The Boyd Family in the 4th TN Cav (USA)

There were seven BOYD soldiers who served in the 4th TN Cavalry (USA). The following chart summarizes them:

First Name	Co.	Rank	Born:
Benjamin F.	D	Private	Abt. 1844, Hamilton Co., TN
George M.	F	Private	July 06, 1845, McMinn Co., TN
James F.	D	Corporal	Abt. 1835, McMinn Co., TN
James K.	F	Private	Oct. 1843, McMinn Co., TN
John A.	D	Private	1839, McMinn Co., TN
John T.	F	Sergeant	1839, McMinn Co., TN
Joseph	K	Private	Abt. 1845

Company D

Most of the BOYD soldiers in the 4th originated in Company D; several of the individuals who are listed above as being in Company F were originally enlisted in Co D, and were then transferred later on to Co F, from which they mustered out.

Most of the BOYD soldiers in the 4th also appear to have come from McMinn Co., TN. This fact, in combination with their common source in Co D, lends evidence to the theory that most of them were likely related to each other.

First I shall eliminate those BOYD soldiers who do not appear to be part of this common group.

Benjamin BOYD enlisted Oct 14, 1863 at Murfreesboro, TN into Co I of the 4th. His place of birth is given as Hamilton Co., TN. He was transferred March 25, 1864 into Co D by order of Lt. Col. Thornburg.

In the "Index to the 1880 Census of East Tennessee" (Sistler, 1997), there is a Benjamin Boyd listed as age 33, living in Bledsoe Co. While the age is a bit on the young side (if he was 33 in 1880, then he would have been 16 when he enlisted in the 4th), this is a plausible match. It would, however, further place this man outside the circle of Boyds from McMinn Co.

Joseph BOYD of Co K is also an anomaly. I do not yet know his place of birth. He enlisted May 21, 1864, and died only a few months later, drowning July 31, 1864 in the Chattahoochie River near Atlanta during McCook's Raid.

Now we are left with one George Boyd, and one each James Boyd and John Boyd, with all of them giving their place of birth as McMinn Co.

The two remaining Co D Boyds, James F. and John A., seem as though they could be brothers. They both enlisted on the same day, Nov 27, 1862; however, James F. was in Louisville, KY at that time, while John A. was in Williamsburg, KY, at the opposite border. Their physical descriptions are similar, with both having fair complexions, blue eyes, and dark hair.

The three Co F Boyds appear to be brothers, based on several pieces of data that support this. They were living together with their parents in the 1850 McMinn Co., TN census, and there is a cemetery file available through Rootsweb for the Boyd family plot at Mt. Pleasant Cemetery at McMinn Co.

James K. Boyd (listed as James R. Boyd on the regimental muster roll) and John T. Boyd both enlisted in Co D Dec 10, 1862 at Louisville, KY. They were recruited by Lt. Isbel (later Capt. Isbel). Both were described as having dark complexion, blue eyes, and dark hair. Their younger brother George enlisted in Co F at Somerset, KY on April 30, 1863, also recruited by Lt. Isbel; he was described as fair complexion, yellow eyes, and fair hair. A month later, on May 26, 1863, James K. was transferred from Co D to Co F, and on July 7, 1863 John T. was similarly transferred, both "by order of M. Stephens".

The following pedigree is based on census data and on cemetery data from Rootsweb archives:

Please visit this excellent site for Civil War data on all BOYD soldiers.