The 1st FL Union wasn't formed until the end of 1863 so any ill-will wouldn't have been because of serving but maybe just sentiment. It is interesting your Garretts left Coffee Co around 1862. Coffee contributed a fair number of men to the 1st FL Union though not a large percentage of the military-aged men in the county, but it was 3rd in terms of total numbers found in 1860. But my Kings were in Coffee at the start of the war and also moved south into Florida early in the war. They were Unionists. They moved not long after a younger brother was drafted. He didn't desert the Confederacy but was taken captive at Ft. Morgan and sent to Elmira where he died of pneumonia. In his interview on arriving there he indicated the family were Unionists and he just wanted to go to Pensacola where he had family nearby. I wonder if there are any other families with a similar pattern of leaving Alabama and moving south during the war. The Florida panhandle may have been considered a safer place to struggle through the war. It was certainly more isolated, especially in the Yellow River area. Do you know what your Garretts did for income other than farm in Coffee and where in the county they lived?

Great photo.