Texas in the American Civil War
Overview
Texas in the American Civil War
Learning Objective
By the end of this section, you will be able to:
Summarize the American Civil War's influence on Texas
Introduction
The U.S. state of Texas declared its secession from the United States of America on February 1, 1861, and joined the Confederate States on
March 2, 1861, after it replaced its governor, Sam Houston, when he refused to take an oath of allegiance to the Confederacy. As with those of
other States, the Declaration was not recognized by the United States government at Washington. Some Texan military units fought in the Civil
War east of the Mississippi River, but Texas was most useful for supplying soldiers and horses for Confederate forces. Texas’ supply role lasted
until mid-1863, after which time Union gunboats controlled the Mississippi River, making large transfers of men, horses or cattle impossible.
Some cotton was sold in Mexico, but most of the crop became useless because of the Union naval blockade of Galveston, Houston, and other
ports.
Secession
, In the late winter of 1860, Texan counties sent delegates to a special convention to debate the merits of secession. The convention adopted an
“Ordinance of Secession” by a vote of 166 to 8, which was ratified by a popular referendum on February 23.
Separately from the Ordinance of Secession, which was considered a legal document, Texas also issued a declaration of causes spelling out
the rationale for declaring secession. The document specifies several reasons for secession, including its solidarity with its “sister slave-holding
States,” the U.S. government’s inability to prevent Indian attacks, slave-stealing raids, and other border-crossing acts of banditry. It accuses
northern politicians and abolitionists of committing a variety of outrages upon Texans. The bulk of the document offers justifications for slavery
saying that remaining a part of the United States would jeopardize the security of the two. The declaration includes this extract praising slavery,
in which the Union itself is referred to as the “confederacy”:
"We hold as undeniable truths that the governments of the various States, and of the confederacy itself, were established exclusively
by the white race, for themselves and their posterity; that the African race had no agency in their establishment; that they were
rightfully held and regarded as an inferior and dependent race, and in that condition only could their existence in this country be
rendered beneficial or tolerable."
— Texas Secession Convention, A Declaration of the Causes which Impel the State of Texas to Secede from the Federal Union,
(February 1861).
At this time, African Americans comprised 30 percent of the state’s population, and they were overwhelmingly enslaved. According to one
Texan, keeping them enslaved was the primary goal of the state in joining the Confederacy:
"Independence without slavery, would be valueless… The South without slavery would not be worth a mess of pottage."
— Caleb Cutwell, letter to the Galveston Tri- Weekly, (February 22, 1865).
Secession Convention and the Confederacy
Following the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860, public opinion in the cotton states of the Lower South (South Carolina through Texas)
swung in favor of secession. By February 1861, the other six states of the sub-region had separately passed ordinances of secession.
However, events in Texas were delayed, largely due to the resistance of Southern Unionist governor, Sam Houston.
Overview
Texas in the American Civil War
Learning Objective
By the end of this section, you will be able to:
Summarize the American Civil War's influence on Texas
Introduction
The U.S. state of Texas declared its secession from the United States of America on February 1, 1861, and joined the Confederate States on
March 2, 1861, after it replaced its governor, Sam Houston, when he refused to take an oath of allegiance to the Confederacy. As with those of
other States, the Declaration was not recognized by the United States government at Washington. Some Texan military units fought in the Civil
War east of the Mississippi River, but Texas was most useful for supplying soldiers and horses for Confederate forces. Texas’ supply role lasted
until mid-1863, after which time Union gunboats controlled the Mississippi River, making large transfers of men, horses or cattle impossible.
Some cotton was sold in Mexico, but most of the crop became useless because of the Union naval blockade of Galveston, Houston, and other
ports.
Secession
, In the late winter of 1860, Texan counties sent delegates to a special convention to debate the merits of secession. The convention adopted an
“Ordinance of Secession” by a vote of 166 to 8, which was ratified by a popular referendum on February 23.
Separately from the Ordinance of Secession, which was considered a legal document, Texas also issued a declaration of causes spelling out
the rationale for declaring secession. The document specifies several reasons for secession, including its solidarity with its “sister slave-holding
States,” the U.S. government’s inability to prevent Indian attacks, slave-stealing raids, and other border-crossing acts of banditry. It accuses
northern politicians and abolitionists of committing a variety of outrages upon Texans. The bulk of the document offers justifications for slavery
saying that remaining a part of the United States would jeopardize the security of the two. The declaration includes this extract praising slavery,
in which the Union itself is referred to as the “confederacy”:
"We hold as undeniable truths that the governments of the various States, and of the confederacy itself, were established exclusively
by the white race, for themselves and their posterity; that the African race had no agency in their establishment; that they were
rightfully held and regarded as an inferior and dependent race, and in that condition only could their existence in this country be
rendered beneficial or tolerable."
— Texas Secession Convention, A Declaration of the Causes which Impel the State of Texas to Secede from the Federal Union,
(February 1861).
At this time, African Americans comprised 30 percent of the state’s population, and they were overwhelmingly enslaved. According to one
Texan, keeping them enslaved was the primary goal of the state in joining the Confederacy:
"Independence without slavery, would be valueless… The South without slavery would not be worth a mess of pottage."
— Caleb Cutwell, letter to the Galveston Tri- Weekly, (February 22, 1865).
Secession Convention and the Confederacy
Following the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860, public opinion in the cotton states of the Lower South (South Carolina through Texas)
swung in favor of secession. By February 1861, the other six states of the sub-region had separately passed ordinances of secession.
However, events in Texas were delayed, largely due to the resistance of Southern Unionist governor, Sam Houston.
