In the midst of the Civil War, the federal government issued one of many calls to the states to provide additional troops; one of these requests was made in August of 1862 during which inductees to the armed forces would serve for nine months of active duty. New Jersey's quota of 10,478 men was furnished to Union forces via eleven regiments, the Twenty-First through the Thirty-First New Jersey Volunteer Infantry Regiments.
State officials were instructed to draft these men from the militia if sufficient volunteers were not forthcoming. The vast majority of those who responded were volunteers, some attracted by modest signing bounties; however, a minority of those added to the ranks were drafted.
The collection consists of certificates of disability issued to Morris County residents who either served or were drafted to serve in the Civil War between August and September of 1862. The certificates appear to have been issued in advance of the draft date for men who were deemed physically unfit so that their names would be preemptively stricken from the list of potential draftees. Since the Draft date was set for September 3, 1862, inelligable men attempted to record their exemption prior to that date.
Diseases and variant spellings that appear in the CertificatesAnchylosis: Variant of "ancylo-" - "hook" or "joint", crooked, bent.
Catarach: Cataract (opacity of the lens).
Choria(?): Perhaps "chorea" - any of several diseases of the nervous system characterized by jerky involuntary movements, chiefly of the face and extremities.
Dropsey: Perhaps "dropsy" - also edema: effusion of serious fluid into the interstices of cells in tissue spaces or into body cavities.
Fistula: A narrow passage or duct formed by disease or injury, as one leading from an abscess to a free surface, or from one cavity to another.
Gravel: Multiple small caculi formed in the kidneys; the disease characterized by such concretions.
Haemorrhoids: Now: hemorrhoids.
Haemoplysis: Perhaps "hemoptysis" - the expectoration of blood or bloody mucus.
Hepatic trouble: of or pertaining to the liver.
Hydrarthosis: A chronic condition of unknown cause characterized by recurring, temporary episodes of fluid accumulation in the knee.
Hydrocile: Perhaps "hydrocele" - an accumulation of serious fluid, usually about the testes.
Lumbago: Pain in the lower, or lumbar, region of the back or loins, especially chronic or recurring pain.
Morbus coxasius: "Diseased hip".
Necrosis: Death of a circumscribed portion of tissue.
Opthalmia: Inflammation of the eye, especially of its membranes or external structures.
Orchitis: Inflammation of the testes.
Ottorrhoea: Deafness.
Ozena: Disease of the nose in which the bony ridges and mucous membranes waste away.
Phithisis: Possibly "Phthisis pulmonalis", tuberculosis, also known as consumption.
Polypus: Probably "polyposis" or "polypous" - the development of numerous polyps on a hollow internal organ, seen especially in the intestinal tract.
Scrofular disease: Scrofula - primary tuberculosis of the lymphatic glands, especially those of the neck.
Starraplegia: Possibly "tetraplegia", also known as quadriplegia - paralysis caused by illness or injury that results in the partial or total loss of use of all four limbs and torso.
Varicocile/Vasicoule/Vasicocile: Possibly "varicocele" - an enlargement of the veins within the loose bag of skin that holds the testicles.
Ventrol hernia: Abdominal hernia.
The records are grouped according to one of six towns: Mendham Township, Jefferson Township, Washington Township, Chatham Township, Randolph Township, and Roxbury Township. Since the collection was damaged by fire, their original order has been lost; therefore, the attached Container List presents individual names alphabetically by surname for the benefit of researchers.
This collection is open for research under the conditions set forth in the North Jersey History and Genealogy Center archives access policy. All archival material should be handled with care and kept in its original order; notes may only be taken in pencil or with a computer, and food and drink are prohibited in the Reading Room.
The certificates in this collection were damaged in a fire and are extremely fragile. They have undergone extensive and costly conservation treatment and cannot under any circumstance be photocopied. Researchers may hand copy the information, or photograph individual certificates without a flash.
Morris County Civil War Certificates of Disability for Military Service, 1862, North Jersey History and Genealogy Center, Morristown and Morris Township Library.
Processed and described by S. Christine Jochem, Archivist, 1998. Encoded by Jeffrey V. Moy, Archivist, February 2019.