This DVD contains the names of the men who surrendered at Appomattox generally organized by unit and company. As there were many men separated from their command, some are grouped together by assignment such as clerks, wagon masters, cooks, etc.
The 7,700 men who were cut-off at Sailor's (Sayler's) Creek and thus counted at prisoners of war, and most of the Cavalry units which cut their way through the Union lines and escaped, are not included here.
From the Introduction to the 1887 edition:
This compilation has been printed from the originals of the duplicate paroles of the Army of Northern Virginia, surrendered at Appomattox Courthouse, Virginia, April 9, 1865, which were retained by its commander, General Robert Edward Lee, Confederate States Army; the other duplicate being delivered to Lieutenant-General Ulysses S. Grant, commanding the Armies of the United States. The present documents passed from General Lee into the charge of the late Hon. Robert Ould, Confederate States Commissioner of Exchange of Prisoners of War, by whom they were deposited in the archives of the Southern Historical Society.
The orthography of the originals has been carefully followed in printing, although it is apprehended that there were many clerical misconceptions as to the correct rendering of proper names. Owing to the rearrangement of his command by General Lee on the morning preceding the day of surrender; the incidental disintegration of the forces; the desultory mode of parole, and the subsequent disarrangement of the documents themselves before they came into the possession of the editor, his task has been both perplexing and laborious. He has availed himself of every reference for information within his immediate attainment, and has endeavored fidelity in the entire performance of his official trust.
This DVD edition of the Appomattox Roster is in PDF (Adobe Acrobat Reader) format and contains 26,300 names in all, plus some additional genealogical and biographical information. It was originally published at Volume 15 of the Southern Historical Society Papers.