Battle of Palmito Ranch
Battle of Palmito Ranch | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Part of the Trans-Mississippi Theater of the American Civil War | |||||||
Sketch map of battle | |||||||
| |||||||
Belligerents | |||||||
United States (Union) | CSA (Confederacy) | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Theodore H. Barrett | John "Rip" Ford | ||||||
Units involved | |||||||
2nd Texas United States Cavalry (dismounted) 62nd Regiment U.S. Colored Troops 34th Indiana Veteran Volunteer Infantry |
2nd Texas Confederate Cavalry Regiment Gidding's Regiment Anderson's Battalion Benavides' Regiment | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
500 | 300 | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
4–30 killed 12 wounded 101 captured |
5–6 wounded 3 captured |
The Battle of Palmito Ranch, also known as the Battle of Palmito Hill, is considered by some criteria the final battle of the American Civil War. It was fought May 12 and 13, 1865, on the banks of the Rio Grande east of Brownsville, Texas, and a few miles from the seaport of Los Brazos de Santiago, at the southern tip of Texas. The battle took place more than a month after the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia under Robert E. Lee to Union forces at Appomattox Court House, which had since been communicated to both commanders at Palmito. In the intervening weeks the Confederacy had collapsed entirely, so it could also be classified as a postwar action.
Union and Confederate forces in southern Texas had been observing an unofficial truce since the beginning of 1865, but Union Colonel Theodore H. Barrett, newly assigned to command an all-black unit and never having been involved in combat, ordered an attack on a Confederate camp near Fort Brown for unknown reasons. The Union attackers captured a few prisoners, but the following day the attack was repulsed near Palmito Ranch by Colonel John Salmon Ford, and the battle resulted in a Confederate victory. Union forces were surprised by artillery said to have been supplied by the French Army garrison occupying the up-river Mexican town of Matamoros.
Casualty estimates are not dependable, but Union Private
Background
This section needs additional citations for verification. (May 2018) |
After July 27, 1864, the Union Army withdrew most of the 6,500 troops deployed to the lower
Union Major General Lew Wallace proposed a negotiated end of hostilities in Texas to Confederate Brigadier General James E. Slaughter, and met with Slaughter and his subordinate Colonel Ford at Port Isabel on March 11–12, 1865.[3] Despite Slaughter's and Ford's agreement that combat would prove tragic, Slaughter's superior, Confederate Maj. Gen. John G. Walker, rejected the ceasefire in a scathing exchange of letters with Wallace. Despite this, both sides honored a tacit agreement not to advance on the other without prior written notice.
A brigade of 1,900 Union troops commanded by Col. Robert B. Jones of the
The 30-year-old Barrett had been an army officer since 1862, but he had yet to see combat. Anxious for higher rank, he volunteered for the newly raised "colored" regiments and was appointed in 1863 as colonel of the 1st Missouri Colored Infantry. In March 1864, the regiment became the 62nd U.S.C.T. Regiment. Barrett contracted malaria in Louisiana that summer, and while he was on convalescent leave, the 62nd was posted to Los Brazos de Santiago. He joined it there in February 1865.
Reasons for fighting
Historians still debate why this engagement at Palmito Ranch took place. Lee had surrendered to Grant in
Soon after the battle, Barrett's detractors claimed he desired "a little battlefield glory before the war ended altogether."[2] Others have suggested that Barrett needed horses for the 300 unmounted cavalrymen in his brigade and decided to take them from his enemy.[4] Louis J. Schuler, in his 1960 pamphlet "The last battle in the War Between the States, May 13, 1865: Confederate Force of 300 defeats 1,700 Federals near Brownsville, Texas", asserts that Brig. Gen. Egbert B. Brown of the U.S. Volunteers had ordered the expedition to seize as contraband 2,000 bales of cotton stored in Brownsville and sell them for his own profit,[5] but Brown was not even appointed to command at Brazos Santiago until later in May.[6]
According to historian Jerry Thompson:
- What was at stake was honor and money. With a stubborn reluctance to admit defeat, Ford asserted that the dignity and manhood of his men had to be defended. Having previously proclaimed that he would never capitulate to "a mongrel force of Abolitionists, Negroes, plundering Mexicans, and perfidious renegades"...Ford was not about to surrender to invading black troops.... Even more important was the large quantity of Richard King and Mifflin Kenedy's cotton stacked in Brownsville waiting to be sent across the river to Matamoros. If Ford did not hold off the invading Federal force, the cotton would be confiscated by the Yankees and thousands of dollars lost."[7]
Battle
Union
The next day, Barrett started advancing westward, passing a half-mile to the west of Palmito Ranch, with skirmishers from the 34th Indiana deployed in advance.[12] Ford attacked Barrett's force as it was skirmishing with an advance Confederate force along the Rio Grande about 4 p.m. He sent a couple of companies with artillery to attack the Union right flank and the remainder of his force into a frontal attack. After some confusion and fierce fighting, the Union forces retreated toward Boca Chica. Barrett attempted to form a rearguard, but Confederate artillery prevented him from rallying a force sufficient to do so.[13] During the retreat, which lasted until 14 May, 50 members of the 34th Indiana's rearguard company, 30 stragglers, and 20 of the dismounted cavalry were surrounded in a bend of the Rio Grande and captured.[14] The battle is recorded as a Confederate victory.[15]
Fighting in the battle involved Caucasian, African-American, Hispanic, and Native American troops. Reports of shots from the Mexican side, the sounding of a warning to the Confederates of the Union approach, the crossing of Imperial cavalry into Texas, and the participation by several among Ford's troops are unverified, despite many witnesses reporting shooting from the Mexican shore.[12]
In Barrett's official report of August 10, 1865, he reported 115 Union casualties: one killed, nine wounded, and 105 captured.[16] Confederate casualties were reported as five or six wounded, with none killed.[17] Historian and Ford biographer Stephen B. Oates, however, concludes that Union deaths were much higher, probably around 30, many of whom drowned in the Rio Grande or were attacked by French border guards on the Mexican side. He likewise estimated Confederate casualties at approximately the same number.[5][18]
Using court-martial testimony and post returns from Brazos Santiago, historian Jerry D. Thompson of Texas A&M International University determined that:
- the 62nd U.S.C.T. incurred two killed and four wounded;
- the 34th Indiana had one killed, one wounded, and 79 captured; and
- the 2nd Texas Cavalry Battalion had one killed, seven wounded, and 22 captured,
- totaling four killed, 12 wounded, and 101 captured.[19]
Private
Aftermath
President Jefferson Davis was captured and imprisoned on May 10, 1865, marking the effective end of the Confederate government. In addition, that day United States President Andrew Johnson declared "armed resistance ...virtually at an end."[21] Historian James McPherson joins other historians in concluding that the war ended when the Confederate government ended.
Confederate
Many senior Confederate commanders in Texas (including Smith, Walker, Slaughter, and Ford) and many troops with their equipment fled across the border to Mexico. Wanting to resist capture, they may also have intended to ally with French Imperial forces, or with Mexican forces under deposed President Benito Juárez.
The Military Division of the Southwest (after June 27 the Division of the Gulf), commanded by Maj. Gen.
In July 1865, Barrett proffered charges of disobedience of orders, neglect of duty, abandoning his colors, and conduct prejudicial to good order and military discipline against Morrison for actions in the battle, resulting in the latter's
The history of this engagement provides accounts of the roles of Hispanic Confederate veterans and of the treatment by Confederates in South Texas of black prisoners-of-war. Hispanic Confederates served at Fort Brown in Brownsville and on the field of Palmito Ranch. Col. Santos Benavides, who was the highest-ranking Hispanic in either army, led between 100 and 150 Hispanic soldiers in the Brownsville Campaign in May 1865.[25]
Some of the Sixty-Second Colored Regiment were also taken [in the Battle of Palmito Ranch]. They had been led to believe that if captured they would either be shot or returned to slavery. They were agreeably surprised when they were paroled and permitted to depart with the white prisoners. Several of the prisoners were from Austin and vicinity. They were assured they would be treated as prisoners of war. There was no disposition to visit upon them a mean spirit of revenge.[26]
— Colonel John Salmon Ford, May 1865
When Colonel Ford surrendered his command following the campaign of Palmito Ranch, he urged his men to honor their paroles. He insisted that "The negro had a right to vote."[26]
"Last battle of the Civil War"
Although officially most historians say this was the last land action fought between the North and the South, some sources suggest that the battle on May 19, 1865, of Hobdy's Bridge, located near Eufaula, Alabama, was the last skirmish between the two forces. Union records show that the last Northern soldier killed in combat during the war was Corporal John W. Skinner in this action. Three others were wounded, also from the same unit, Company C, 1st Florida U.S. Cavalry.[27][28]
Historian Richard Gardiner stated in 2013 that on May 10, 1865:
- A confrontation took place at Palmetto Ranch. There was no Confederacy in existence when the "battle" occurred. The ex-Confederates at Palmetto Ranch were aware that Lee had surrendered and that the war was over. What happened in Texas can only be understood as a "post-war" encounter between Federals and ex-Confederate "outlaws."[21]
The Confederates won this engagement, but as there was no organized command structure, there has been controversy about the Union casualties. In 1896 these same men had their pensions cut, although this was quickly rectified by an appeal to the commissioner of pensions. The assistant secretary to the commissioner overturned the pension cut, legally ruling the men as the last Union casualties of the war.[27]
On April 2, 1866, President Johnson declared the insurrection at an end, except in Texas. There a technicality concerning incomplete formation of a new state government prevented declaring the insurrection over.[23] Johnson declared the insurrection at an end in Texas and throughout the United States on August 20, 1866.[23]
Battlefield
Palmito Ranch Battlefield | |
Nearest city | Brownsville, Texas |
---|---|
Coordinates | 25°56′48″N 97°17′7″W / 25.94667°N 97.28528°W |
Area | 6,000 acres (2,400 ha) |
NRHP reference No. | 93000266[29] |
Significant dates | |
Added to NRHP | June 23, 1993 |
Designated NHL | September 25, 1997[30] |
The area has remained relatively unchanged, with the marshy, windswept prairies almost the same as they were in 1865. The site is more than 5,400 acres (2,200 ha) in size, and was designated as a
See also
- List of National Historic Landmarks in Texas
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Cameron County, Texas
Notes
- ^ Comtois, p. 51
- ^ a b Marvel, p. 69
- ^ Hunt, 2002, p. 32
- ^ Trudeau, 1994, p. 301
- ^ a b c "Historical Landmarks of Brownsville (Number 47)". University of Texas Brownsville. Archived from the original on April 17, 2006. Retrieved April 29, 2010.
- ISBN 0-292-73460-3
- ^ Jerry Thompson, in Southwestern Historical Quarterly 107#2 (2003) pp. 336-337.
- ^ Texas State Historical Association
- ^ Kurtz, p. 32
- ^ Branson, David. "No. 2". The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official records of the Union and Confederate Armies. Cornell University Library. Retrieved April 26, 2010.
- ^ Marvel, p. 70. Fully 25% of the 34th was ill with fever and another 25% detailed to labor duties.
- ^ a b Kurtz, p. 33
- ^ Comtais, p. 53
- ^ Trudeau, 1994, pp. 308–309
- ^ Marvel, p. 73
- ^ Official Records Part 1, Volume 48, pp. 265–267. He also claimed to have written a report on the battle on May 18, 1865 but stated that "it may not have reached" higher headquarters.
- ^ Marvel, pp. 72–73
- ISBN 0-292-77034-0, p. 392
- ISBN 0-87611-201-7, Note 78 p. 152
- ^ Marvel, p. 72
- ^ a b Richard Gardiner, "The Last Battle?eld of the Civil War and Its Preservation," Journal of America's Military Past (Spring/Summer 2013) vol 38 p9 online
- ^ Long, 1971, p. 692
- ^ a b c Long, 1971, p. 693
- ^ rev^6 "Long693"
- ^ Palmito Ranch, Battle of. Texas Historical Association. Handbook of Texas Online, 2011
- ^ a b Ford, Salmon John. RIP Ford's Texas: Personal Narratives of the West. Edited by Stephen B. Oates. University of Texas Press. Austin, TX. (1987).
- ^ a b Hobdy's Bridge, Explore Southern History
- ^ Jaine Treadwell (May 9, 2015). "'Ambush at Hobdy's Bridge' re-enactment May 16–17". The Troy Messenger. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
Bob McLendon, event coordinator and member of Pvt. Augustus Braddy Camp 385, an event sponsor, said ... on May 19, 1865 ... "Cpl. John W. Skinner of First Florida Cavalry was killed and three Union soldiers were wounded and were the last casualties of the war."
- ^ "National Register Information System – (#93000266)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
- ^ Staff (June 2011). "National Historic Landmarks Program: Listing of National Historic Landmarks by State, Texas" (PDF). National Park Service. Retrieved January 10, 2018..
- ^ [1] American Battlefield Trust "Saved Land" webpage. Accessed May 25, 2018.
References
- Theodore Barrett's and David Branson's Official Battle Reports, pp. 265–269, Digital Library, Cornell University
- Bailey, Anne, J. Trans-Mississippi Department. p. 1100
- Benedict, H. Y. Texas In The Encyclopedia Americana. New York: The Encyclopedia Americana Corporation, 1920 OCLC 7308909
- Blair, Jayne E. The Essential Civil War: A Handbook to the Battles, Armies, Navies and Commanders. Jefferson, NC and London: McFarland & Company, Inc., 2006. ISBN 978-0-7864-2472-6
- ISBN 978-0-671-46990-0
- Comtois, Pierre. "War's Last Battle." America's Civil War, July 1992 (Vol. 5, No. 2)
- Conyer, Luther. Last Battle of the War. From the Dallas, Texas News, December 1896. In Brock, R. A. Southern Historical Society Papers. Volume XXIV. Richmond: Published by the Society, 1896 OCLC 36141719
- Civil War Trust web site. Retrieved January 20, 2014
- Civil War Preservation Trust. Campi, James, ed. and Mary Goundrey, Wendy Valentine. Civil War Sites: The Official Guide to the Civil War Discovery Trail, 2d ed. Guilford, CT: The Globe Pequot Press, 2008. ISBN 978-0-7627-4435-0. First edition published 2003
- Delaney, Norman C. Palmito Ranch, Tex., eng. at. May 12–13, 1865. p. 556. In Historical Times Illustrated History of the Civil War, edited by Patricia L. Faust. New York: Harper & Row, 1986. ISBN 978-0-06-273116-6
- ISBN 0-684-84944-5. Retrieved January 20, 2014
- "Manuscript: Letter by John Salmon "Rip" Ford describing the last battle of the Civil War". The Littlejohn Collection on Flickr. Wofford College, Sandor Teszler Library. November 6, 2008. Retrieved December 12, 2008.
- Forgie, George B. Brownsville, Texas: City of Brownsville In Current, Richard N. ed. The Confederacy: Selections from the Four-Volume Macmillan Encyclopedia of the Confederacy New York: Simon & Schuster Macmillan, 1993, introductory material, 1998. ISBN 978-0-02-864920-7. p. 173
- Frazier, Donald S. Brownsville, Texas: Battles of Brownsville. p. 173
- ISBN 978-0-394-46512-8
- Gillett, Mary C. (US Army). The Army Medical Department, 1818–1865. Washington, DC: Center of Military History, U.S. Army, 1987 OCLC 15550997Retrieved January 18, 2014
- Glatthaar, Joseph T. The American Civil War: The War in the West 1863 – May 1865. Taylor & Francis, 2003. ISBN 978-1-84176-242-5. Retrieved January 20, 2014
- ISBN 978-0-8371-1438-5
- Hendrickson, Robert. The Road to Appomattox. New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2000. ISBN 978-0-471-14884-5, p. 221.
- Hunt, Jeffrey Wm. The Last Battle of the Civil War: Palmetto Ranch. Austin, TX: University of Texas Press, 2000. ISBN 978-0-292-73461-6, a scholarly history
- Hunt, Jeffrey Wm. Palmito Ranch, Battle of Handbook of Texas Online (1999)
- Jones, Terry L. Historical Dictionary of the Civil War, Volume 1. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press, 2011. ISBN 978-0-8108-7811-2. Retrieved January 20, 2014
- Keegan, John. The American Civil War: A Military History. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Random House, 2009. ISBN 978-0-307-26343-8
- Kennedy, Frances H., ed. The Civil War Battlefield Guide. 2nd ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1998. ISBN 978-0-395-74012-5
- Kurtz, Henry I. "Last Battle of the War." Civil War Times Illustrated, April 1962 (Vol. I, No. 1)
- Long, E. B. The Civil War Day by Day: An Almanac, 1861–1865. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1971 OCLC 68283123Page numbers are from 1971 print edition; web address is for 2012 reprint.
- OCLC 1007582Hartford: Thomas Belknap, 1877. Retrieved May 1, 2011.
- Martin, ed., John H. Columbus, Geo., from Its Selection as a "trading Town" in 1827, to Its Partial Destruction by Wilson's Raid in 1865.. Columbus, GA: Gilbert, Book Printer and Binder, 1874. p. 178
- Marvel, William. Battle of Palmetto Ranch: American Civil War's Final Battle. Originally published by Civil War Times magazine as "Last Hurrah at Palmetto Ranch", January 2006 (Vol. XLIV, No. 6). Published Online: June 12, 2006. Retrieved from Historynet.com on January 20, 2014
- OCLC 18831911
- Studies in History, Economics, and Public Law, Volume 36. New York: Columbia University Press, 1910, p. 26 OCLC 6342393
- Swanson, Mark. Atlas of the Civil War, Month by Month: Major Battles and Troop Movements. Athens, GA: University of Georgia Press, 2004. ISBN 978-0-8203-2658-0. Retrieved January 17, 2014
- Tucker, Phillip Thomas. The Final Fury: Palmito Ranch, The Last Battle of the Civil War (2001), a scholarly history
- Tucker, Spencer C., ed. Almanac of American Military History, Volume 1. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2012. ISBN 978-1-59884-530-3. Retrieved January 20, 2014
- Trudeau, Noah Andre. Like Men of War: Black Troops in the Civil War 1862–1865. Edison, NJ: Castle Books, 2002. ISBN 978-0-7858-1476-4. Originally published: New York: Little, Brown and Company, 1998
- Trudeau, Noah Andre. Out of the Storm: The End of the Civil War, April – June 1865. Boston: Little, Brown & Company, 1994. ISBN 0-316-85328-3
- "Battle of Palmito Ranch", U.S. National Park Service; CWSAC Battle Summaries. Retrieved January 20, 2014
- Wagner, Margaret E., ISBN 978-1-4391-4884-6. First Published 2002. pp. 328–330
- ISBN 978-0-394-56285-8. Retrieved January 17, 2014
- Wertz, Jay and ISBN 978-0-688-13549-2