Walker's Greyhounds

Walker's Greyhounds, also known as Walker's Texas Division, was a division of the Confederate States Army composed exclusively of units from Texas. It fought in the Western Theater and the Trans-Mississippi Department, gaining a reputation as a solid fighting force.

Organization

Organized at Camp Nelson, Arkansas, in July 1862, the Greyhounds were placed under the command of Maj. Gen. John George Walker in November 1862, and remained under his command until the end of the war. The division served exclusively in the Trans-Mississippi Department. When General Walker was given a district command in late 1864 the division was given to Maj. Gen. John H. Forney.

Composition

1st Brigade

Col. Overton C. Young
Brig. Gen. James M. Hawes
Brig. Gen. Thomas N. Waul
Brig. Gen. Wilburn H. King
Col. Richard B. Hubbard

2nd Brigade

Brig. Gen. Horace Randal
Brig. Gen. Robert Plunket Maclay

3rd Brigade

Col. George M. Flournoy
Brig. Gen. Henry E. McCulloch
Brig. Gen. William R. Scurry
Brig. Gen. Richard Waterhouse

Original 4th Brigade[1]

Brig. Gen. James Deshler

4th Brigade (1865)

Brig. Gen. Wilburn H. King

Major engagements

Vicksburg Campaign

The Greyhounds fought at the Battle of Milliken's Bend and the Battle of Young's Point, incidental engagements of the Vicksburg Campaign, in June 1863. They remained in northern Louisiana for several months, and then returned to Arkansas in late 1863.

Red River Campaign

Sent from Arkansas to Louisiana again in April 1864, they served as part of Lt. Gen. Richard Taylor's Army at the significant Confederate victories at the Battle of Mansfield (April 8, 1864), and the Battle of Pleasant Hill (April 9, 1864), critical engagements in the Red River Campaign.

Camden Expedition

Rushed back to Arkansas by Tran-Mississippi Department Commander Edmund Kirby Smith, they fought at the Battle of Jenkins' Ferry on April 30, 1864, the last engagement of the Camden Expedition.

Nickname

The division was well trained, and well respected as a fighting force. It earned its nickname because the men were able to move long distances rapidly on foot. The Greyhounds' ferocity at the Battle of Mansfield, particularly by its 12th Texas Infantry Regiment, is considered by many military historians to have turned the tide in that engagement.

Mustered out

With the war over and the main Confederate armies having surrendered, the remnants of the much depleted division were mustered out at Hemphill, Texas, in May 1865.

References

  1. The 4th Brigade was detached and captured at the Battle of Arkansas Post 1863

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Monday, May 02, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.