Camps Verde, C.S.A.
Camp Verde, Kerr County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Texas frontier regiment outpost was established 1862, 11 mi. southeast and near old U.S. post Camp Verde. Part of Red River-Rio Grande line of posts a day's horseback ride apart. The troops furnished own guns, mounts, but often lacked food, clothing, supplies. Still, scouting parties, patrols effectively curbed Indian raids until war's end. Kerr County population was 585. County voted 76-57 for secession 1861. 75 men served in Confederate and state forces. Some sent to protect Texas coast from Union invasion, some helped to defend frontier in this region, others fought on distant battlefields. 19 men from county served in Texas Union forces. Old U.S. post Camp Verde was taken by C.S.A. troops Feb. 1861. The Confederates captured 80 camels and two Egyptian drivers with other U.S. property. These camels were used to haul cotton - life's blood of South - to Mexico swap for vital supplies, including salt from lakes north of Brownsville. During post dances ladies rode a camel "Old Major" around the parade grounds. 600 Union soldiers captured leaving Texas early in Civil War were confined in prison canyon southwest of the camp. 3 cliffs, described as "very difficult to ascend" surrounded the prison area. Prisoners, held from Aug. 1861 until sometime in 1862, were allowed to build shacks and get adequate exercise with little risk of escape. One Union prisoner performed as ventriloquist at post dance, scaring ladies with unseen pig sounds. Erected by the State of Texas 1964
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
During the Civil War, Texas could not spare Confederate regulars to guard its long frontier, so in 1862 a state "frontier regiment" post rose near the old U.S. Army Camp Verde, part of a chain of outposts spaced a day's ride apart from the Red River to the Rio Grande. Troops who often lacked food and supplies still patrolled effectively against raids, while the captured federal camels — some driven by their Egyptian handlers — hauled Confederate cotton to Mexico to trade for salt and other scarce goods. The camp even held a canyon prison for Union soldiers, and its dances featured a camel named "Old Major" and a prisoner-ventriloquist frightening the ladies with unseen pig sounds.
Why it matters
Camp Verde is one of the strangest true stories of the Confederate frontier, where the U.S. Army's experimental camels became a wartime supply line and the far edge of the Civil War met the older struggle over the Texas frontier.
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Related events
- · Texas secession vote of 1861
- · Confederate capture of Camp Verde
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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