Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Humanities/2021 November 9

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November 9

mw?

In Olustee Union order of battle, the mysterious "(mw)" shows up after "Ltc [Lieutenant Colonel] William N. Reed". Anybody know what that stands for. My best guess is "mulatto white", as it is claimed that he was the highest-ranking black officer in the Civil War. Clarityfiend (talk) 09:55, 9 November 2021 (UTC)

Pinging User:Spacini, who added those letters [1]. --Viennese Waltz 10:21, 9 November 2021 (UTC)

In a similar article, Gettysburg Confederate order of battle, it's explained as "mortally wounded". There should certainly be some such explanation added to the page, or the abbreviation should be expanded. I wouldn't have understood it either. Fut.Perf. ☼ 10:40, 9 November 2021 (UTC)

Further information about Reed is here. Alansplodge (talk) 10:43, 9 November 2021 (UTC)

You could use {{abbr}}, i.e.: {{abbr|1=mw|2=mortally wounded}} which renders as: mw. --107.15.157.44 (talk) 16:57, 9 November 2021 (UTC)

Thanks all. Clarityfiend (talk) 05:58, 10 November 2021 (UTC)