Green's Texas Cavalry Corps, Order of Battle, April 1864.

CAVALRY CORPS

MAJOR GENERAL THOMAS GREEN

Bee's Cavalry Division - Brigadier General Hamilton Prioleau Bee

Debray's Cavalry Brigade - Brigadier General Xavier Blanchard Debray

• 23rd Texas Cavalry Regiment --- Colonel Nicholas C. Gould
• 26th Texas Cavalry Regiment --- Colonel Samuel B. Davis
• 32nd Texas Cavalry Regiment --- Colonel Peter C. Woods
  

Buchel's Cavalry Brigade - Brigadier General Augustus C. Buchel

• 1st Texas Cavalry Regiment
• 35th Texas Cavalry Regiment --- Colonel James B. Likens
• Terrell's Texas Cavalry Regiment --- Colonel Alexander Watkins Terrell
  

Major's Cavalry Division - Brigadier General James Patrick Major

Lane's Cavalry Brigade - Colonel Walter P. Lane

• 1st Texas Partisan Rangers Regiment --- Colonel Walter P. Lane
• 2nd Texas Partisan Rangers Regiment --- Colonel Isham Chisum
• 2nd Cavalry, Arizona Brigade Regiment --- Colonel George Wythe Baylor
• 3rd Cavalry, Arizona Brigade Regiment --- Lieutenant Colonel George T. Madison
• Arizona Scouts --- Capt. James H. Tevis
  

Bagby's Brigade - Brigadier General Arthur Pendleton Bagby

• 4th Texas Cavalry Regiment --- Colonel William P. Hardeman
• 5th Texas Cavalry Regiment --- Colonel Harry C. McNeill
• 7th Texas Cavalry Regiment --- Colonel Philemont Hebert
• 13th Texas Cavalry Battalion --- Lieutenant Colonel Edward Waller Jr.
• McAnnely's Scouts --- Capt. Leander McAnnely

Artillery

• Valverde Texas Battery Captain T. D. Nettles
• McMahan's Texas Battery Captain M. V. McMahan

SEE ALSO: Arizona Battalion

Battle of Brashear City, LA. June 23, 1863.

Report of Maj. Sherod Hunter, Baylor's (Texas) Cavalry, commanding
Mosquito Fleet, of the capture of Brashear City.

BRASHEAR CITY, June 26, 1863

GENERAL: I have the honor to report to you the result of the expedition placed under my command by your order June 20.

In obedience to your order, I embarked my command, 325 strong, on the evening of June 22, at the mouth of Bayou Teche, in forty-eight skiffs and flats, collected for that purpose. Proceeding up the Atchafalaya into Grand Lake, I halted, and muffled oars and again struck, and, after a steady pull of about eight hours, reached the shore in the rear of Brashear City. Here, owing to the swampy nature of the country, we were delayed some time in finding a landing place; but at length succeeded, and about sunrise commenced to disembark my troops, the men wading out in water from 2 to 3 feet deep to the shore, shoving their boats into deep water as they left them. Thus cutting off all means of retreat, we could only fight and win. We were again delayed here a short time in finding a road, but succeeded at length in finding a trail that led us by a circuitous route through a palmetto swamp, some 2 miles across, through which I could only move in single file.


About 5:30 we reached open ground in the rear of and in full view of Brashear City, about 800 yards distant. I here halted the command, and, after resting a few minutes, again moved on, under cover of a skirt of timber, until within 400 yards of the enemy's position, where I formed my men in order of battle. Finding myself discovered by the enemy, I determined to charge a once , and dividing my command into two columns, ordered the left (composed of Captains [J.P.] Clough, of [Thomas] Green's regiment, [Fifth Texas Cavalry]; [W. A.] McDade, of Waller's battalion; [J.T.] Hamilton, of [L.C.] Roundtree's battalion, and [J.D.] Blair, of Second Louisiana Cavalry) to charge the fort and camp below and to the left of the depot, and the right (composed of Captains [James H.] Price, [D. C.] Carrington, and [R.P.] Boyce, all of [G.W.] Baylor's Texas cavalry) to charge the fort and the sugar-house above and on the right of the depot; both columns to concentrate at the railroad buildings, at which point the enemy were posted in force and under good cover, each column having nearly the same distance to move, and would arrive simultaneously at the point of concentration. Everything being in readiness, the command was given, and the troops moved on with a yell. Being in full view, we were subjected to a heavy fire from the forts above and below, the gun at the sugar-house, and the gunboats below town, but, owing to the rapidity of our movements, it had but little effect. The forts made but a feeble resistance, and each column pressed on to the point of concentration, carrying everything before them. At the depot the fighting was severe, but of short duration, the enemy surrendering the town.

My loss is 3 killed and 18 wounded; that of the enemy, 46 killed, 40 wounded, and about 1,300 prisoners. We have captured eleven 24 and 32 pounder siege guns; 2500 stand of small-arms (Enfield and Burnside rifles), and immense quantities of quartermaster's, commissary, and ordnance stores, some 2,000 negroes, and between 200 and 300 wagons and tents.

I cannot speak too highly of the gallantry and good conduct of the officers and men under my command. All did their whole duty, and deserve alike equal credit from our country for our glorious and signal victory.

I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant,

SHEROD HUNTER,

Major, Baylor's (Texas) Cavalry,Commanding Mosquito Fleet.

Brig. Gen. Alfred Mouton,

Commanding South Red River

Source: OR Series I, Vol. XXVI, Part 1, pp. 223-224

See also:

Brig. Gen Thomas Green's Report of the LaFourche Campaign, June 22 - July 13, 1863.

Brig. Gen Thomas Green's Report of the LaFourche Campaign, June 22 - July 13, 1863.

Brigade, of operations June 22 - July 13.
HEADQUARTERS FIRST CAVALRY BRIGADE
Near Panco, on the La Fourche, June 30, 1863

GENERAL: Early in this month I was ordered by you to the Lower Teche, for the purpose of reconnoitering the enemy at Brashear, and to collect together and fit up light boats preparatory to making a descent upon the enemy , if practicable. While engaged in the execution of these orders, you came down and assumed command, ordering me to advance toward the bay.

On the night of the 22nd instant, in accordance with orders, I moved to Cochran's sugar-house, 2 miles distant from the bay, with the Fifth Texas, Second Louisiana Cavalry, and Waller's battalion, and the Valverde and a section of Nichols' batteries, leaving our horses at that place. I advanced the troops above mentioned on foot before daylight to the village of Berwick, opposite the enemy's encampment.

At the dawn of day, finding the enemy quiet and asleep, I opened fire upon him from the Valverde Battery. The first shot exploded in the center of his encampment, causing the greatest confusion, the distance being only about 900 yards. We fired about 40 or 50 shots from our battery into the enemy before he replied to us at all. The first shot from the enemy was fired on us from his gunboat, which was at anchor in the bay a short distance below our position. After daylight the gunboat advanced toward us as if to contest with our battery the position we occupied on the water's edge, but a few well-directed shots from the Valverde Battery drove the boat 1 mile below, where she opened on us with her heavy guns. About the same time several batteries from the opposite shore opened on us. The shot on the enemy was so well directed that we found it necessary to shift the position of our guns and caissons. The heavy gun on shore which first opened fire on us from the principal fort above Brashear, with the garrison of that fort, was brought down nearly opposite my position , and opened fire on me. With the running of the gunboat, and drawing out this heavy gun, and most of the garrison from Fort Buchanan, left the waters above free to the approach of Major [Sherod] Hunter's command in our little flotilla to Tiger Island. Major Hunter, who had moved under your orders from the mouth of the Teche during the night of the 22nd on board our Mosquito Fleet, landed, unperceived and unsuspected by the enemy, above their defenses, and making his way through the swamp , about 7 o'clock on the morning of the 23rd attacked the enemy in his rear while I was occupying
him in front, completely surprising and routing him.

The enemy surrendered their defenses and the town of Brashear to Major Hunter doubt 7:30 o'clock on the morning of the 23rd. Major Hunter's command consisted of about 300 men form Baylor's, the Fifth Texas, and Waller's battalion, and Second Louisiana Cavalry (picked men). After crossing a part of the troops, I was ordered to pursue the enemy to the Boeuf. During the evening of the same day, I had quite an animated skirmish with him at the Ramos, where he had burned both the railroad and public bridges, and was well fortified on the east bank; but, finding that I had flanked him with a part of my command on the east side of the Beouf , he hastily retreated. I threw a small detachment over the Ramos on the night of the 23rd, and moved them as close as possible to the enemy on the Boeuf. Colonel Major's command being behind the enemy, and it being difficult for him to escape, about 400 strong surrendered to us about daylight on the morning of the 24th.

Our troops during the three days' campaign did their duty with great alacrity, and behaved with gallantry on all occasions.
Very respectfully, your obedient servant,

THOMAS GREEN,
Brigadier-General, commanding First Cavalry Brigade.

Brigadier-General Mouton,
Commanding, &c.

Source: OR Series I, vol. 1, pp. 225-226

See also:

Battle of Brashear City, LA. June 23, 1863.

A Brief Antebellum History of Maj. Gen. Thomas Green

Thomas Green was born in Buckingham County, Virginia, on June 8, 1814, to Nathan and Mary (Field) Green. The family moved to Tennessee in 1817. Green attended Jackson College in Tennessee and Princeton College in Kentucky before he received a degree from the University of Tennessee in 1834. He then studied law with his father, a prominent judge on the Tennessee Supreme Court. When the Texas Revolution began, he left Tennessee to join the volunteers. He reached Nacogdoches by December 1835 and enrolled for military service on January 14, 1836. He became one of Isaac N. Moreland's company, which operated the Twin Sisters cannons in the battle of San Jacinto on April 21, 1836. A few days after the battle Green was commissioned a lieutenant; in early May he was made a major and aide-de-camp to Thomas J. Rusk. He resigned on May 30 to continue studying law in Tennessee.

When he returned and settled in Texas in 1837, he was granted land in reward for his army service and became a county surveyor at La Grange, Fayette County. After his nomination by fellow San Jacinto veteran William W. Gant, he was elected engrossing clerk for the House of Representatives of the Republic of Texas, a post he held until 1839, when he represented Fayette County in the House of the Fourth Congress. After a term he chose not to run again and resumed the office of engrossing clerk. During the Sixth and Eighth congresses he served as secretary of the Senate. From 1841 to 1861 he was clerk of the state Supreme Court.

Between legislative and court sessions Green served in military campaigns against the Indians and Mexico. In the fall of 1840 he joined John H. Moore in a foray up the Colorado River against the Comanches. After Rafael Vásquez's invasion of San Antonio in March 1842, Green recruited and served as captain of the Travis County Volunteers, a unit that did not see battle. That fall he served as inspector general for the Somervell expedition after Adrián Woll's foray into San Antonio.

When the United States went to war with Mexico, Green recruited and commanded a company of Texas Rangers in La Grange as part of the First Texas Regiment of Mounted Riflemen, led by John C. Hays. The Texans helped Zachary Taylor capture Monterrey, Nuevo León, in September 1846. After returning home, Green married Mary Wallace Chalmers, daughter of John G. Chalmers, on January 31, 1847. Five daughters and one son were born to them.

After secessionqv in 1861, Green was elected colonel of the Fifth Texas Volunteer Cavalry, which, as part of a brigade led by Gen. H. H. Sibley, joined the invasion of New Mexico in 1862.

Source:

The Handbook of Texas

Welcome

Welcome to the Green's Cavalry Division, CSA web log. This site will contain official Civil War reports, reminiscences and articles regarding Gen. Thomas Green's Cavalry Corps. Green's Civil War military career and command started with the Campaign in New Mexico in command of a single regiment, 5th Texas Mounted Volunteers and culminated with his death in the Red River Campaign of 1864 as commander of a Texas Cavalry Corps under Lt. Gen. Richard Taylor in the District of West Louisiana, Trans-Mississippi Department. Topics will include articles, official reports, contemporary news articles, public domain resources, and uniforms and ordnance issues to the division during the Civil War.

I hope you find some interesting documentation pertaining to Thomas Green's Texas Cavalry Corps or the Trans-Mississippi Department and that it might be useful in your research on more narrow topics within the scope of this anthology. Thank you for visiting Green's Cavalry Corps web log.

Richard K. Saathoff