Texas in the Civil War - Adjutants General
Austin, Travis County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Texas in the Civil War ADJUTANTS GENERAL Texas in 1861-1865 had 90,000 men fighting for the South - many in units east of the Mississippi. Yet at home she had to defend 2000 miles of coastline and frontier from constant threats made by federals, Indians, and outlaws. The state Adjutant General filled the necessary Confederate troop requisitions. At the same time he organized, posted and supplied the Texas frontier Regiment in a string of forts a day’s horseback ride apart, from the Rio Grande to the Red River. He was also assigned the duties of State Inspector General, Commissary General, Ordnance Officer, and Quartermaster. He handles state correspondence on military affairs, disturbing orders and forms, kept records of the state troops, and assembled registers of Texans in Confederate service; had general charge of all military property; collected and repaired arms; inspected arsenals and magazines, received and distributed munitions. From an 1861 salary of $500, pay for this office was increased by 1865 to $2,000 a year. N. H. Darnell, Dallas; Wm. Byrd, Austin; J. Y. Dashiell, San Antonio; D. B. Culberson, Jefferson; and John Burke of Marshall successively held this difficult office. (1965)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
During the Civil War, Texas sent some 90,000 men to fight for the Confederacy, yet still had to defend 2,000 miles of coastline and frontier against Federal forces, Native raids, and outlaws. That burden fell largely on the state Adjutant General, who filled troop requisitions while organizing the Frontier Regiment's chain of forts from the Rio Grande to the Red River—and doubling as inspector, quartermaster, ordnance, and commissary officer. Five men held the demanding post between 1861 and 1865.
Why it matters
The marker reveals the Confederacy's overlooked home front, where a single overworked office tried to guard a vast frontier even as most of Texas's soldiers fought far to the east.
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Related people
- · N. H. Darnell
- · Wm. Byrd
- · J. Y. Dashiell
- · D. B. Culberson
- · John Burke
Related events
- · Texas Frontier Regiment
Themes & tags
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