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Atascosa County and The Civil War - Part 7

The 36th Texas’ Camp Life on the San Marcos

Joseph P. Blessington, a private in the 16th Volunteer Texas Infantry, Walker’s Division wrote a memoir of his days in service and here gives us a vivid description of camp life at his encampment in Austin County, which would have been about the same as the Pleasanton men were experiencing at the time in their camp on the San Marcos.

Military discipline soon inducted us into the mysteries of camp-life, and in time we became accustomed to its daily routine, which was by no means light. At early dawn the reveille roused us from slumber. Roll-call being over, the companies were dismissed to put their quarters in order. Breakfast at 6 o’clock, A.M. In the mean time two men from each company were detailed to serve in the main-guard, to enforce discipline and guard the camp. A police guard was also appointed, who cleaned up all dirt and filth about the tents, brought water for the company, wood for the cooks, and, in fact, kept everything in order and cleanliness during the drilling of the troops.

There was a daily drill, three times a day, at the following hours, viz.:
Company Drill, at 7 o’clock, A.M.,
Company Drill, at 2 o’clock, P.M.,
Battalion Drill, at 3½ o’clock, P.M.,
and “Dress Parade” every evening at 5 o’clock; at sundown, Company Muster, for roll-call and supper. Tattoo, at 9 P.M., when the men retired to their respective quarters; fifteen minutes later, three taps of the drum was the signal for all lights to be extinguish-ed, and the camp was in darkness and quietude. These duties were conducted with regularity and precision, and performed with a promptitude and cheerfulness surprising in men who had never know restraint, and were fresh from the business and luxuries of home. Everything necessary for the comfort and convenience of the troops was furnished, and laugh, jest, and song attested the general satisfaction and good feeling of the men.1

At the 36th Texas’ Dress Parade every evening, the flag-bearer carried a Confederate flag made for them by the ladies of Hays County.2

Blessington’s last sentence expressing the “general satisfaction” of the men in his outfit was a bit at variance with Tom Smith’s observation of his cohort: “Some of the boys are dissatisfied with the camp but the most of us like its appearance better than Camp Salado.”3 So, appearance, yes; other aspects, no. But then, griping has been the sovereign right and practice of all troops since the days of Homer.

Since we know that virtually the same military routine and discipline (as the above) was observed at Camp Clark, we can infer from this daily round how busy the junior officers and non-coms were, riding herd on the hundred-odd men under their responsibility. Get them up in the morning, make sure they are fed (three times a day), see that they attend to their horses and camp tasks, get them to their training exercises and multiple drills per day, and get them to bed at night.

Private Blessington, the infantryman, apparently decided to go have a look at how the horse soldiers in his camp managed. His view of the officers’ quarters:

Look into the cavalry officers’ tents, and you will find that they don’t fare so badly in camp. Neat beds are contrived; some are cots, others saplings or frames covered with cotton, and plenty of coverings. On one side is a table, with books and novels, a box of cigars, and, most likely, a bottle of “commissary.” These, with a looking-glass, and the officer’s equipments are complete.

This is his look at the field officers’ suite:

Four flies form a mess-tent; and as the colonel and staff are going to dine, we will just see what kind of fare they have. It consists of stewed beef, boiled ham, mashed potatoes, and a couple of chickens, which some of the Austin County housekeepers were kind enough to raise for them . . .

Blessington’s camp in Austin County, over near Houston in a more populated, settled part of Texas, surely provided the officers of Walker’s Division with a grander lifestyle than was likely to have existed in Camp Clark, roughly 120 miles to the west.

Officers and orderlies are always lounging or riding about head-quarters, which gave it a very gay and stirring appearance. At some distance from the colonel’s headquarters are the less pretentious headquarters of some of his subordinate officers, while, a little further on, are the modest tents of the rank and file, arraigned in streets.

He then gives us a look up and down the same kind of enlisted men’s “streets” that the officers Company E would have seen on their rounds.

The men around these are collected in groups, wearing their bell-spurs, while around each waist is dangling a huge knife, made by some village blacksmith, giving them the appearance of warriors, apparently ready for any emergency. Some are playing cards, pitch and toss, or a thousand other games known only in the army; others are dining, and grumbling at their rations, while dining, perhaps, on turkey. [Wild, of course.] The cooks are busy around a huge camp-kettle, placed on the fire, in which a joint of bacon and some peas are bubbling and bubbling around . . . A smaller vessel simmers near it; but, as the lid is on it, I cannot see its contents – most likely a brace of chickens under the wing of a fat turkey.

He wrote that if you asked the troopers where they got the chickens they would tell you “that their commissary furnished them,” but he knew it was more likely that they had had been appropriated from poultry yards of the farms they passed on their way.4

Next time: Colonel Woods and His Men . . .

Sources:
Purgason, Howard. Calvin Turner, Texas Ranger
1. Blessington, Joseph Palmer. The Campaigns of Walker’s Texas Division, 21
2. Windle, Janice Woods. True Women, 264
3. Smith, Thomas. C.. Here's Yer Mule, 16-17
4. Blessington, 22-23

Atascosa County and The Civil War - Part 6

The 36th Texas Cavalry Moves to Camp Clark

In mid-1862, after about three months of organizing and training, and rounding up victuals and supplies, the 36th Texas, including the men of Company E, abandoned Camp Woods on the Salado and marched off along the Austin road to a new encampment about 62 miles to the northeast on the San Marcos river. There may have been two reasons for the move: military and sanitary.

On May 30th, Union armies had forced the evacuation of Corinth, the junction of the Confederacy’s main north-south and east-west railroads in the Mississippi Valley. And the Federal navy was making great headway in the eventual dominance of the vital waterway. On June 4th, the Confederates abandoned Fort Pillow above Memphis and two days later, after a mighty naval battle on the river, the grand anti-bellum city itself, the fifth largest in the Confederacy, fell to Union forces. This move eastward of the 36th Texas would have brought them closer to any potential field of battle.

And then there might have been the practical considerations of fresh water and grass. Carl Duaine notes that Salado Creek wasn’t always a running stream, even in those days, and the San Marcos River is fed by strong springs. Also, perhaps less important, there may have been fresh grass for the horses thereabouts, though this would not have been a primary condition because the troop was still buying or being issued fodder for their mounts. And although they would not be close to the great quartermaster depot of San Antonio, for minor supply needs they would be 18 miles from New Braunfels and about six miles from San Marcos.

The last week of June 1862, the companies got on the road. With the pretty solid body of military experience in Company E, they would have known how to break camp and get to their place in the line of march with a minimum of confusion. The junior officers of the company would have been responsible for seeing that the wagons were loaded properly (with the tents, cooking utensils, etc.) and that their men were moving out on time and in order.

It probably felt good to the men to get out of that well-worn camp and on the road – at least to those men, like the ex-Rangers in the company, to whom it felt more natural to be out in the open. The companies would have camped however they might along the Cibolo that night. After taking care of their horses, the usual suppers would have been followed by songs and stories around the campfire afterwards.

The next day’s leg passed them through the largely German town of New Braunfels – right down the main street. This would have been exciting for the families of Company E’s 69 soldiers from the town, plus the 20 from out and around Comal County.1 It was probably not as exciting for the town’s merchants and those who lived along the street – we can imagine what some 800 men on horseback and 20 wagons pulled by mules would do to the dirt main street of the little town. It stirred up a huge roiling pall of dust that hung over every- thing. Before long most all of the adults had gone inside and maybe even covered their mouths against the grit. But the children, naturally, were too excited to miss anything. Tom Smith of Company G wrote:

This town is mostly inhabited by Germans and the principle productions are dust and children. . . . Went through this town and crossed the river; here we camped for dinner. . . . The river here is clear and swift, the bottom being smooth hard rock. Had a fine bathe in it. We are to Camp here tonight. After dinner went to town but found it worse than camp for dullness.2

Yes, those stolid German burghers and farmers and hausfraus lived in a world apart from the bright señoritas and melodious saloons of San Antonio.

The next morning Colonel Woods may have led his columns up the San Marcos road – or did he veer off to the right a bit when he cleared the camp and lead his cavalrymen cross-country while sending the wagons on up the road? His destination was a training camp in Guadalupe County (near the little town of Martindale, seven miles from San Marcos), one of a number established by Texas governor Edward Clark in 1861.3

Duaine quotes an article printed in the Confederate Gazette of Sequin in 1861: “The camp is located in a grove of thickly foliated elms, whose overhanging boughs afford an ample shade.” And a few miles upriver the San Marcos is joined by the Blanco, so there was water aplenty for the men and horses of the 36th Texas Cavalry.4

The Pleasanton boys rode in to Camp Clark several days after Company G did (probably in the first week of July), found their camping site, and settled in. It is likely that they took welcome baths in the cold, clear San Marcos.

A two-month muster roll for Company E was recorded at the end of June. It was dated “Mch 29th to June 30” and shows the station of the company as “Camp Clark Texas.”

Friday, the 4th July 1862; Tom Smith:

Today dawns the glorious 4th! Yes Glorious to us as much as the North. This is the day on which the independence of our Forefathers was declared and thus I trust we will also soon celebrate the day on which our independence is declared. The Confederate States of America will ere soon show to the nations of the world that they are an independent nation.5

It would not surprise me if some of the older, wiser heads in camp didn’t see the irony, not to say absurdity, in celebrating the birth of a nation they were in rebellion against.

Next time: Camp Life on the San Marcos . . .

Sources:
Purgason, Howard. Calvin Turner, Texas Ranger
1. Duaine, Carl L.. The Dead Men Wore Boots, 27, 96-109
2. Smith, Thomas. C.. Here's Yer Mule, 15
3. Handbook of Texas Online, s.v.,
http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/CC/qcc7.html
4. Duaine, 27
5. Smith, 16

Atascosa County and the Civil War - Part 5

The 36th Texas at Camp Woods on the Salado

Rain, sometimes quite heavy, fell intermittently over these late-March-through-April 1862 days and nights in camp. By April 11th, Tom Smith, that diary-keeping trooper of Company G, claimed there were seven companies at Camp Woods, a total of 560 men. The actual strength of the regiment may have been greater than that, but some of the men had made trips home for more or better equipment, and some had gotten leave to check on their families and farms, etc..1 The assembled men from many counties were going through a general shakedown, being whipped into a regiment. There were the usual incidents and messups that would occur with a bunch of men not yet accustomed to camp life, officers not yet used to command. Horses were lost, tents were blown down, bedding (and troopers) soaked in the rain (not all companies had tents yet).

A Trip to San Antonio

Some of the men were dispatched to San Antonio to requisition ammunition, and made both training patrols and did some actual guard duty in the town, which was nearly an anti-secessionist bastion before the war and still had many Union sympathizers.2

Tom Smith and some of his buddies in Company G made rode down to the Alamo town a pleasure trip. Maybe some of the Pleasanton boys of Company E did likewise.

Woke up soon by hearing the bugles of one of the Companies . . . Arose very early got breakfast, and then got ready to go to San Antonio. . . . Some 20 of [his company] started in; it is about 6 miles from camp. . . . Got within a mile of town, on a large hill and we had a fine view of the whole town. When we got to town we rode around and through seeing and being seen. . . . [After having their noon “dinner” they bought some needed items.] I got a “moral” which is a kind of bag or sack made of bagging used to feed horses in by fastening it over their heads; the corn being shelled, the horse does not lose any. We then got our horses and started back to camp. Pleasant weather.

The Regiment on Parade

On Sunday morning April 6th – as the first great bloodbath of the war was beginning near a small log church named Shiloh at Pittsburg Landing, Tennessee – Maverick’s Company E participated in a time-honored military tradition. Tom Smith:

Got up and had breakfast by sunup. I washed and put on clean clothes yesterday so I am all ready this morning. Went down to the dress parade of all the companies except ours [Company G was still not organized]. They all formed in a row or line and the Ensign Bearers then marched [on horseback, of course] in front; then the Captains and Lieutenants then all the non commissioned officers and then all marched back. General review being over the bugle sounded for preaching and all that wanted to go went down by Captain Woods Co tents and seated themselves on their blankets on the ground. . . . The minister selected his text from the 37th Paslm [sic] and preached a very touching sermon he has two sons in this Reg’mt.3

San Antonio On Edge

As the regiment formed up, details of ten men (two each from five companies) were sent to guard the “Powder Magazine” near San Antonio, about a thousand yards southeast of the Alamo. The town, perhaps second only to Fredericksburg, had a significant number of citizens of Unionist sentiment.4 The Confederate military authorities were taking no chances. While some denizens were pacifists or Union-loyalists, some were merely indulging in unpatriotic price-gouging. And it seems the town had become a hiding place for draft dodgers and possibly even a magnet for brigands of one sort or another.

After these guarding patrols had gone on for a couple of weeks Tom Smith was surprised one night:

Late in the evening, the quietude of the camp was stirred up and awakened by an order for the whole company to clean their guns, and prepare to start to San Antonio on tomorrow morning 6 o’clock.

The next morning the regiment formed up in a column of twos and rode toward town. They halted “in the suberbs” for half an hour and then made a dramatically martial entrance:

Got into town & went by fours on a gallop through the City. Men women and children rushed to the sidewalk and windows looking on in wonder. . . . We finally brought up in the main Plaza and formed a hollow square. . . . Brigdr. Genl H.P. Bee [commander of the Sub-district of the Rio Grande] then came in and declared Martial Law through the City and County. . . . San Antonio is a town noted for extravagant prices and extortion on articles for necessary purpose. . . . Also for depreciating Confederate money when a soldier has got nothing else. . . . Will not change a Confederate note unless the soldier takes one half in goods at 3 times their price. . . . Our Regiment had to guard the blamed town for 2 weeks to keep the traitors from avoiding the authorities. Our Co. [as surely did Company E] had to stand about once every 6 or 7 days a day & night. Don’t think there are many good honest Southern people in the Town.5

Busy Days for the Troopers

The next two months were spent in organizing and training, and victualing and supplying the regiment. There was also guard duty and patrols to be carried out, more trips to San Antonio for food and munitions, deaths from accidents (one in Company E) and disease, and a number of necessary discharges. And more rain.6

Next time: The Regiment Moves to Camp Clark . . .

Sources:
Purgason, Howard. Calvin Turner, Texas Ranger
1. Smith, Thomas. C.. Here's Yer Mule, 11
2. Duaine, Carl L.. The Dead Men Wore Boots, 25-26
3. Smith, 6, 7
4. Ford, John Salmon. Rip Ford’s Texas, 338
5. Smith, 11, 12
6. Duaine, 25-26

Earthquake?

Moderate extremely shallow earthquake in Atascosa County, Texas, United States
Last update: October 21, 2011 at 4:41 pm by By Armand Vervaeck and James Daniell
Earthquake overview : A moderate 4.8 magnitude earthquake struck below Fashing, Texas. The earthquake was felt as far as Austin to the north and Corpus Christi to the south-west.
Just curious... did any of you felt the earthquake in Atascosa County?

Book Signing! "The Dead Men Wore Boots"

Alan Duaine, son of author Carl Duaine, will be on hand to sign copies of the 2nd edition of "The Dead Men Wore Boots" on Saturday, November 5, 2011, between 10:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. This will take place at the Pleasanton City Hall,which is the actual site where the 32nd Texas Volunteer Cavalry, Company E, mustered on March 29, 1862.

A limited number of the 1st edition were printed in 1966 and now sells for as much as $450. This 2nd edition will sell for $37.50 and will make a great gift for lovers of Texas history.

The book signing is sponsored by the Atascosa County Historical Commission.

Atascosa County and the Civil War - Part 4

Regimental Elections are Held

As the men of Company E of the 36th Texas Cavalry and the others who were gathered on the Salado in March 1862 were volunteers (conscription would first go into force on April 16th), they continued the old practice of electing their own officers. Carl Duaine declares that “The Confederates elected even the sergeants and corporals.”1

The elections were probably conducted in the manner that Ranger and militia companies had always been – the proposed leaders standing at some distance from each other and at the cry “march,” the men would choose their leader by congregating to his side.2

After all the companies had chosen their own leaders, the regimental election was held. These were probably voted on by the officers of the gathered companies – or maybe only by the ranking officers.

The men of the 36th Texas would elect as their officers only men who could command their loyalty and respect. One of the Atascosa County privates of Company E said later, “I never wanted no man over me, but if I had to have one, I wanted the hair on his chest as thick as pencil lead.” That the men had good judgment and chose well is shown in the fact that, excepting resignation, promotion, death, or absolute incapacity, the officers they elected were with them all the way to the end.

Even though there were in camp veterans of the Mexican and Indian wars, Dr. Peter Woods was chosen to be Colonel Woods, commander of the 36th Texas Cavalry Regiment (his old company becoming Company A). The site on the Salado officially became Camp Woods. The new commander was a much-respected and in time even beloved leader of men - it is reported that he was called the Colonel-Doctor.3

Five days after Captain Woods submitted a muster roll for his Company A, Lewis Maverick swore into service his Company E. On that date, March 29th, 1862, the Captain would have formalized the enlistment by administering the oath of allegiance that was almost certainly standard across the southern armies. Thomas Smith of Company G described the process. The men were assembled and the roll was called.

We . . . answered to our names and the following oath was administered to us: viz: “You and each of you do swear that you will bear true allegiance to the Confederate States and serve them faithfully against all their enemies whatsoever and do swear to obey the order of the President of the Confederate States and other officers appointed over you according to the articles of war for the term of 3 years or during the war so help you God.

Horses and Equipment

After being administered the oath of office, Tom Smith wrote of his company that:

All then saddled up and mounted our horses taking guns, arms, etc. . . . Each man then rode up and had his horse gun and saddle rigging appraised so if we lose either in battle or forced march we are entitled to receive the appraised value thereof from the Confederate Government.

Perhaps typical of an enlisted man, Tom’s horse was valued at $85.00, his shotgun at $25.00, and his saddle and rigging at $25.00, for a total of $135.00. 4

Duaine points out that the reimbursement for loss on march really meant forced march; if the men lost something in normal march or camp life they had to replace it themselves. And on a private’s pay of $11 per month (the colonel’s was $300) this might take awhile. And you really did not want to lose anything especially your horse, because you might be reimbursed in “Old Confed,” commonly referred to as “shinplasters” (C.S.A. currency worth less and less as time wore on). Of course, one’s own family could help out if they were willing and able. But if you lost your horse and failed to obtain a new one within 40 days you’d be transferred to one of the infantry units in your state! 5

These Texas cavalrymen were obliged to provide their own horses, tack, and arms, but Duaine notes that everything else: tents, clothing, cooking equipment, blankets, and so on, were also the men’s own responsibility and in the Trans-Mississippi remained so throughout the war.

Camp Woods, because of its proximity to San Antonio, probably had a good commissary system. The men of Company E would have eaten well enough while there. Acquisition of food in the long run, though, became somewhat dicey, and clothing was even harder to come by. There was little or no garment or textile manufacturing west of the Mississippi. During the first two years of the war, families, private citizens, and the troopers them-selves furnished their own clothing. The Ladies’ Southern Aid Society (these were organized in a number of areas) in San Antonio made uniforms and collected what other supplies they could for the soldiers who needed help.

In the Trans-Mississippi, unlike the other parts of the Confederacy, the regiments had all the horses they needed. Texas had more horses per fighting man than did Arkansas, Missouri, or Louisiana. Besides the compensation for loss mentioned above, the volunteers were to receive forty cents a day for the use of their horses. The mounts were branded with the initials “C.S.” even though they were still considered the soldier’s own property. The Quartermaster was to supply grain and “long forage,” that is, hay and fodder.

According to the Confederate Ordnance Manual, the full set of “accoutrements” for a cavalryman’s horse was usually:

two bridles – the regular riding bridle, equipped with a bit, and a watering bridle; a halter; a saddle, usually the Spanish horn type if furnished by the men, or [two other types] if supplied by the quartermaster bureau; one or more pairs of spurs; surcingle; saddle blanket; currycomb; horse brush; picket pin; and lariat.” 6

Next time: Life in Camp Woods – and San Antonio . . .

Sources:
Purgason, Howard. Calvin Turner, Texas Ranger
1. Gallaway, B.P., ed. Texas: The Dark Corner of the Confederacy, 248;
Duaine, Carl L.. The Dead Men Wore Boots, 26
2. Ford, John Salmon. Rip Ford’s Texas, 35
3. Windle, Janice Woods. True Women, 261-262
4. Smith, Thomas. C.. Here's Yer Mule, 1-6
5. Duaine, 25-26; General Order No. 29 cited in Oates, Stephen B.. Confederate Cavalry West of the River, 44
6. Oates, 66, 58, 74-75, 77-78