Coke, John Archer, 1842-1920.

John Archer Coke was born in Williamsburg, Virginia, on July 14, 1842. In the years preceding the Civil War, he attended William and Mary College, graduating in 1860. In March, 1861, he enlisted in the Lee Artillery, an organization formed at Williamsburg, under Captain W.R. Garrett. Initially elected second lieutenant of the unit, Coke was subsequently promoted to captain. In 1862, Captain Coke was re-assigned to duty as enrolling officer for the Third Congressional District of Virginia, with headquarters at Richmond, under command of Col. John C. Shields, commander of the Conscript Department of Virginia (later replaced by General J.L. Kemper).

As enrolling officer, Coke was charged with enforcing the conscription law passed by the Confederate Congress on April 16, 1862. The first conscription law in American history (preceding the Union draft by nearly a year), the Confederate act drafted all white males between 18 and 35 for a three-year term of service. In September 1862, as southern casualties mounted, the conscription age was raised to 45, and by February 1864, the limits were 17 and 50.

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