease or to recover from wounds or when he was admitted. Parenthetically, this record is the source of my information that he enlisted in the Confederate Army on 4 March 1862 in Carrollton, Carroll County, Georgia.

(National Archives)

The Civil War Richmond web site indicates that the Winder Hospital was bordered by Hampton Street, Winder Street, Allen Avenue, and Amelia Street.

Image 7 of 14

He returned to duty on 18 November 1862 from the Winder Hospital.

(National Archives)

Image 8 of 14

He was back at Chimborazo Hospital, in Division 3, by 16 December 1862 due to “debilitas” (“weakness or feebleness”, according to the North Carolina in the Civil War web site). The images following this one make clear that he had received a head wound on 13 December 1862, which would account for the “debilitas” diagnosis. This record was found in the Confederate Archives, Chapter 6, File No. 69, on page 76.

(National Archives)

Image 9 of 14

A second transcribed record of his admission to Division 3 of the Chimborazo Hospital on 16 December, this time appearing in File No. 105, page 73 of the Confederate Archives.

(National Archives)

Image 10 of 14

He was admitted to Division 2 of the Chimborazo Hospital the next day, 17 December 1862. It seems likely that “v.s. of head” means “vulnus sclopeticum of head”, where vulnus sclopeticum means “relating to a wound caused by gunshot”. He was wounded on 13 December 1862.

(National Archives)

Image 11 of 14

James had recovered sufficiently by 13 Jan 1863 to be given a 60-day furlough. He may have returned to Carrollton, Georgia to see his family at that time but I have no corroborating evidence. This is the first of two records that indicate he was given a 60-day furlough in January 1863, this one appearing in the Confederate Archives File No. 148 on page 169.

(National Archives)

Image 12 of 14

The original copyist of the records (whose handwritten name I cannot decipher) appears to have mistakenly indicated that James was in the 10th Georgia Infantry Regiment. It appears to have been corrected to the “19th” regiment later. The following image is the second record indicating that he was given a 60-day furlough in January 1863 at the end of his stay in Chimborazo Hospital Division 2. This time the record was found in the Confederate Archives Files No. 155 on page 697. Thus he probably rejoined his unit by the middle of March 1863.

(National Archives)

Image 13 of 14

On 22 September 1863, James was paid $105.29 (in Confederate money, greatly inflated by this point in the war) for his military service between the dates of 1 November 1862 and 31 August 1863.

(National Archives)

Image 14 of 14

On 22 February 1864, James was paid $44.00 Confederate for his military service between 1 September 1863 and 31 December 1863.

(National Archives)

The Problem of Slavery

The source of the trouble between the southern and northern states was, of course, slavery. Besides taking up arms against our government, what kind of circumstances, personal beliefs and attitudes would lead a person to approve of, acquiesce in, or fight for a definition of "property rights guaranteed under the U.S. Constitution" that included human beings? Perhaps this may be researched most effectively by reading the local newspapers from this time period.

Obviously modern civilization, such as it is, considers slavery immoral and worthy of condemnation. It is even often said that sufficient reason exists to violently prevent others from enslaving persons and keeping those persons in slavery. But I am torn: my ancestors were good people, in spite of their support of the institution of slavery. And as an American and a Catholic (in that order), I recognize a societally approved area of collective amorality in our national life today every bit as awful as slavery was. And yet I do not believe that sincere people on either side of the present issue are, by definition, condemnable and contemptible. Their opinions and even actions also cannot be cited as sufficient reason to take up arms against the U.S. government. People and democratic civil structures, throughout history, are good but are far from perfect. However they are capable of improvement by (peaceful) means, over time.

So can there be the possibility of pride in one’s ancestors concurrent with recognition of the evil of a civil institution for which they fought? I am proud of my southern American ancestors and recognize their heroism in a war that they believed themselves morally right to wage. I am proud of their survival of frontier conditions and their willingness to produce children who would benefit from their struggle. I am proud that they were, most of them, poor farmers who worked themselves into early deaths, worshipped God, and hoped for a better life for their children.

That having been said, in the seventh column of the third page of the 12 January 1860 issue of the Jacksonville Republican newspaper from Jacksonville, Alabama, there is a notice printed as follows.

For the purpose of accessibility in future Google searches by others, I have transcribed this:

ADMINISTRATORS SALE OF PERSONAL PROPERTY.
Under and by virtue of an order and decree of the Probate Court of Calhoun county, Alabama, made on the 21st day of December, A.D. 1859, we will sell
On Tuesday the 24th day of January, A.D. 1860.
At public auction, to the highest bidder, at the late residence of George Broyles deceased, all the PERSONAL PROPERTY belonging to the Estate of the said George Broyles, deceased, consisting of  

TWELVE Young and Likely NEGROS.
Eight head of Mules,
2 good brood Mares,
Six Cows and Calves,
One Road Wagon,
One Ox Wagon,
One Buggy and Harness,
One Cotton Gin,
One Wheat Thrasher,
One Set of Blacksmith Tools,
About 3000 pounds of Dried Pork,
Some Stock Cattle, Stock Hogs,
Some 75 head of Sheep,
Corn, Wheat, Fodder, Cotton Seed, Farming Utensils, Household & Kitchen Furniture, and many other things too tedious to mention.
Said property will be sold on a credit of Twelve Months with interest from date. All sums of five dollars or over, note with two approved securities will be required, to secure the purchase money — all sums under five dollars cash.
No property removed until terms of sale are complied with.
Also at the same time and place, the Plantation will be Rented for the year 1860.

BENJ. F. BROYLES, Adm’r.
ROSANNA BROYLES, Admx.
Dec. 22, 1859 — 5t.

Just in case the question comes up: I am not related to Broyles, nor to a man named Phillips, whose estate auction was announced in the eighth column of the same page:

It is transcribed as follows.

Administrators Sale Of Personal Property.
UNDER and by virtue of an order & decree of the Probate Court of Calhoun County Alabama, made on the 15th day of Oct., 1859, we will proceed to sell at public auction to the highest bidder, at the late residence of Joseph Phillips dec’d, on Monday the 9th day of January 1860, the whole of the personal Property belonging to the Estate of the said Joseph Phillips dec’d, consisting of Thirteen Likely Negroes, & Some Milch Cows, stock Cattle, Pork Hogs, & Stock Hogs, 2 yokes of Oxen, & Mules, Horses, Corn, Wheet, Oats & Fodder, & Rye, & Barley, & some thirty thousand lbs seed Cotton, 1 Cotton Gin, & Threshers, 1 Set of Black Smith tools, & 2 Ox wagons & farming utensils, 2 copper distilleries and stands, four shares in the South Western Rail Road Bank at Charleston S.C. & 80 acre Land Warrant issued in the name of decadent, & Household kitchen furniture, & other things too tedious to mention, said property will be sold on a credit of 12 months with interest from date on all sums over five Dollars, all sums under five Dollars, Cash, note & two approved securities will be required before the property purchased is removed.
ABEL PHILLIPS, C.W.P. PHILLIPS, Adms’ of said estate, Oct 20th, 1859.

Two weeks later, in the first column of page 3 of the 26 January 1860 issue of the newspaper, the following article was printed.

It is rendered as follows.

High Prices for Negroes. — At the late state sale of the property of Jos. Philips, dec’d in this county, 14 Negroes were sold at an average of $1233. One boy 23 years old sold for 1701. Several others sold for $1540 and $1550. At the estate sale of George Broyles [unreadable] on Tuesday last 12 Negroes were sold at an average of $1040. One woman and infant sold for 1765 — one boy 10 years old, $1200 — one girl 8 years old, $1385 — one boy 6 years old, $1200.

For all the rationalizations that have been made, the matter-of-fact description of the sale of adults and children, and the probable separation of children from their parents, stops one dead in his tracks in his reading. Were the eight-year-old (whose sale brought the equivalent of $40,000 in 2014), the ten-year-old ($35,000) and the six-year-old ($35,000) siblings? Was the woman with her infant ($51,000) also the mother of any of these children? Even if she wasn’t, these children were somebody’s. Did they ever see each other again? Within five years, the war would be over and the slaves emancipated. Were they still alive then? Had distance made reunion impossible? Who was the thirteenth slave in the Broyles auction and why wasn't he or she sold?

From what I have been able to determine, a few of my ancestors or their relatives owned slaves. I cannot defend that act, nor can I defend the act of defending the “property rights” of those who did. My ancestors were not perfect and neither were yours. But I reiterate that my ancestors and their neighbors did what they thought was right, just as most of us in this time do what we think is right. They remain my ancestors and, like it or not, my pride in my family and their history remains strong. I hope our descendants are able to say the same.

Newspapers Published in Eastern Alabama in the Civil War Period

I am interested in the lives of my Alabama ancestors during the 1861—1865 Civil War. As Vicki Betts, Librarian at the University of Texas at Tyler has said,

"Newspapers remain one of the most underutilized resources available to the historian, and with good cause. Relatively few full runs of Southern newspapers survived the Civil War and the years of storms, fires, and business failures that preceded the advent of microfilm … [R]esearchers are … encouraged to approach the "truth" in historic newspapers cautiously. Even more so than now, nineteenth century newspapers often expressed extremely partisan positions. Editors gathered reports and rumors from correspondents, travelers, and other newspapers, usually with little or no verification. At the same time, these papers do reflect what people of the period were reading and perhaps believing. As such, they remain a valuable source, used wisely."

I have therefore tried to conduct a brief survey of the newspapers published in Eastern Alabama that may have been read by my ancestors and their families in the years prior to, during, and following the War Between the States.

Click images to enlarge.

While I am interested in what everyday life was like, I am particularly interested in understanding the state of mind that it would take to

• Take up arms against one’s own country, and
• Own slaves and/or defend the "property rights" of those who did.

I am proud of my ancestors and I insist that they were good people, but I am frankly unable to imagine today in 2014 how either is possible. I want to understand the circumstances that brought my ancestors to the point where they found it possible to do so. The Republican party was, during the election year of 1860, apparently widely hated in the South. Based on my reading of the first few issues of the Jacksonville Republican newspaper published in Jacksonville, Alabama in January of 1860, they were dubbed the “Black Republicans” and the paper strongly advocated secession from the Union — by violent means if necessary — in the event that any Republican candidate, presumed in advance to be an abolitionist — a very hated person in this part of the country — were to be elected president that autumn. Several of my direct ancestors and many members of their families enlisted in the Confederate Army after Alabama seceded from the Union in January 1861 so it is likely they agreed with that sentiment. Alternatively, their reasons may have included the wish to defend their homes from any military invasion from the north, regardless of why such an invasion might occur.

So far in this blog I have discussed two of my ancestors from Alabama who enlisted in the Confederate Army.

• John O. Jackson (1834-1861), who died of disease at a Confederate Army camp in Hunstville, Alabama before seeing any combat. He lived in the vicinity of Kirk’s Grove, Alabama in the 1860 US Census.
• David Franklin Averett (1837-1927), who survived his wounds at the Battle of the Wilderness in 1864 and was with Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia at the surrender at Appomattox Court House in 1865. He lived somewhere in the vicinity of Reeltown and Tallassee, Alabama, based on information from the 1860 US Census and the Muster Roll of his Regiment in the Confederate Army in 1861.

There may be others. There are certainly others if one considers the war service of brothers, fathers, and sons of my direct ancestors.

I have started my search for newspapers at Kirk's Grove and at the Reeltown/Tallassee areas. Towns were connected by roads of some kind, but also by railroad, stagecoach, etc. I want to find the newspapers mostly likely to have been read by Averett and Jackson and their families. Common sense seems to indicate that the papers published in the closest locations would be the mostly likely candidates. But if one allows several days for the papers to be distributed, it also seems possible that the liveliest newspapers, in terms of size, amount of information printed, controversy, would also be read. How easily were they distributed? How long did it take to receive a newspaper from another town?

I have already found many examples of articles published in newspapers printed considerable distances republished in a local paper. Samuel Morse patented his telegraph in 1837 so it was in fairly extensive use by 1860, adding considerably to the available information and opinion that ordinary people such as my ancestors would have had available. It seems likely that information appearing in newspapers, particularly pro-slavery newspapers, would be disseminated among other pro-slavery newspapers. Surely many of these articles would be eventually read by the families of David Averett and John Jackson.

I want to read them too. So, where to look?

My first readings of one newspaper, the Jacksonville Republican, give a clue. I have noticed that out-of-town businesses from, for example, Rome, GA advertised in the Jacksonville Republican in 1860, in spite of the two towns being about forty-five miles apart. The first example is a drug store ad from 12 January, obviously advertising for customers living in Jacksonville.

And here is another ad in the same issue, placed by a general store in Selma, Alabama — 156 miles away!

Even more significant, however, is an advertisement in the Jacksonville Republican for subscriptions to a newspaper published in Rome, GA.

Subject to the availability of regular transportation such as railroad, stage coach, rivers, etc., it seems reasonable to assume that inhabitants of Kirk’s Grove, AL saw newspapers in a fairly timely manner, even if they were printed forty-five miles away. The US Postal Service functioned well and, I assume, so did the Confederate States Postal Service. Alabama counties touched by a circle centered at Kirk’s Grove having a radius of 45 miles include:

• Calhoun
• Cherokee
• Cleburne
• DeKalb
• Etowah
• Jackson
• Marshall
• St Clair

They are highlighted in green.

Similarly, such a circle centered between Reeltown and Tallassee would touch the following Alabama Counties:

• Autauga
• Barbour
• Bullock
• Chambers
• Chilton
• Clay
• Coosa
• Elmore
• Lee
• Lowndes
• Montgomery
• Pike
• Randolph
• Russell
• Talladega
• Tallapoosa

They are highlighted in yellow.

For the time being, I am concentrating on newspapers published during the years 1859--1866, to which I refer as "the Civil War period" below.

According to the Chronicling America web site at the Library of Congress, the following newspapers were published or may have been published during the Civil War period. For each title, the first set of years shown are the years in which the Library of Congress believes or estimates the papers were published. The information after that provides information about which specific issues are still in existence today. Most are on microfilm and the rest are apparently originals[!] Some are available in digital format online and can be downloaded. I have struck the titles for which no extant issues from the Civil War period are listed. Of course, some of the struck titles may later turn out to have issues found in forgotten archives in the future. This is why I have kept them on what has turned out to be a very long list of titles.

• Titles in Autauga County, Alabama
• The Autauga Citizen (Prattville, AL; 1853-1882) (issues available for 1859–1866)
• Southern Statesman (Prattville, AL; 1854-186?) (single issue from 1859 and a single issue from 1860)
• Titles in Barbour County, Alabama
• Clayton Banner (Clayton, AL; 1852–1869) (several issues from 1860–1862 and single issue from 1864)
• The Eufaula Daily News (Eufaula, AL; 1865–18??) (two issues available from late 1865)      
• Eufaula Express (Eufaula, AL; 1858–186?) (some issues available from 1859 and 1861)
• Eufaula News (Eufaula, AL; 1866–18??) (no issues available from Civil War period) 
• Eufaula Weekly News (Eufaula, AL; 18??—18??) (no issues available from Civil War period)
• Eufaula Weekly Times (Eufaula, AL; 18??—187?) (no issues available from Civil War period)
• Southern Native (Eufaula, AL; 185?—18??) (single issue available from 1858)
• Spirit of the South (Eufaula, AL; 1850–1865) (issues available from 1859–1863)
• The Times & News (Eufaula, AL; 18??—1906) (no issues available from Civil War period)
• Titles in Bullock County, Alabama
• The Southern Home Journal (Union Springs, AL; 186?-18??) (one issue available from 1861)
• Union Springs Gazette (Union Springs, AL; 185?-18??) (one issue available from 1860)
• The Union Springs Journal (Union Springs, AL; 18??-1???) (one issue available from 1882)
• Titles in Calhoun County, Alabama
• The Alabama Weekly Inquirer (Anniston, AL; 18??-1???) (issues available from 1898) 
• Jacksonville Republican (Jacksonville, AL; 1837-1895) (many issues from 1837-1895; most issues from 1859-1866)
• Titles in Chambers County, Alabama
• The Chambers Tribune (La Fayette, AL; 1849-186?) (one issue from 1861 and two issues from 1863)
• The East-Alabamian (La Fayette, AL; 184?-1?a??) (issues available from the second half of 1843)
• The People’s Journal (La Fayette, AL; 18??-1???) (one issue available from 1892)
• Southern Sentinel (La Fayette, AL; 18??-1???) (one issue from January 1860)
• Titles in Cherokee County, Alabama
• Cherokee Advertiser (Centre, AL; 1866-1892)
• Coosa River Argus (Centre, AL; 1854-18??) (one issue from 1854, two from 1860) 
• Gladiator (Cedar Bluff, AL; 1843-18??) (one issue from 1843, one from 1844)
• Titles in Chilton County, Alabama
• (no titles listed for the Civil War period)
• Titles in Clay County, Alabama
• (no titles listed for the Civil War period)
• Titles in Cleburne County, Alabama
• The Fruithurst Times (Fruithurst, AL; 1???-190?) (issues available from 1903)
• The Standard-Democrat (Edwardsville, AL; 18??-1???) (issues available from 1896) 
• Titles in Coosa County, Alabama
• (none during the Civil War period)
• Titles in DeKalb County, Alabama
• The Collinsville Courier (Collinsville, AL; 1???-1927) (no issues from the Civil War period))
• The Fort Payne Journal (Fort Payne, AL; 18??-1958) (none from the Civil War period are available)
• The Wills Valley Post (Collinsville, AL; 1854-18??) (one issue from 1879 is available)
• Titles in Elmore County, Alabama
• The Alabama Times (Wetumpka, AL; 1840-18??) (few issues available only from 1840-1841)
• Daily State Guard (Wetumpka, AL; 1849-18??) (few issues available only from 1849) 
• Dorsey’s Dispatch (Wetumpka, AL; 185?-1857) (few issues available only from 1856-1857)
• The Elmore Standard (Wetumpka; AL; 1865-1868) (few issues available only from 1867-1868)
• Harry of the West (Wetumpka, AL; 1844-18??) (single issue available from 1849)
• The Southern Crisis (Wetumpka, AL; 1840-1840)
• The Southern Dial and African Monitor (Wetumpka, AL; 185?-18??) (single issue available from 1858)
• The State Guard (Wetumpka, AL; 1847-18??) (few issues available from 1847 and 1852)      
• Weekly State Guard (Wetumpka, AL; 184?-????) (single issue available from 1851) 
• Wetumpka Dispatch (Wetumpka, AL; 1857-18??) (issues available only from 1857) 
• Wetumpka Spectator (Wetumpka, AL; 185?-186?) (some issues available from 1856-1857, 1859, and 1861)
• The Wetumpka Whig (Wetumpka, AL; 1844-18??) (single issue available from 1844, 1846, and 1847)
• Titles in Etowah County, Alabama
• The Camp Fire (Gadsden, AL; 18??-????) (one issue from 1895 and one from 1896 are available)
• The Gadsden Weekly Times (Gadsden, AL; 18??-1887) (several issues from 1885 are available)
• Titles in Jackson County, Alabama
• Bellefonte Courier and Jackson County Republican (Bellefonte, AL; 183?—????) (single issue from 1839)
• Camp Illuminator (Bridgeport, AL; 1864–1865) (several issues available from 1864–1865)
• Era and Star (Scottsboro, AL; 18??—1???) (no issues available from Civil War period) 
• Jackson County News (Stevenson, AL; 1865—????) (single issue available from 1865) 
• The Progressive Age (Scottsboro, AL; 18??—1962) (no issues available from Civil War period)
• The Stevenson New Era (Stevenson, AL; 186?—1???) (all available issues from 1869) 
• Titles in Lee County, Alabama
• East Alabama Monitor (Opelika, AL; 186?-1869) (some issues from 1868-1869)
• The Opelika Recorder (Opelika, AL; 186?-187?) (one issue from 1866)
• The Opelika Tri-Weekly Locomotive (Opelika, AL; 186?-18??) (some issues from 1869-1870)
• Opelika Union (Opelika, AL; 1865-????) (at least one issue available form 1865)
• The Opelika Weekly Locomotive (Opelika, AL; 18??-1871) (at least one issue available from 1871)
• The Progressive Age (Opelika, AL; 18??-1872) (a few issues from 1872)
• The Sketch Book (Auburn, AL; 1860-18??) (a few issues from late 1860)
• The Southern Era (Opelika, AL; 1860-1860) (some issues available from 1859-1860) 
• The Southern Republic (Opelika, AL; 1861-186?) (issues available from 1861-1862) 
• The Weekly Southern Era (Opelika; 185?-1860) (issues available from Nov 1859 — Feb 1860)
• Titles in Lowndes County, Alabama
• The Chronicle (Hayneville, AL; 18??—1860) (issues available from 1860)
• The Citizen-Examiner (Hayneville, AL; 18??-192?) (no issues available from Civil War period)
• Hayneville Chronicle (Hayneville, AL; 1860–186?) (issues available from 1860)
• The Lowndes County Chronicle (Hayneville, AL; 183?—18??) (no issues available from Civil War period)
• Lowndes County Observer and Spirit of the Times (Hayneville, AL; 183?—1???) (no issues available from Civil War period)
• The Watchman (Hayneville, AL; 185?—186?) (issues available from 1860)
• The Weekly Herald (Benton, AL; 185?—186?) (issues available from 1859–1
• Titles in Macon County, Alabama
• The Confederate States (Tuskegee, AL; 1861-18??) (one issue from April 1861)
• The News (Tuskegee, AL; 1865-????) (one issue from 1873 and one from 1887)
• South Western Baptist (Marion, AL; 1850-1865) (scattered issues on microfilm for 1850-1865)
• The True Union (Tuskegee, AL; 185?-18??) (one issue from 1857)
• The Tuskegee News (Tuskegee, AL; 1865-18??) (issues from 1866)
• Tuskegee Republican (Tuskegee, AL; 1856-18??) (issues from 1856-1858)
• The Universalist Herald (Notasulga, AL; 184?-19??) (a few issues from 1859-1861) 
• Titles in Marshall County, Alabama
• The Columbus City Journal (Columbus City, AL; 18??—????) (no issues at all available)      
• The Marshall County News (Guntersville, AL; 185?—18??) (single issue available from 1858)
• The Marshall Eagle (Guntersville, AL; 185?—18??) (no issues available from Civil War period)
• The Tennessee Valley (Guntersville, AL; 185?—18??) (two issues available from 1856)
• Titles in Montgomery County, Alabama
• Alabama State Gazette (Montgomery, AL; 184?-????) (single issue available from 1849)
• Alabama State Sentinel (Montgomery, AL; 1860-186?) (few issues available from 1867-1868)
• The Atlas (Montgomery, AL; 1849-185?) (three issues available from 1850-1851)
• Capital City Record (Montgomery, AL; 186?-18??) (single issue available from 1869) 
• The Church Register (Montgomery, AL; 186?-????) (large number of issues available from 1869-1870)
• The Daily Advertiser (Montgomery, AL; 18??-18??) (issues available for April-July 1863 and a single issue from 1865)
• Daily Alabama Journal (Montgomery, AL; 1847-18??) (issues available from 1847-1856)
• The Daily Confederation (Montgomery, AL; 1858-186?) (issues available for 1860-1861)
• Daily Montgomery Ledger (Montgomery, AL; 1865-1866) (issues available for August — November 1865)
• Daily State Sentinel (Montgomery, AL; 1863-186?) (some issues available from 1867)
• Titles in Pike County, Alabama
• Advocate and American (Troy, AL; 1861–186?) (issues available from 1861–1862)
• Independent American (Troy, AL; 1855–1861) (issues available for 1855–1861)
• Southern Advertiser (Troy, AL; 1859–1868) (issues available for 1860–1866)
• Southern Messenger (Troy, AL; 1866–1868) (issues available from 1866–1867)
• States Rights Advocate (Troy, AL; 1860–1861) (a few issues available from 1861–1862)
• Troy Messenger (Troy, AL; 1???—19??) (a few issues available from 1912)
• Titles in Randolph County, Alabama
• The Randolph County Democrat (Wedowee, AL; 1860-????) (none available)
• The Roanoke Herald (Roanoke, AL; 18??-1???) (issues available from 1896-1899)
• Southern Mercury (Wedowee, AL; 18??-1860) (one issue from 1859 and one from 1860 are available)
• Titles in Russell County, Alabama
• Alabama State Register and Girard and Columbus Advertiser (Girard, AL; 1840-18??) (two issues from 1840)
• East Alabama Messenger (Girard, AL), 1???-19??) (one issue from 1904)
• East Alabamian (Girard, AL; 185?-18??) (two issues from 1852-1853)
• Titles in St Clair County, Alabama
• (No titles listed for the Civil War period)
• Titles in Talladega County, Alabama
• The Alabama Reporter (Talladega, AL; 1843-1875) (issues available for 1860, 1862, 1864, 1866)
• The Democratic Watchtower (Talladega, AL; 1840-1867) (issues available for 1859-1866, and other years)
• The Humorist (Talladega, AL; 1838-1???) (one issue from 1838)
• Our Mountain Home (18??-1???) (issues available from 1872, 1875-1882, 1886, 1888, 1891, 1893-1897, and later)
• The Patriot (Talladega, AL; 1839-18??) (four issues available from 1840-1841)
• Southern Register (Talladega, AL; 183?-18??) (one issue from 1839)
• Titles in Tallapoosa County, Alabama
• The Dadeville Banner & Times (Dadeville, AL; 18??-18??) (a couple of issues from 1864 are available)
• Formed from the merger of The Dadeville Banner and the Tallapoosa Times
• The Dadeville Banner (Dadeville, AL; 18??-186?) (several issues from 1861)
• Merged with the Tallapoosa Times to form The Dadeville Banner & Times
• Dadeville Democrat (Dadeville, AL; 18??-????) Issues available only from 1885 
• Messenger (Dadeville, AL; 1866-18??) Single issue available from 1867
• The Tallapoosa Gazette (Dadeville, AL; 18??-1???) (few issues available only from 1879-1880)
• Tallapoosa News (Dadeville, AL; 186?-187?) (few issues available only from 1870-1872)
• Tallapoosa Times (Dadeville, AL; 185?-18??) (a few issues from 1860 — 1861 are available)
• Merged with The Dadeville Banner to form The Dadeville Banner & Times
• The Tallapoosian (Dadeville, AL; 186?-1???) (few issues available only from 1867-1868)

I have highlighted the titles that seem to provide the most complete information over the duration of the Civil War period. I believe the Jacksonville Republican from Calhoun County appears to be the most complete available, with The Autauga Citizen from Prattville, and The Alabama Reporter and The Democratic Watchtower from Talladega also being strong candidates. They should provide the best opportunity to observe the evolution of a pro-slavery newspaper from a year or two prior to the war, through the war, and for a year or two afterward.

Based on geography instead of completeness, the Jacksonville Republican is the most likely candidate for John O. Jackson. For David Averett, The Dadeville Banner, the Tallapoosa Times, and The Dadeville Banner & Times are the most likely candidates.

I was fortunate to find a fairly complete set of The Jacksonville Republican newspaper issues in digital form for those years. In fact, the collection actually extends from 1837 to 1895 and are available, free to download in PDF format, from a site at Jacksonville State University. The results of the search from the geographic point of view of David Averett are not as promising: only a few issues are available from 1860-1861 and 1864.

My plan is to begin with the most accessible of the titles, the Jacksonville Republican and see where that leads.