Item 65147 - Underage soldier request for furlough, Washington, 1864

Item 65147 - Underage soldier request for furlough, Washington, 1864
Contributed by Maine Historical Society
Item 65147
Underage soldier request for furlough, Washington, 1864
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Nathaniel C. Davis of Biddeford, a private in Co. F of the 32nd Maine Infantry, is listed in official records as being 18 when he enlisted on May 4, 1864.

In October 1864, Davis wrote to the Maine Agency Sanitary Commission from Harewood Hospital in Washington, D.C., requesting a furlough. He stated that he was not old enough to serve and that he was filling a "man's place in the army."

Davis was promoted to corporal in December 1864 and transferred to Co. F of the 31st Maine Infantry. He was mustered out of the service on July 15, 1865.

Davis was born Jan. 5, 1847, which would have made him 17 when he enlisted.

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