21st Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry (Carter's)

Brief History
The 21st Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry (Carter's) organized in September, 1864, was never officially numbered. It was usually called Carter's Scouts or Wheeler's Scouts. It ended the war in Alabama and surrendered with the Department of Alabama, Mississippi, and East Louisiana.

Companies in this Regiment with the Counties of Origin
Men often enlisted in a company recruited in the counties where they lived though not always. After many battles, companies might be combined because so many men were killed or wounded. However if you are unsure which company your ancestor was in, try the company recruited in his county first.


 * Company A - "Carter's Scouts"
 * Company B - Captain James B. Ezell
 * Company C - Captain Newt J. Vaughn
 * Company D - Men from Rutherford County.
 * Company E - Captain Robert H. Dudley
 * Company F - Captains Robert Withers (to lieutenant colonel), Rober L. Morris
 * Company G - Captain Lemuel Oliver. Formerly Co. "B", Carter's Battalion of Scouts.
 * Company H - Captain Norton
 * Company I - Captain Thomas Hollowell - Men from Rutherford County.
 * Company K - Captain J.B. Van Houten

Information on the companies is from Tennesseans in the Civil War, (accessed 29 Dec 2011).

The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors database lists 233 men on its roster for this unit. Roster.

Other Sources

 * Beginning United States Civil War Research gives steps for finding information about a Civil War soldier or sailor. It covers the major records that should be used. Additional records are described in 'Tennessee in the Civil War' and 'United States Civil War, 1861 to 1865' (see below).


 * National Park Service, The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System, is searchable by soldier's name and state. It contains basic facts about soldiers on both sides of the Civil War, a list of regiments, descriptions of significant battles, sources of the information, and suggestions for where to find additional information.


 * Tennessee in the Civil War describes many Confederate and Union sources, specifically for Tennessee, and how to find them.. These include compiled service records, pension records, rosters, cemetery records, Internet databases, published books, etc.


 * United States Civil War, 1861 to 1865 describes and explains United States and Confederate States records, rather than state records, and how to find them. These include veterans’ censuses, compiled service records, pension records, rosters, cemetery records, Internet databases, published books, etc.


 * Lindsley, John Berrien, The Military Annals of Tennessee – Confederate First Series, Embracing A Review of Military Operations, with Regimental Histories and Memorial Rolls, Compiled from Original and Official Sources, (Nashville: J.M. Lindsley &amp; Co. Publishers; 1886).Online at Internet Archive, (accessed 3 Sep 2011). A brief history of the Twenty-First Tennessee Cavalry begins on page 741.


 * Tennesseans in the Civil War, 21st (Nathan W. Carter's) Tennessee Cavalry Regiment, (accessed 29 Dec 2011). A brief history.