5th Alabama Infantry (Calvary?)

I've done some research, and find two family members in the 5th:

Pike, J. F., New Co. K (John Floyd Pike)
Pike, W. S., Co. K (Wylie Simpson "Simpsie" Pike)

John Floyd Pike is my gggreatgrandtater, Wylie Simpson Pike is his brother. Are there any records that officially identify family members in a unit?

F Mitchell
Opelika, AL

I was able to find service records for JF Pike and W S Pike in the 5th AL Infantry.Both were privates,JF spent a good part of the war either home on sick leave or in hospital.In fact he was taken prisoner from a Richmond hospital when the city fell to Union troops.W S Pike was wounded at Chancellorsville on May 3 1863 and died sometime later that year as his widow applied for a pension from CS government in December of that year.These records are available on Fold3.com(formerly Footnote.com) You can get a 30 day membership pretty cheap and view or even print these records.
Hope this is useful for you Phil

Thanks for the help. I had found J F Pike (John Floyd) but had somehow overlooked Wm S Pike on Fold3. I recently subscribed to Fold3 and don't have the hang of how to search there yet. If I search by name for W S Pike he doesn't pop up, but if I search by 5th Infantry and then Pike, W S there he is. I can't tie WM S Pike to my Pikes, nor his widow, Sara A. Pike.

Mitcch

I just did some further checking in my Pike family, I have a William T. Pike, brother to J F Pike. William T is probably William S Pike in the CSA records. The notation in my Pike family book is that William T. was killed in the Battle of Chickamauga. Is there a Company history of 5th AL Co K that might tell that William S and J F Pike are brothers?

Mitch

I also found W T Pike as being in Hilliards Legion have a look there.I don't know about a company history that would verify the brothers in the 5th.I would maybe check census records for that.

How did you do that? You found my W T Pike who our (undocumented until now) family history says died at Chickamauga. The record you found says he died at Chicamauga on 30 Sep 1863. Thank you!!!

I'm having a really hard time getting the hang of how to search on Fold3. I had done a name search and a general search for W T Pike with no results.

Mitch

I find it easiest to first check this website to get the unit and then go to Fold3 it also has short histories of most regiments as well.

http://www.itd.nps.gov/cwss/

I think there is another thread that has these Pike brothers in it.....its buried in with the other ancestry threads..

You are correct,I've seen it too

I can tell you that the regimental records do not specify that John Floyd Pike and William S. Pike are related, however, that doesn't mean that were not related.

As suggested, the best way to find family relationships is through the Census records. The 1860 Census for Alabama can be ordered through interlibrary loan or through the Church of Later Day Saints library.

By the way, if you want any details on the activities of the 5th Alabama Infantry Regiment during the war, I may be able to answer those questions.

I have William T. Pike in the 1850 US census, Jasper and Simpson are shown in William's household. John Floyd had already married and moved out, he was living nearby with his wife Elizabeth (Lee) and son William, age 1. Elizabeth Pike's parents were John Emory Lee and Temprance Knight. They are dead ends, I can't find anything on them other than census records.

Any information that you can furnish on the 5th AL could possibly lead to other information, so I would greatly appreciate any details of the 5th's activities. You can email me direct at mitchsfm at charter dot net

Thanks
Felton Mitchell

There is already a thread with about the Pike brothers on the Ancestry form...I found their graves and other people found other stuff about them...find the thread and you will find much of what you are looking for...

I have searched the ancestry.com forums and have been unable to locate the thread you are referring to. Can you give me a lead on how to find the thread?

Thanks
F Mitchell

Not

Sorry, The thread is not on ancestry.com. It is on this forum right here we are using to communicate on right now. Search this Civil War Ancestry forum and you should find it...I wish I could remember the title of the thread...Good luck...

I think thread 5fish is talking about is "Looking for several relatives" started Aug. 10, 2010 by Michigan Confederate 1994. It is on Pike family. I will pull it up for you.

Yes, there are two threads on CWT about the Pike brothers, this one and:

Looking up several different relatives.


started by MichiganConfederate1994, Gary Pike, who I have discovered is my cousin! We have been corresponding off line and sharing information. I live in Opelika, AL so I get to the AL state archives pretty regular. I have discovered John Floyd Pike's probate records from Randolph County, AL naming all of his children, with some additional guardianship proceedings involving John Floyd's son William Green Pike. William Green was appointed guardian of three of his grandchildren. My great grandmother was Martini Josephine (Pike) Reese, John Floyd Pike's youngest daughter.

Finding John Floyd Pike's probate records was serendipity, as he died in 1875 and the Randolph County, AL courthouse burned in 1896 destroying all of the old records. But, John Floyd's estate was not probated until 1908, after the fire, so the records are there. A lesson here on probate research, keep looking, it can be decades after a person dies before their estate is in probate! My guess is Elizabeth (Lee) Pike, John Floyd's wife had dower rights in John Floyd's estate, and lived on the home place until her death in 1908. Probate was necessary at that time so the heirs could get their share of the estate.

Thanks for the help. I am still looking for a way to tie the Pike brothers, John Floyd, Wylie Simpson, and Jasper Reeves together as brothers.

I hope the info on those two threads is what you were looking for......good luck..

Well, I got a little additional information and met a Pike cousin, so that was good. Still no leads on proving that John Floyd Pike is the son of William Pike and the brother of Wiley Simpson and Jasper Reeves Pike.