Biography
Evander McNair was born at Laurel Hill in Scotland County, North Carolina. His parents moved to Simpson County, Mississippi soon after his birth.
In his early twenties McNair opened a mercantile business in Jackson, Mississippi. During the Mexican War McNair joined the 1st Mississippi Rifles under the command of Colonel Jefferson Davis, who would later become President of the Confederacy.
In 1856 McNair moved to Washington, Arkansas, and continued his business there until Arkansas seceded from the Union. McNair raised seven companies of infantry which was augmented with other volunteers and designated the 4th Arkansas Infantry.
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