This work focuses on one of the most unique military units in Texas, and possibly the Confederacy. Company A of the Nineteenth Texas Infantry was one of the hardest fighting units of the Confederacy’s Trans-Mississippi Department. The men that formed the regiment during the spring of 1862 joined other Texas regiments in Arkansas and later became the core of the famous Walker’s Texas Division. Sharing the unique traits of Company A, the division was the only such unit in the Confederacy that was comprised exclusively of Texans, primarily recruited from Jefferson, Texas. Their experience challenges several stereotypes concerning Confederate soldiers. Company A, in the Lone Star tradition, stands out as a true Texas anomaly.
The first chapter focuses on the creation of Company A and the Nineteenth Texas Infantry. Members enlisted in partial reaction to the series of military setbacks experienced by the Confederacy and rumors of conscription. The next two chapters discuss the military operations of Company A and multiple major engagements including: Perkin’s Landing, Milliken’s Bend, Fort DeRussy, Mansfield, Pleasant Hill, and Jenkins’ Ferry. Colonel Richard Waterhouse (the original commander of the regiment) and other officers, as well as enlisted men contributed to an impressive war record. The last chapter chronicles the experiences and contributions these men made after they surrendered their arms and shed their Confederate uniforms.
An astounding number of these veterans left a record of civil service and entrepreneurship second to none. Several illustrations, the author’s conclusion, notes, a bibliography, and an index augment the narrative.
David J. Williams
2016, 5½x8½, paper, index, 146 pp.
ISBN: 9780788456985
101-W5698
