col. of what and when and where?

Question

col. william elbert welborn is on his tomb stone.i can't find any information regarding the rank or service.1817-1902

Comments

Would this be him? https://books.google.com.au/books?id=hGvoCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA235&lpg=PA235&dq=William+Elbert+Welborn&source=bl&ots=a7kyK6sGkV&sig=DU8Xkpfij7TOAWYiTDMk5DMLfew&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiOu4HVjK7OAhXHsJQKHQq-DzUQ6AEISjAJ#v=onepage&q=William%20Elbert%20Welborn&f=false

"United States Civil War Soldiers Index, 1861-1865," database, FamilySearch(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F9VL-H22 : 4 December 2014), W.E. Welborn, Major, Company F&S, 1st Regiment, South Carolina State Troops, Confederate; citing NARA microfilm publication M381 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 34; FHL microfilm 882,000.

Answer 1

Well I'd expect it would be in the Confederate Army.  But it could be an honorary title as with Col. Sanders of fried chicken fame.  Once you've become a volunteer and thus a member of WikiTree, you should be able to use the recently improved research function and see what sources match with your profiles.  Meanwhile I'll do a quick look and see if I can find the answer as low-hanging fruit...

Yes, Ancestry.com has:

William Elbert Welborn Obituary

This article was found in The Sentinel-Journal, Pickens, SC July 16, 1908

He was indeed in the confederate army for 4 years, rising to Col. and being well respected.