It is usually pronounced by non-Indians outside Appalachia as Teh (rhymes with the first part of "ready") COME suh (like "sup" without the p).

With accents from SE Ohio into the hills and mountains to the south, that last syllable often becomes "see." If you are from that area or familiar with the accents, or have seen names written in the Census records and elsewhere, you probably recognize the similar pronunciation as in India/Indy, Willa/Willy, Barbara/Barbry, etc. Then we all like to shorten names to nicknames, and that's how you end up with Cumpsia for Tecumseh, pronounced "Cumpsy." The p sneaks into the word because it's just easier to say that way, like pronouncing "hamster" as "hampster." I was interested in the family history as far back as I can remember, and I loved asking all the older folks to tell me their memories of anything and everything. Nicknames always fascinated me, and I was fortunate to hear my grandparents and some of their siblings pronounce William T.'s nickname. On a side note, I recently learned that all the non-Indians have been spelling and saying the chief's name wrong all along. The Shawnee version is Teh come THAY (th pronounced as in 9th, 10th).

A lot of boys born during and right after the war were named after generals, especially when their fathers served in the war as Wyatt L. Clay did in the 40th Kentucky Vol. Mounted Infantry. He is on this roster linked on this page: http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~kycarter/military/40th.htm. A friend who is a re-enactor explained to me that the mounted infantry was suited to the rough travel through the mountains where regular cavalry travel and battle tactics weren't possible. They rode where they could, and led the horses where necessary. Wyatt's service was surely filled with danger even when they weren't in a battle.

Another unit that many of his friends and relatives in that area served in was the 14th Kentucky Vol. Infantry who fought in some of the same battles as the 40th. The 14th were a favorite of Gen. Sherman and were part of the March to the Sea. Chances are that you probably have at least one relative that served in that unit. http://freepages.military.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~us14thkyinf...

You might also enjoy reading more about the earlier Clays here: http://www.clayfamilysociety.com/

My 4th great-grandfather was a brother to the Henry B. Clay in the original post. Several other Clays in the neighborhood married some of my aunts, uncles, and cousins, so I've enjoyed researching Clays up the line and out into the branches.

Janis