George volunteered for service in the Civil War on August 27, 1861 and mustered into Cole's Cavalry, Co. C in Frederick, Maryland. Five months after the Battle of Gettysburg, George Shriver was granted a four-day furlough giving him the opportunity to spend Christmas with wife Hettie, and daughters Sadie and Mollie. George was a changed man when he returned. He had been away for almost two and a half years and saw things he could not even begin to describe to Hettie. George returned to duty near Brandy Station, Virginia, on December 29, 1863. For the next several days Cole's Cavalry engaged in off-and-on fighting with the 43rd Battalion of Virginia Cavalry, an elite guerilla unit led by John S. Mosby and more popularly known - and dreaded - as Mosby's Rangers. When the melee ended, Confederates killed, wounded or captured 57 Union soldiers. One of the captured was George Shriver, taken prisoner on New Year's Day, 1864, near Rectortown, Virginia. George was sent to a prison named Camp Sumter, which has become more commonly recognized as Andersonville.

Sources:

• http://www.shriverhouse.org/The_Shrivers.html (also source of profile photo)