The advance of the Gunboats up the river to New Berne, N. Carolina. Passing the Barricade
Civil War and Reconstruction (1850-1877)
A National Archives Foundation educational resource using primary sources from the National Archives
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View the full document here: https://docsteach.org/document/confederate-form-stating-the-agreement-for-the-exemption-of-lycurgus-rees-of-columbia-county-georgia/
Many Southern whites believed the Confederate draft favored the rich. The “twenty Negro law,” for example, exempted planters with 20 or more slaves. In February 1864 that requirement was reduced to 15 slaves, and Georgian Lycurgus Reeswho had “fifteen able-bodied slaves” applied for an exemption as “a Farmer or Agriculturalist.” In return he agreed to furnish the Confederate War Department with 1,500 pounds of beef, bacon, or pork.
This primary source comes from the War Department Collection of Confederate Records.
National Archives Identifier: 3854720
Full Citation: Confederate Form Stating the Agreement for the Exemption of Lycurgus Rees of Columbia County, Georgia; 5/1864; War Department Collection of Confederate Records, Record Group 109. [Online Version, https://docsteach.org/document/confederate-form-stating-the-agreement-for-the-exemption-of-lycurgus-rees-of-columbia-county-georgia/, July 12, 2026]
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