Figure 1 shows the use of an imprinted envelope from the CSA PRESIDENT'S OFFICE to Texas (Type 1). There are no postal markings so it must be assumed it was hand carried. It is addressed to James T. D. Wilson in Houston, Texas. It was endorsed by F. R. Lubbock, Col ADC. The Official Business text is marked out.

Francis R. Lubbock was the ninth governor of Texas. When Lubbock's term ended in 1863, he joined the military and was appointed to a lieutenant colonel position serving under Maj. Gen. John Bankhead Magruder. By 1864, Lubbock was promoted to aide-de-camp for Jefferson Davis. So this must date the envelope from 1864 or later.

Following the Confederacy's military collapse, Lubbock fled from Richmond, Virginia with Davis. They were soon caught by Union troops in Georgia. He was imprisoned at Fort Delaware for eight lonths before being paroled.(1)

Figure 2 shows a contemporary color lithograph of Francis Lubbock. (2)

Col. Lubbock's connection to James Wilson goes back to the beginning of the war. When Lubbock was Governor, his most significant political act of 1862 came when the Texas legislature created a new agency, the Military Board, to purchase arms and ordnance for Texas troops. The members of the board were the governor, state treasurer, and state comptroller. They were given an unprecedented degree of independent power with the authority to sell or exchange bonds worth up to $500,000 for weapons.

James T.D. Wilson was an employee of the Military Board and made numerous trips to Mexico to buy supplies for the war effort. Years later he would become the mayor of Houston (1874, 1877-78).

Shown above is the first page of a letter Wilson sent to Gov. Lubbock regarding the purchase and movement of supplies. An excerpt from the letter follows:

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis _Lubbock
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis _Lubbock
3. http://www.tsl.state.tx.us/exhibits/civilwar/1862_2.html