Editorial Policy

Muster & Margin is a collective publication. Editorial Policy sets out the method behind every page.

Sourcing and Verification

Claims in Civil War research articles are built from documents a reader can locate: muster rolls, index cards, compiled service records, regimental histories, and archival finding aids. Each factual statement is tied to a cited source. Before publication, a claim is checked against that source, and a second source is used wherever a single document could be misread.

Original Examples and Comparisons

Examples published here are written for Muster & Margin. They show the research sequence rather than conceal it. Comparing Clues follows the same rule: when a conclusion rests on agreement between documents, both documents are named, and any disagreement is stated plainly.

Illustrations

Each picture helps a reader recognise a record type or a document layout. A picture is never presented as primary evidence: the evidence is always the document named in the text.

Corrections

When a passage is found to be inaccurate, it is corrected and the change is noted in the article. The Correction Notes page explains how a reader can check a passage against its source and keep a clear note. No submission mechanism is claimed. The publication is not an operating reenactment group, and its pages concern historical research only.