Sylfest Thompson
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| Name at Enlist | Sylfest Thompson |
| Birth Name | |
| Lived | ca. 1840 – ca. 1900 |
| Resident of Muster-In | McFarland, Dane County, WI |
| Company at Enlistment | H |
| Rank at Enlistment | Private |
| Muster Date | 13 Feb 1862 |
| Spouse | Margaret |
Sylfest Thompson joined the WI 15th Infantry, Company H. The men of the company called themselves “Heg’s Rifles” in honor of the 15th commander, Colonel Hans C. Heg. They were also known as the “Voss Company” because of a large number of them who were from the Voss region of Norway.
The army listed him as living in McFarland, Dane County, WI and age 21. He enlisted for three years on November 1, 1861 at Madison, WI and mustered there on February 13, 1862 as a Private (Menig). He deserted at Madison on February 28, 1862, but the charge of desertion was officially removed and he was honorably discharged from the service on March 1, 1862.
After the war, he lived at Viroqua, WI. He married Margaret and died c. 1900.
Sources: Series 1200: Records of Civil War Regiments, 1861-1900, Wisconsin Adjutant General’s Office, boxes 76-10, 77-3; Regimental Muster and Descriptive Rolls, 1861-1865, Wisconsin Adjutant General’s Office, vol.20, p.120; Ole A. Buslett, Det Femtende Regiment, Wisconsin Frivillige [The Fifteenth Regiment, Wisconsin Volunteers] (Decorah, Iowa, 1894), p.576; Martin Ulvestad, Nordmændene i Amerika, 1907, History Book Co., Minneapolis, MN, p.335; Civil War Pension Index, Roll #T288_471.