William Fleming was detailed today to the E G Department. The exact entry in his diary says:
Fleming William detailed in the E G Dept Nov 27th 62
He doesn't return to his company until February 18, 1864. The monthly muster records that I reviewed for those 15 months list him as "detailed" each month. But they don't say what he was doing, or provide any further information as to what he was detailed to.
In my research so far, I've been unable to find an explanation of the E G Department. The best educated guess I can make at this point, is that E G stands for "engineering." That would make sense, given William Fleming's occupation as a carpenter.
During the Civil War, the Union Army's Corps of Engineers performed duties like planning and erecting defenses, construction and destroying roads and bridges, placing and removing obstruction, etc.
My assumption is that, while William Fleming was no longer with his company, he was still close by performing his duties in the E G Department.
