Chapter 14
The Civil War
1860-1865
Essential Questions
What conditions in the US led to the Civil War?
Why did Texas choose to join the Confederate States of America?
How did the Civil War and Reconstruction effect Texas?
A Nation Divided
•
By 1860, nation was divided and many southern states were threatening to
secede from Union
•
Both sides were willing to fight for what they believed in…war was looming
•
Republican Party: formed in 1854
– goal to stop western spread of slavery
– Rep party members thought slavery counter to democracy and American
ideals
– Also wanted to end slavery in states where slavery already existed
– Supported economic change and a higher tariff
– Tariff: tax placed on imported or exported goods
• Tariff would help American industry in North by raising prices on
competing imports
A Nation Divided, cont
•
Most Texans were Democrats and were opposed to new Republican Party
•
Thought that Republican tariff would destroy southern economy because it
depended on foreign trade and slave labor
•
Democrats wanted to prevent Republicans from gaining control of US
government
•
Debate between Dem/Rep lead to arguments over state’s rights
– Many in south didn’t think federal govt should have power to decide whether a state
could have slavery or not
– Also, they thought each state should have right to withdraw from Union if citizens
voted to
– Northern states disagreed and said that federal laws applied to all states and states
could not legally separate from Union
– These topics were strongly debated in Presidential Election of 1860
Presidential Election of 1860
• Democratic Party held convention on Charleston, SC to select Dem
candidate…even within the party, they couldn’t agree on issue of
slavery
• As a result, most southern delegates (including Texas) left
convention on protest
• Remaining Democrats met in Baltimore, MD and selected Stephen
A. Douglas (IL) as candidate for President
• Democratic delegates who left Charleston, selected current VP
John Breckinridge as candidate
• Republican Party met in Chicago, IL and nominated Abraham
Lincoln as their candidate
Presidential Election, cont
• Split in Democratic Party, gave Republican Party better chance to win
• Southern states threatened to secede from the union if Republican
candidate won
• To prevent this, a new party was formed
– Constitutional Union Party
• selected John Bell of Tennessee as their candidate.
– Goal was to keep any of the 4 candidates from getting enough
votes to win. Then, House of Representatives would have to
choose new president
• Texas Governor Sam Houston wanted to keep Union together
– He wanted to be the Constitutional Union Party Candidate…
– He didn’t get nomination but he fought hard to keep Texas in
Union…didn’t want war at all
Presidential Election, cont
• Texans voted for Breckinridge, then Bell,
then Douglas (only 410 votes)
• Lincoln didn’t receive any votes in Texas.
His name wasn’t even on ballot
• But, Lincoln received most Northern votes
and won the election
– He became the 16th president of the US
Reaction to Lincoln’s Election
• Soon after Lincoln was elected, SC seceded
from Union
– Then, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and
Louisiana seceded from Union
– They joined together as the Confederate States of
America
• Many Texans wanted to secede, too
– They wanted a convention to vote on issue but Gov
Sam Houston ignored request
– Other leaders formed the convention anyway and the
delegates who would vote were elected
The Secession Convention in
Texas
• Jan. 28, 1861: delegates met in Austin
• Elected Judge Oran M. Roberts of Texas Supreme Court
as leader
• Meeting was very tense but outcome was clear…they
met to vote to secede
• They voted 166-8 to adopt an Ordinance of Secession
Ordinance: an official order
Secession Convention, cont
•
Feb. 23, 1861: Texas citizens voted to approve the ordinance
•
Some counties voted against the ordinance
– mostly where the German immigrants lived, some counties along Red
River and in Angelina County (East Texas)
•
The Texas Constitution of 1845 was changed to reflect Texas’ vote
– Revised constitution changed United States of America to
Confederate States of America
– New constitution defended state’s rights and slavery
• Stated that freeing slaves was illegal
• On March 2, 1861: Texas became 7th state to secede from
Union
Texas Secession Vote Map, 1861
Governor Houston’s Response
•
Sam Houston couldn’t prevent secession
•
He wanted Texas to remain independent and not join Confederacy but that
didn’t happen
•
Texas was immediately accepted into the Confederacy
•
During process of secession, Lincoln offered Houston federal troops to
forcefully keep Texas in the Union
– Houston refused use of the troops
– He had fought for Texas and refused to fight against it
– The troops remained in Texas even though Houston refused to use them
– Dealing with the troops became first goal of new Confederate State of
Texas
Governor Houston’s Response, cont
• All Texas government officials had to take oath of office
to the Confederacy but Sam Houston refused to take the
oath
– When his name was called 3 times to take the oath,
he sat silently and office of Governor of Texas was
declared vacant
– Lieutenant Gov Edward Clark became the first ad
interim governor of Confederate Texas
• After he was removed from office, he left Austin and
went to Galveston for awhile.
• Then he went to Huntsville to his “steamboat house”
(see p. 307) He died there on July 3, 1863 (70 yrs old)
http://www.tspb.state.tx.us/spb/gallery/govs/images/1989_38_Edward_Clark_LG.jpg
John Breckinridge
Edward Clark
John Bell
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_C._Breckinridge
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Bell_(Tennessee_politician)
http://0.tqn.com/d/history1800s/1/0/v/3/-/-/Abraham-Lincoln-1865-400.jpg
http://www.abrahamlincolns.com/images/categories/presidential/abraham-lincoln-speech.jpg
Abraham Lincoln
Sam Houston
http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/arti
cles/ccs06
http://www.shsu.edu/~smm_www/Tour/grounds
/sh1.shtml
http://samhoustonmovie.com/index.php/samh/
places/
http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/7247
http://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth6587/small/
Organizing the Confederacy
• Francis R. Lubbock: Texas’ first Confederate
governor
• Confederate President: Jefferson Davis
• 2700 Federal troops still stationed in
Texas…were asked to leave
• Confederate Brigadier General Ben McCulloch
had to force federal soldiers out of Texas…done
peacefully
Organizing the Confederacy, con’t
• All 11 Confederate States demanded that Union
surrender all federal property in their states
• Many forts taken peacefully…good for Confederate
states because they got the supplies that were in forts
• Union troops refused to leave Fort Sumter, in Charleston,
SC.
– Fighting broke out
• Civil War began in Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861
Military Strength of Texas
• About 60,000-70,000 Texas volunteers fought in Civil War
• Hood’s Texas Brigade: sent to Virginia to fight; named
after their commander, John Bell Hood
– Confederate General Robert E. Lee respected their
courage and military ability; called them “my Texans”
• Terry’s Texas Rangers: commanded by General
Benjamin “Frank” Terry
• Ross’s Brigade: commanded by General Lawrence
“Sul” Ross
• Texans fought in the Army of Northern Virginia, the Army
of Tennessee, and the Army of the Trans-Mississippi
Sending More Troops to Fight
• Texas had no more men who volunteered to fight
so Texas started a draft:
– Draft: the enlisting of persons for required service
in the armed forces
• The draft made people mad
– Didn’t want to fight in war
– Exceptions: if owned more than 20 slaves didn’t fight
– Draft threatened cotton production
• John Bankhead Magruder: commanded Texas
troops during Civil War
Military Affairs in Texas
• During the Civil War, Texans expected
Confederate soldiers to guard frontier
– But they couldn’t…too busy fighting
– Texans had to defend against Native Americans
• No major battles were fought in Texas
• During Civil War, most fighting in Texas was
centered on keeping Gulf Coast ports open
• Texas called “Storehouse of the Confederacy”:
supplied food, weapons, and supplies for
Confederacy
Military Affairs, cont
• John R. Baylor: led troops into NM to claim as
part of Confederacy
• General H. H. Sibley: led more Confederate
troops into NM. Defeated Union at Valverde but
lost at Battle of Glorieta. So, NM became Union
again
• Battle of Galveston Island: Pres Lincoln
ordered a blockade:
– Blockade: action to stop transportation of goods or
people into or out of an area
Civil War Battles In or Near Texas
Battle of Galveston Island
• Supplies were shipped in and out of Galveston Bay
• Because of the blockade, Union troops captured the
island…wanted to use it as a base to guard Gulf of Mexico
• Texas General John B. Magruder launched attack to retake
island on Jan 1, 1863
– One group of Confederate soldiers sailed into Galveston Harbor on
Cottonclads: flat bottom boats lined with bales of cotton to
protect soldiers from bullets
– Another group of Confederate soldiers crossed railroad bridge from
mainland
– Confederate forces took over Galveston Island and remained in
control till end of Civil War
Other Military Campaigns
• Battle of Sabine Pass: Sept 8, 1863
– Sabine Pass is narrow channel along border of
Louisiana
– Union General Banks planned to move Union troops by
ship up channel and then march north to cut of TX
railroad connection to Louisiana
– But, Confederate Lieutenant Dick Dowling stationed his
soldiers along channel
– When Banks’ ships entered channel, Confederate
troops fired on them and sank 2 ships. No other Union
ships tried to get through
– Confederacy won that battle
Other Military Campaigns, cont
• Union Gen Banks tried to get into Texas again by
sending troops up Mississippi River and then up
Red River…he wanted to take over North Texas
• But, many Confederate soldiers met Union forces
in Mansfield, LA (25 miles east of TX border)
• Smaller Confederate forces (led by General
Richard Taylor) defeated Union forces and forced
them to retreat
• Texas was safe from invasion
Other Military Campaigns, con’t
• Battle of Sabine Pass, con’t
– Confederate forces under command of John “Rip” Ford and
Santos Benavides took over area on July 30, 1864
– On May 13, 1865, Union forces fought Confederate troops in a
land battle at Palmito Ranch. Confederates won battle but war
was actually already over
– General Robert E. Lee had already surrendered by the time the
Battle at Palmito Ranch was fought
Other Military Campaigns, con’t
• Battle of Dove Creek:
– Jan 8, 1865
– 600 Kickapoos were migrating from Kansas to
Mexico
– 160 Confederate soldiers thought they were
Comanches and Kiowas
– 22 Confederate soldiers killed 14 Indians
Other Military Campaigns, cont
• Battle at Palmito Ranch:
– last land battle of Civil War
– fought at Palmito Ranch in South Texas near Brownsville…on
May 12, 1865
• Union blockade of southern ports forced Confederate
troops to find another way to get cotton out and supplies
in
• Cotton transported through Brownsville to Mexican port
of Matamoros. Then it was loaded on ships for
Europe…not affected by blockade
• But, in Nov, 1863, Union forces took over Brownsville to
try to enforce the blockade
Facts
•
Civil War started: April 12, 1861
•
Confederate (South)
– President: Jefferson Davis
– General in Charge: Robert E. Lee
•
Union (North/US)
– President: Abraham Lincoln
– General in Charge: Ulysses S. Grant
•
Civil War ended: April 9, 1865
•
Pres Lincoln Assassinated : April 14, 1865
•
11 Confederate States: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana,
Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia
Terry’s Texas Rangers
http://www.terrystexasrangers.org/pictures/portraits/scouts.jpg
Benjamin Frank Terry
Terry’s Brigade
http://www.lsjunction.com/people/ross.htm
Sul Ross
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Franklin_Terry
The Effects of War
• Read: A Real Life Story p. 315
• Read: Women in Combat p. 315
• Because no major battles were fought in Texas,
land didn’t suffer as much damage as other
southern states
• But, many Texans fought in the war…left behind
families, homes, job…more work left to do for
those left behind
The Effects of War, cont
• Problems after the war:
– Tensions between those who supported
Confederacy and those who supported Union
– Union blockades reduced sale of farm
products (cotton) and the economy suffered
– Supplies in Texas were scarce
Union Supporters in Texas
• Most supported Confederacy but about ¼ were against
secession…remained loyal to Union during Civil War
• North Texas: in 1862, Texans who opposed Confederate draft
formed a secret society called the Peace Party
– Confederate supporters thought Peace Party would help Union
defeat Confederacy
– Some vigilantes took matters into their own hands by hanging 40
members of the Peace Party at Gainesville to stop support of
Union
– Vigilantes: people who punished criminals or took control
without authority to do so
Union Supporters, cont
• German Texans: some supported Union/opposed
slavery and some supported slavery…depended on
where they lived…some fought for Confederacy
• Opposition to Confederate Draft caused some German
Texans to organize a Union Loyal League to serve in
Union army
– Led by Major Fritz Tegner, left Texas to join Union
army
– But, some Confederate soldiers led by Lieutenant CD
McRae followed them
Union Supporters, con’t
– McRae’s men caught up with German Texans at
Nueces River…they fought in the Battle of the
Nueces
– Many Union German Texans died or were executed
– Some survivors reached
Union troops in New Orleans
– A monument was built in
Comfort, TX to honor
the Germans & one
Mexican American
who died fighting for Union
http://www.texasescapes.com/TexasHillCountryTowns/ComfortTexas/ComfortTexas.htm
Wartime Economy
• During War, Texans still grew cotton and raised cattle
but the agriculture was greatly affected
– By blockades…ports for shipping closed
– Union victories along Mississippi River closed land
routes
– Texans couldn’t sell cotton
– Farmers started growing more wheat and corn
instead of cotton
Wartime Economy, cont
• Women took over men’s jobs
– Stores, post offices, farms, plantations, ranches,
teachers, doctors, factories
• Weapons factory in Austin and Tyler…made 800
weapons/month
• Iron furnaces opened in East Texas
• Prisoners in Huntsville made clothes
– Women made bandages and clothes for soldiers
– Sent boxes filled with food and supplies to troops
Wartime Economy, cont
• Because Union blockades kept goods from
entering or leaving Confederate states, people
couldn’t sell as much so weren’t making as much
money
• But, expenses were going up…taxes went up to
support war
• Confederate money lost value
• See Linking History to Economics about prices:
p. 318
Home Front Hardships
• Because of blockades, many items were in short supply
– Clothes, shoes
– Medicines and hospital supplies…they were sent to
battlefield instead of towns
– Paper…some newspapers stopped publishing
– People got creative: brewed acorns or corn to drink
instead of coffee; used honey instead of sugar, herbs
instead of medicine
Refugees
• During war, thousands of slaves were
sent to Texas from other states
– Slave owners hoped that would prevent them
from running away or being taken away
– Many slave owners came to Texas with their
slaves…not happy to be there
– Read Texas voices p. 318 about Kate Stone
The War’s End
• April 9, 1865: Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered to
Union General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse, Virginia.
This ended war the Civil War
• Some fighting still continued, though, as it took time for word to
spread that war was over
• June 2, 1865: Confederate General Edmund Kirby Smith signed
official surrender of Trans-Mississippi area which included Texas…2
months after Lee surrendered
• Soldiers went home to families
• Much of the old Southern Way of life had ended
• Much uncertainty…nobody knew what to expect next