House bill No. 1206, approved by the Ala. Legislature, 1907 Aug. 8 authorized the establishment of a permanent alphabetical record with the intent that every Confederate survivor of the War of Secession then residing in Ala., whether he served in the Army or Navy of the Confederate States of America or in any of the organizations of the state of their residence from 1861 to 1865, whether as officers, enlisted men, militia or home guards for local defense or in any other military or naval capacity. The county tax assessors were charged with the census duty to enroll every Confederate survivor whether the veteran saw service from Ala. or some other state. (Acts 1907, Reg. Sess., No. 697, pp. 637-638). A preliminary questionnaire was used, styled "Form 14: Census or Enumeration of Confederate Soldiers Residing in Alabama, 1907" and when completed, the forms were alpbetically arranged by name, and entered into two permanent record books with instructions as to careful transcriptions, comparison, vertification and certification by the tax assessor. The original record book was given into the custody of the judge of probate of its respective county, and the second volume and Forms 14 were remitted to the care of the Director of the Ala. Dept. of Archives and History for permanent preservation. Included and attached with many of these questionnaires is related correspondence between the Archives Director and the veteran in question regarding historical questions relating to his military service and for information concerning the military unit in which he served. These questionnaries when sent to the Dept of Archives and History were organized and filed by regiment and battalion, i.e., infantry, cavalry, artillery (battery), and home guard/state troops, etc., and then by name of the veteran. If the veteran served in more than one military unit, duplicate copies of Form 14 were made and marked as copies of the original and filed within the second or third units. Information required by law was: Full name of the veteran, present post office (place of residence), was born on (date), at (place, in county of (name), in the state of (name); first entered service as (rank), on (date), at (place), in the (command: company, regiment, etc.), and continued (date, and whether captured, discharged, transferred or paroled with the names of the places of action); re-enlisted as (rank), on (date), at (place), in the (command: company, regiment, etc.) and continued until (dates of termination of service, i.e., paroled, surrendered, etc.); information regarding other forms of service and facts of his having been a conscript, staff officer, ordnance officer, member of the home guards, escort or reserve company, etc., were to be noted in a brief statement, and whether the veteran had any original records, i.e., parole papers, diaries, muster rolls, etc.
