| TX431 |
CSA #7 Horz Pair affixed upside down (4-Margin) tied by two strikes of a Grid Cancel and a full bold strike of the matching Bastrop, Texas ("Texas"
is spelled out) CDS at the lower left 25 APR (1863). Addressed to T. W.
House, Houston, Texas. Folded letter written on thin Britsh blue
commercially made watermarked letter paper. Ex-John Hill.
The letter is only two short paragraphs. The first paragraph is business related. The second paragraph is interesting: Bad
news of Sibley's Brigade. A Letter just received from Capt Sayres of
the Valverde Battery (he is a son of Dr Sayres here) that he has lost
nearly all his men and himself is wounded. Addendum: I was sorry to read of the loss of the Royal Yacht.
Joseph
D. Sayers (1841-1929) was Captain of the Valverde Battery of artillery
and took part in Sibley's Expedition to New Mexico in 1861-1862. In
1863, the battery, which was made up of cannon captured at the Battle
of Valverde, was part of Sibley's Brigade attached to the Army of West
Louisiana commanded by CSA Maj-Gen Richard Taylor. The action referred
to in the letter was the little known Battle of Fort Bisland in West
Louisiana 12-13 APR 1863 which was a Union victory under Gen Banks.
Capt Sayers recovered and went on to become a prominent Texas politician
being elected Lieut Gov of Texas (1879-1881), Texas member of the US
Congress (1885-1899), and the 22nd Governor of Texas (1899-1903).
The CS Royal Yacht was a small armed schooner attached to the CS Navy and involved in the defenses of Galveston. The CS Royal Yacht was captured by the Union 13 APR 1863.
Thomas
W. House (1814-1880) was a highly successful banker and merchant in
Houston and also very active in local affairs. At the time of this
letter, he was serving as the Mayor of Houston. The letter is signed
James Nicholson (1815-1885) who was a prominent merchant in Bastrop,
Texas. |
$350.00 |
JLKCSA@aol.com
-- Confederate Order
Form --