Over the years, I've read of places that burned the courhouse so the records wouldn't fall into enemy hands. It has been a very long time but I think the big concern was the list of the local men who had joined the Confederate forces and later, the towns people burned them because Sherman or another was coming up the pike. There may well have been names of FMoC and there was some attempt to protect their identity also. Thinking how badly the war ended for the regular soldier, I'd imagine it was in the best interest of those left behind to figure it out.
I have no way of proving that, just remember hearing of some of it.Before our county government took itself to Greenville, the then Clerk of Court buried records in sealed containers along the bluff on what is now Scenic Hwy. That Clerk was kin to my husband and the one who succeeded my 3xGrandfather. To me, knowing what I do on some of the activities of that time, it's not a stretch and sounds like a good idea. Happily, this Clerk survived the war and was able to restore them to their rightful place. Considering what we have learned, it makes sense that if there were indeed a record kept on the local level, the proof went up in flames.
Pam