Elliot T. Boylston was born in 1839 in Clayton, Alabama to Joseph C. Boylston and Eleanor Guphill Boylston. His parents owned a hotel in Clayton. As a young man, Elliot was the desk clerk at the hotel.
On January 18, 1861, Elliot and his brother, Hamilton, both enlisted at Clayton, Alabama with Company I of the Alabama 1st Infantry. Company I was known as the Clayton Guards, named after the county seat of Barbour County, Alabama. The unit was composed of men primarily from Barbour County. The company was then mustered into service at Eufaula, Alabama.
Elliot enlisted a full month before Jefferson Davis was inaugurated on February 18, 1861 in Mobile, and almost three months before the official beginning of the war on April 12, 1861.
The first duty of the Alabama 1st was to defend the coastline of Florida against a Union invasion. They garrisoned at Fort Barrancas. Across the bay was Fort Pickens, which was held by Union forces throughout the war. Over the coming months, the soldiers of the Alabama 1st reinforced the batteries and breastworks around Fort Barrancas. On October 8, 1861, General Bragg ordered an attack against Fort Pickens. The skirmish was short, but indecisive.
During that same time, due to the sweltering summer Florida heat and the close proximity of encamped soldiers, hundreds of Alabamians became sick. Maladies such as measles, smallpox, and diarrhea took their toll. Elliot contracted typhoid fever. The disease would prove deadly for him as he died in his quarters on October 23, 1861.
The details of his burial are not known. Today, the sprawling Barrancas National Cemetery has over 46,000 interments. Of that number, there are 72 Confederate solders, 20 of which are unknown. It is probable that Elliot is one of those. But, it could also be that he is buried in an area cemetery.
On July 10, 1862, his mother, Eleanor Gruphill Boyston, was given $44.43 from the Treasury Department of the Confederate States for Elliot’s back pay and his clothing allowance.
Eleanor Gruphill Boylston would die just five months later on December 19, 1862.
On January 18, 1861, Elliot and his brother, Hamilton, both enlisted at Clayton, Alabama with Company I of the Alabama 1st Infantry. Company I was known as the Clayton Guards, named after the county seat of Barbour County, Alabama. The unit was composed of men primarily from Barbour County. The company was then mustered into service at Eufaula, Alabama.
Elliot enlisted a full month before Jefferson Davis was inaugurated on February 18, 1861 in Mobile, and almost three months before the official beginning of the war on April 12, 1861.
The first duty of the Alabama 1st was to defend the coastline of Florida against a Union invasion. They garrisoned at Fort Barrancas. Across the bay was Fort Pickens, which was held by Union forces throughout the war. Over the coming months, the soldiers of the Alabama 1st reinforced the batteries and breastworks around Fort Barrancas. On October 8, 1861, General Bragg ordered an attack against Fort Pickens. The skirmish was short, but indecisive.
During that same time, due to the sweltering summer Florida heat and the close proximity of encamped soldiers, hundreds of Alabamians became sick. Maladies such as measles, smallpox, and diarrhea took their toll. Elliot contracted typhoid fever. The disease would prove deadly for him as he died in his quarters on October 23, 1861.
The details of his burial are not known. Today, the sprawling Barrancas National Cemetery has over 46,000 interments. Of that number, there are 72 Confederate solders, 20 of which are unknown. It is probable that Elliot is one of those. But, it could also be that he is buried in an area cemetery.
On July 10, 1862, his mother, Eleanor Gruphill Boyston, was given $44.43 from the Treasury Department of the Confederate States for Elliot’s back pay and his clothing allowance.
Eleanor Gruphill Boylston would die just five months later on December 19, 1862.
Elliot T. Boylston was born in 1839 in Clayton, Alabama to Joseph C. Boylston and Eleanor Guphill Boylston. His parents owned a hotel in Clayton. As a young man, Elliot was the desk clerk at the hotel.
On January 18, 1861, Elliot and his brother, Hamilton, both enlisted at Clayton, Alabama with Company I of the Alabama 1st Infantry. Company I was known as the Clayton Guards, named after the county seat of Barbour County, Alabama. The unit was composed of men primarily from Barbour County. The company was then mustered into service at Eufaula, Alabama.
Elliot enlisted a full month before Jefferson Davis was inaugurated on February 18, 1861 in Mobile, and almost three months before the official beginning of the war on April 12, 1861.
The first duty of the Alabama 1st was to defend the coastline of Florida against a Union invasion. They garrisoned at Fort Barrancas. Across the bay was Fort Pickens, which was held by Union forces throughout the war. Over the coming months, the soldiers of the Alabama 1st reinforced the batteries and breastworks around Fort Barrancas. On October 8, 1861, General Bragg ordered an attack against Fort Pickens. The skirmish was short, but indecisive.
During that same time, due to the sweltering summer Florida heat and the close proximity of encamped soldiers, hundreds of Alabamians became sick. Maladies such as measles, smallpox, and diarrhea took their toll. Elliot contracted typhoid fever. The disease would prove deadly for him as he died in his quarters on October 23, 1861.
The details of his burial are not known. Today, the sprawling Barrancas National Cemetery has over 46,000 interments. Of that number, there are 72 Confederate solders, 20 of which are unknown. It is probable that Elliot is one of those. But, it could also be that he is buried in an area cemetery.
On July 10, 1862, his mother, Eleanor Gruphill Boyston, was given $44.43 from the Treasury Department of the Confederate States for Elliot’s back pay and his clothing allowance.
Eleanor Gruphill Boylston would die just five months later on December 19, 1862.
On January 18, 1861, Elliot and his brother, Hamilton, both enlisted at Clayton, Alabama with Company I of the Alabama 1st Infantry. Company I was known as the Clayton Guards, named after the county seat of Barbour County, Alabama. The unit was composed of men primarily from Barbour County. The company was then mustered into service at Eufaula, Alabama.
Elliot enlisted a full month before Jefferson Davis was inaugurated on February 18, 1861 in Mobile, and almost three months before the official beginning of the war on April 12, 1861.
The first duty of the Alabama 1st was to defend the coastline of Florida against a Union invasion. They garrisoned at Fort Barrancas. Across the bay was Fort Pickens, which was held by Union forces throughout the war. Over the coming months, the soldiers of the Alabama 1st reinforced the batteries and breastworks around Fort Barrancas. On October 8, 1861, General Bragg ordered an attack against Fort Pickens. The skirmish was short, but indecisive.
During that same time, due to the sweltering summer Florida heat and the close proximity of encamped soldiers, hundreds of Alabamians became sick. Maladies such as measles, smallpox, and diarrhea took their toll. Elliot contracted typhoid fever. The disease would prove deadly for him as he died in his quarters on October 23, 1861.
The details of his burial are not known. Today, the sprawling Barrancas National Cemetery has over 46,000 interments. Of that number, there are 72 Confederate solders, 20 of which are unknown. It is probable that Elliot is one of those. But, it could also be that he is buried in an area cemetery.
On July 10, 1862, his mother, Eleanor Gruphill Boyston, was given $44.43 from the Treasury Department of the Confederate States for Elliot’s back pay and his clothing allowance.
Eleanor Gruphill Boylston would die just five months later on December 19, 1862.
