Finally acquired a pdf of a compilation geneology of my line that I had given up hope on ever seeing again. I once had a copy but it was lost.

Here's a page from it. From a letter home written by my third great grandfather from a confederate army camp in August of 1863.



He would die 20 Dec 1863 from wounds received at Missionary Ridge in November.

Also was reminded that my first cousin gg grands were actually double first.

Great for you, Warrior! Thanks for sharing that.

Moosetrot

It is really nice to have family history. Thanks for sharing.

Very interesting!

That's pretty cool. I sometimes think about how cool it would be to have a conversation with ancestors.

Another interesting is his name, Malcolm. He was named for his grandfather Malcolm. His grandson would be named Malcolm and his grandson likewise would be Malcolm and were I to have had a son I would have named him Malcolm.

Our forefathers would be disappointed in us. Talking with our thumbs instead of pens and paper. They may have been hard men, but they were tough! My great,great grandfather was shot in the battle at chicamauga. I have his leather pouch used for who knows what. Warrior, your G-father was pretty educated to write like that. I can hardly spell correctly in such writing. Can only image how tough it would have been to live back then.

You probably know all this David, but...

"What can you tell me about this song ballad?

This appears to be a poignant Confederate Civil War-era ballad (or poem/song) known variably as "Adieu, Adieu—A Long Farewell" or more commonly referenced by its recurring refrain "I'll Return No More".

It is not a widely published or commercially known folk song like "Dixie" or "Lorena," but rather a personal, soldier-composed farewell piece that was preserved through family and local historical records.

Origin and Author
The ballad was written by Malcolm McLeod (also spelled MacLeod or McLeod in some records), a Scottish-descended Confederate soldier born around 1824.

He was likely from a family with Scottish immigrant roots (possibly connected to clans like Colquhoun or areas in North Carolina/Mississippi with Highland Scottish settlers).

Malcolm served in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War.

On August 10, 1863, while stationed at a Confederate camp near Morton, Mississippi (sometimes called "Alabama Camp" in references, possibly a local or unit nickname), he wrote this farewell ballad/poem.

He dedicated it to his wife and little children back home in Alabama.

Tragically, Malcolm died shortly afterward in 1863 (likely from disease, wounds, or camp conditions, common in the war), so he never returned home as he foresaw in the lyrics.

The text you provided matches versions preserved in genealogical records, family histories, and local archives (e.g., Lauderdale County, Mississippi, historical documents and WikiTree family profiles).

Themes and Style
This is a classic "farewell" or "dying soldier" ballad common in Civil War literature on both sides:

It expresses a soldier's premonition of death.

Themes include permanent parting, the journey to battle ("to meet the foe"), the hope of heavenly reunion ("Canaan's peaceful shore" — a biblical reference to the Promised Land/heaven), and instructions to his family not to weep.

The language is formal, poetic, and religious, with repetition of "I'll return no more" as a mournful refrain.
It blends homesickness, stoic acceptance of fate, and faith — very typical of Southern soldier poetry/songs from the era.

Slight variations appear in different transcriptions (e.g., "My friends and neighbors, all farewell" vs. "Good friends and neighbors all, farewell"), but the core text is consistent.
Historical Context

Written during the middle of the war (1863), after major Confederate setbacks like Vicksburg (July 1863, near Morton, MS).

The camp near Morton was in a region where Confederate forces regrouped after defeats in Mississippi.
Such personal compositions were often shared in letters, camp newspapers, or orally among soldiers, and some were later collected in family Bibles, scrapbooks, or postwar memorials.

It's a touching, lesser-known example of grassroots Confederate soldier expression — more a family heirloom and historical artifact than a widely sung popular ballad. If this comes from a family collection, old book, or local history source, it likely ties directly to descendants preserving Malcolm McLeod's memory."

Your grandfather Ira is my:





Keith

Where did all that come from, Keith?

His mother, my 4th great grandmother was a Colquhoun and spelled as such not the generation later Calhoun.

The McLeod's and Calhouns would intermarry for several generations.

His father Neal was born prior to 1782 either in North Carolina or Scotland, one census says Scotland but the timeline (dates of birth of his sons) and his father also being named Neal who was the original immigrant from Scotland in 1774 points to a North Carolina birth. The orignal Neal purchased 1200 acres in North Carolina but lost it when tory lands were consficated. The original Neal was lost at sea enroute to Nova Scotia in 1785 where he intended to resettle his family. This was after being released from prison having participated in the battle of Moore's Creek Bridge on the side of the loyalist Highlanders. Moore's Bridge was the site of the last ever Highland Charge with broadswords.
Neal the son would relocate to Clarke county, AL in 1822.

That is really cool. My grandparents came to this country through Ellis Island in the first part of the 1900's . I still have cousins in Italy but can't find any family history.

I had the Grok AI (www.grok.com) look at the picture of the ballad you shared and it gave me the information. It looked at 60 different sources that mentioned it and compiled the answer.

I pulled up your family tree on Family Search (www.familysearch.org), by searching your 3rd great grandfather Malcolm McLeod and followed him down to Ira. Is Ira your grandfather? All your ancestors I looked at are related to me through both of their parents, but not very closely. I also have McLeods in my pedigree, but very far back.

Family Search has literally copies of trillions of original documents, some that are thousands of years old. It is an extremely useful genealogy resource. In many cases, all of the work has been done of putting the pedigrees together. Many people, even from hundreds of years ago, have dozens of documents on them, often including birth, baptism, marriage, death, military service, draft, tax payments, land purchases, count cases, contracts, sells receipts, journals, ship manifests, inheritance and wills.

Keith

Keith

That's my family. Surprising that they picked up the older brother who died as an infant. He's all but forgotten today. I make it a point to visit his grave as granny, Cora Lee, insisted that her brother be remembered. Granny was my great aunt that stepped in to raise my father and uncles after my grandmother Ruth passed.

You would enjoy Family Search. It's got a tremendous amount of information on your and our shared family. It's completely free to use. It's linked to the other better genealogy sites too.

There's literally millions of Civil War documents, many of them are personal letters and other first hand accounts. It's a historians dream site.

Keith