Record #:

23454

Author(s):

Kammerer, Roger

Abstract:

James Sherrod May was born in 1830 in Beaver Dam Township in Pitt County. His brother, Blaney Harper May, was born in 1836, in the same location. After moving several times with their family and receiving a local education, the two brothers each became farmers in Greene and Pitt counties, respectively. With the coming of the Civil War, both brothers joined the Confederate Army. Blaney enlisted in the 7th N.C. Volunteers in the spring of 1861 and was subsequently captured at Hatteras Island in August of that year. After he was imprisoned in New York and Massachusetts for several months, Blaney re-enlisted in May of 1862. Stationed at Petersburg, Virginia, he was mortally wounded and died in September of 1864. James May enlisted in the 63rd North Carolina in July of 1862 and was stationed in Wilmington. He died of \"brain fever\" in January of 1864. Luckily, the resting places of both brothers are known today; Blaney is buried in a Confederate cemetery in Petersburg, while James is buried beside his father, Rev. William Henry May, on the banks of Contentnea Creek in Pitt County.

Source:

Greenville Times / Pitt's Past (NC Microforms), Vol. Issue , Jul 7-20 2004, p6

Subject(s):

Confederate soldiers