Daily AncestorVeteran volunteer
A veteran volunteer was a Union soldier who reenlisted for another three years before his first term ran out, earning a bounty and a furlough home.
With many three-year enlistments due to expire in 1864, the War Department created the Veteran Volunteer designation in June 1863, offering men who reenlisted a $402 bounty, paid in installments, and a furlough home. The 1st Delaware became the 1st Delaware Veteran Infantry after three quarters of its men reenlisted in December 1863.
Men who declined were mustered out when their terms ended or were transferred, so a regiment's veterans and nonveterans have different end dates. A record marked reenlisted as veteran volunteer usually shows two enlistment dates.
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Daily Ancestor. "Veteran volunteer." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/military/veteran-volunteer. Last checked 2026-10-03.