Lineback, J. A. (Julius Augustus), 1834-1930

Julius A. Lineback of Haw River and Winston-Salem, N.C., was a member of the marching band attached to the 26th North Carolina Regiment during the Civil War.

From the description of J. A. Lineback papers, ca. 1861-1863; ca. 1914. WorldCat record id: 26243310

Julius A. Lineback, fl. 1860s-1920s, of Haw River, N.C., was a member of the marching band attached to the 26th North Carolina Regiment during the Civil War. Early entries in Lineback's diary indicate that he was probably involved in milling before the Civil War. After the war, he worked in the Salem Moravian land office. The Lineback family was prominent in the 1880s fruit preservation and packing.

The marching band was formed in the Moravian settlement in Old Salem, N.C., under Sam T. Mickey, with permission of then-Colonel Zebulon B. Vance. It went into service on 5 March 1862. Members of the band served throughout the war, providing entertainment and moral support for troops in the field and, on occasional furloughs home, attempting to raise the spirits of the folks back in North Carolina. On one of these furloughs, the band played at former-Colonel Vance's gubernatorial inauguration. It is clear from Lineback's diary that the duties of band members extended beyond providing music; they frequently assisted in post-battle clean-up operations, helping in the transport of the wounded and the burying of the dead.

Band members were taken as prisoners in northern Virginia on 5 April 1865. Two days after being incarcerated at Petersburg, Va., news of the end of hostilities resulted in speedy end to their captivity.

From the guide to the J.A. Lineback Papers, ;, circa 1861-1863, 1914, (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection.)