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Writer's pictureDarryl R. Smith

"Disorderly, Boisterous & Noisy" or Not All Was Rosy Under Old Rosey - Part Two

This is the second (and final) part of this previous post.


Head Quarters, 3d Division, 21st A. C.

Murfreesboro, April 29th, 1863


General Orders

No. 28

By a General Court Martial which convened at the Head Quarters of Brig, Gen'l H. P. Vancleve, Commanding 3d Division, Murfreesboro, Tenn. on the 9th day of April 1863, pursuant to General Orders No. 20 frim Head Quarters, 3d Division, 21st A. C., dated April 9th, 1863, of which Col. George H. Cram, 9th Ky. Vols. is president, was arraigned and tried.

 

The third man listed on the court martial records was Jonathan Scharborough of the Eighth Kentucky Infantry Regiment - his name appears as Scarbrough on the roster of the Eighth and as Scharbrough on his gravestone. Scharbrough, born in Madison County, Kentucky in 1839, had enlisted on October 24th, 1861 at Lebanon. He would muster into Company H of the Eighth on January 15th, 1862. At home was his newly wed wife Mary and newborn daughter Delsena, the wedding and the birth both occurring in 1861. However, this marriage is murky, as there is a marriage certificate that shows that Scharbrough married a Florneuda Dee in Estill County, in the same year.


3d Jonathan Scharborough, Private in Company "H", 8th Regt. Keny. Vols. Infantry


Charge Desertion

Specification 1st: That the said Private Jonathan Scharborough, Company "H," Eighth Regt. Keny. Vols. Infantry on or about the 27th day of July 1862 at or near Murfreesboro, Tenn. deserted from Convalescent Camp at or near Murfreesboro, Tenn. thereby deserting the Service of the United States, after being duly enlisted in the same, and remained absent from said Camp and from his Company and regiment until about the 20th day of January 1863, at Camp near Murfreesboro, Tennessee.


To which the accused pleaded as follows:

To the Specification to the charge - Not Guilty

To the charge - Not Guilty

Findings of the Court

Of the Specification to the Charge - Guilty

Of the Charge - Guilty

Sentence

And the Court do therefore sentence him, the Said Jonathan Scharborough, Private, Co. "H," 8th Regiment Kentucky Vols. Infantry, to be placed and kept at hard labor, with a (12) twelve pound ball fastened to his leg with a chain for the period of Six Months, Sixty days of which time and labor may be performed in and about the Camp of the regiment to which he belongs, and the ballance of the Six Months at Such labor and at Such place as the Genel commanding may order, and further that he forfeit Thirteen Dollars ($13 00/100) per Month for nine (9) months out of the pay due to him or to become due from the Government of the United States.


Object lesson learned, Scharbrough would later transfer to Company E of the Fourth Kentucky (Mounted) Infantry and serve until mustering out at Macon, Georgia on August 17th, 1865. He would apply for a pension in 1878 and in 1910 was living with his wife Mary in Marion County, Kentucky, at the home of John and Sallie Roberts. By 1914 Scharbrough was living in Indiana, Mary having died in 1913, and he would remarry at age seventy-four to a forty-nine year old Eliza Tungate, the nuptials taking place in New Castle, Indiana. Jonathan Mose Scharbrough would die on August 6th, 1923 and is buried next to his wife Eliza in the Hicksite Cemetery, Greensboro, Indiana. His stone shows service in the Fourth - most likely Scharbrough wanted to forget his time in the Eighth, or least the six months chained to a twelve pound ball.

 

The last man listed on the court martial is Second Lieutenant Richard E. Parrott of the Seventy-Ninth Indiana. Appearing as Perrott on the Seventy-Ninth's roster, he would enlist as a sergeant on August 7th, 1862. Parrott would be promoted to second lieutenant on January 5th, 1863, possibly due to casualties within his company at Stones River.


4th Charge and Specification against 2d Lieutenant Richard E. Parrott of "F" Company, (79) Seventy Ninth Regiment, Ind. Vols. Infantry.


Charge, Conduct unbecoming an officer and Gentleman


Specification, In this that 2d Lieutenant Richard Parrott of "F" Company, 79th Regiment Ind. Vols. Infantry did on the 12th day of April 1863, at the Camp of Said regiment, near the town of Murfreesboro, Tenn., and did after Taps between the hours of Ten & Eleven of said night by his disorderly, boisterous, & noisy Conduct disturb the peace of Said Camp, and after having been ordered twice to Keep quiet, Continued said Scandalous and disgraceful Conduct.


To which the accused pleaded as follows

To the Specification of the charge - Not Guilty

To the Charge - Not Guilty

Finding of the Court

Of the Specification to the charge - Not Guilty

Of the charge - Not Guilty


And the Court does therefore fully acquit him the accused 2d Leiut. Richard E. Parrott of the Charge & Specification preferred against him.

The finding & sentence of the court in the foregoing cases is approved. Regimental Commanders are required to in cause the same to be carried into Execution. Lieut. Richard E. Parrott 79th Ind. Vols., having been fully acquitted of the charge preferred against him, is released from arrest and restored to duty. All the sentence of Private Jonathan Scarborough will be performed in the camp and under the direction of his Reg't. Commander.

By Command of

Brig. Gen'l. H. P. AndrewsTo

Brig. Gen'l.

Samuel Beatty

Comdg. 1st Brigade


Perhaps the court should have found Lieutenant Parrott guilty, as he "resigned for the good of the service" on September 2nd, 1863, inferring that he might have had additional issues. I've been unable to obtain further information on Parrott.

 

I decided to only edit the court martial records by adding punctuation when needed. All capitalization and spelling as appears in the original.

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