Hello Mr. Simmons- No, I do not know for a fact that Jefferson Golden did not come home from the war. I searched the 1870 census for Madison County yesterday and did not find him, but he could have moved. Other than your and Mr. McDowell's research, what makes me think he may have died is that we knew nothing of him in my family and we had always considered Martha Jane's (Jefferson's daughter) father to be Reuben Golden. Reuben was actually Jefferson's father. I was stunned to learn of Jefferson Golden just recently. Even after Mr. McDowell's shorter reply, my gut feeling was that Jefferson had probably died. Are there other reasons that records of a soldier would stop? Wouldn't there have been documentation of other routine military matters such as pay and eventual release from the military after the war?

I have read and reread your response. I believe that you have come to reasonable conclusion. I appreciate the many details you have included and how you were able to sort out the several Golden/Goulden soldiers. Should I happen to find later that Jefferson did, in fact, survive, I'll let you know. Thank you. Best regards, Dana Allred