urn:taro:tslac.90006 Military Board of Texas: An Inventory of Military Board Records at the Texas State Archives, 1861-1867, 1955, bulk 1861-1865 Finding aid by Jeremy Zuni and Laura Saegert This EAD finding aid was created in cooperation with Texas Archival Resources Online. Texas State Library and Archives Commission March 2012 Finding aid encoded by Laura Saegert in EAD Version 2002 as part of the TARO project, December 2011. Finding aid written in English. Description based on DACS. Overview Texas State Archives Military Board of Texas. Military Board records 1861-1867, 1955 bulk 1861-1865 The Texas State Military Board (also known as the Military Board of Texas) was established to sell or exchange state bonds for supplies and establish foundries and ordnance factories. Records include correspondence, agency meeting minutes, invoices, contracts, bonds, and reports, dating 1861-1867, 1955, bulk dating 1861-1865. These materials are written in English. 6.75 cubic ft. Restrictions on Access

Materials do not circulate, but may be used in the State Archives search room. Materials will be retrieved from and returned to storage areas by staff members.

Restrictions on Use

Most records created by Texas state agencies are not copyrighted and may be freely used in any way. State records also include materials received by, not created by, state agencies. Copyright remains with the creator. The researcher is responsible for complying with U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17 U.S.C.).

Technical Requirements

Many of the records are fragile and may need stabilization prior to use.

Agency History

The Texas State Military Board (also known as the Military Board of Texas) was established to sell or exchange state bonds for supplies and establish foundries and ordnance factories. Creation of the Board was deemed necessary due to the state’s general inability to import necessary supplies for its defense due to the Union blockade of its ports. The Board was created on January 11, 1862 by the 9th Texas Legislature (Chapter 81, Regular Session). The Board was composed of the Governor, the Comptroller, and the Treasurer (respectively Francis Lubbock, Clement R. Johns, and C. H. Randolph).

During the 10th Legislature (Regular Session) on December 16, 1863, an amendment (Chapter 39) to the existing act that partially reconstituted the Board was passed. The Governor still headed the agency ex officio, but was now able to appoint and remove the remaining two members; the Board’s functions remained the same despite this change. Although Pendleton Murrah had replaced Lubbock as Governor in 1863, the Comptroller and Treasurer continued to serve on the Board under the auspices of the first act until April 12, 1864. From April 12, 1864 until May of 1865 when the Civil War ended, effectively nullifying the need for the Military Board, Governor Murrah and appointees James Holman and N. B. Pearce were its members.

Other laws enacted during the 10th Legislature (Regular Session) called for the Board to be given appropriations in order to construct spinning jennies (Chapter 13) and iron foundries (Chapter 54). These bills became law due to the increasingly dire need for supplies on the part of Confederate volunteers in Texas. The proceeds from selling the spinning jennies to the public were to be sent to the Treasury, while most of the iron produced was to be used for military defense. Any remainder could be sold to the public with the revenue then placed in the Treasury.

After the war, Governor A. J. Hamilton appointed a commission to audit the board's accounts. The report declared the original board's records intact, the new board's records confused or destroyed, and large funds and considerable property unaccounted for. None of the property due the state from the board was recoverable, except a few United States bonds held by private individuals. In 1865, at the request of the Texas attorney general, the records of the Military Board were audited by the state auditor to determine whether the claims of individuals who held state bonds were eligible for payment. The conclusion was that the proceeds of all bonds were expended directly or indirectly on activities arising from the Civil War and not on usual and proper government activities. They were therefore part of the debts repudiated by Texas as part of the requirements of readmission to the federal Union. The report also stated that all expenditures of the Military Board were proper, thus reversing Governor Hamilton's commission's report.

(Sources include: The Texas State Historical Association Handbook of Texas Online (http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/mdmnd), accessed April 26, 2011; the Southwestern Historical Quarterly Online (http://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101086/citation/), accessed May 24, 2011; Ramsdell, Charles W. The Texas State Military Board, 1862-65, Southwestern Historical Quarterly 27 (April 1924); and Report of the Special Examination of the Records of the Military Board of Texas for the Period from January, 1862 to May, 1865 (Austin: Texas State Auditor's Department, 1955).)

Scope and Contents of the Records

The Texas State Military Board (also known as the Military Board of Texas) was established to sell or exchange state bonds for supplies and establish foundries and ordnance factories. Records include correspondence, agency meeting minutes, invoices, contracts, bonds, and reports, dating 1861-1867, 1955, bulk dating 1861-1865. Letters and board minutes detail the formation and organization of both the old and new Boards, and also contain duplicates of communications between Board members and various agents responsible for acquiring and/or building state military defenses. Bonds, contracts with purchasing agents, salary reports, and sales invoices also show the Board’s expenditures in the fulfillment of its duties. Reports and correspondence on the purchase and outfitting of the gunboat Bayou City, on ordnance, as well as the sale and distribution of cotton and wool cards to citizens are also present as is a report by the Texas State Auditor on the records of the board, published in 1955. The end of the inventory contains a small amount of correspondence, orders and a few financial documents that were previously part of the State Archives' Strays Collection.

To prepare this inventory, the described materials were cursorily reviewed to delineate series, to confirm the accuracy of contents lists, to provide an estimate of dates covered, and to determine record types.

Arrangement of the Records

The records are arranged as received from the agency.

Index Terms

The terms listed here were used to catalog the records. The terms can be used to find similar or related records.

Corporate Names:Bayou City (Gunboat) Military Board of Texas--Appropriations and expenditures. Military Board of Texas--Auditing. Subjects: Quartermasters--Texas--History--Civil War, 1861-1865. Iron foundries--Texas. Warships--Texas--Gulf Coast. Places: Texas--History--Civil War, 1861-1865.Texas--History--Civil War, 1861-1865--Economic conditions.Confederate States of America. Document Types: Reports--Texas--Military records--1861-1867.Financial records--Texas--Military records--1861-1865.Audits--Texas--Military records--1861-1867, 1955.Correspondence--Texas--Military records--1861-1865.Invoices--Texas--Military records--1861-1865.Contracts--Texas--Military records--1861-1865.Bonds (negotiable instruments)--Texas--Military records--1861-1865. Functions: Protecting state. Related Material

The following materials are offered as possible sources of further information on the agencies and subjects covered by the records. The listing is not exhaustive.

Texas State Archives

Texas Adjutant General's Department Civil War records, 1855, 1860-1866, undated, bulk 1861-1865, 17.96 cubic ft. Preferred Citation

(Identify the item), Military Board of Texas records. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

Accession Information

unknown

Processing Information

Inventoried in the 1960s by State Archives staff

Descriptive text and DACS elements added by student volunteer Jeremy Zuni and archivist Laura Saegert, July and December 2011

Detailed Description of the Records Military Board records, 1861-1867, 1955, 6.75 cubic ft. 2-10/298 State Auditor's Report, 1955 2-10/298 Letterpress books: 2-10/298 March 29, 1862-December 27, 1862 2-10/298 December 27, 1862-January 25, 1864 2-10/298 January 28, 1864-April 29, 1864 2-10/298 January 20, 1864-May 26, 1864 2-10/299 Alexander, A.M. and C.C. 2-10/299 Alexander, McCarty and Beard 2-10/299 Baker, M.W. 2-10/299 Ball, Hutchings and Co. [3 folders] 2-10/299 Bartley, D.E. 2-10/299 Beaumont, J. 2-10/299 Billups and Hassell [2 folders] 2-10/299 Bouldin, James E., Capt. 2-10/299 Brazos Mfg. Co. 2-10/299 Bremond and Co. 2-10/299 Briggs and Yard 2-10/299 Brown and Todd 2-10/299 Browne, James 2-10/299 Buckley, C.A. 2-10/299 Burchand and Co. 2-10/299 Chapell Hill, Mfg. Co. 2-10/299 Clarke, George R. 2-10/299 Cooke, F.J. 2-10/299 Crockett, John M. 2-10/299 Crow, Peter 2-10/299 Cunningham, L.C. and Co. 2-10/299 Cunningham, T.W. 2-10/299 Dallas Mfg. Co. 2-10/299 Dance, I.H. and Bros. 2-10/299 Doughtery, James 2-10/299 Drennon, S.D. 2-10/299 Droege, Oetling and Co. [2 folders] 2-10/299 Florian and Jefferson 2-10/299 Foster 2-10/299 Gatewood, Berry 2-10/299 Gay, James L. 2-10/299 Giddings, George H. 2-10/299 Groesbuck and (C.H. Alexander) 2-10/299 Gross, F. and Co. 2-10/299 Harcourt, John T. 2-10/299 Hays, F.M. 2-10/299 Heard, D.W. 2-10/299 Henderson, John D. 2-10/299 House, T.W. and Co. 2-10/299 Houston and Texas Central Railway Co. 2-10/299 Hughes and Totty 2-10/299 Independence Manufacturing Co. 2-10/299 Jeffries, A. 2-10/299 Johnson and Dewey 2-10/299 Johnson, M.T. 2-10/300 Johnston, McKenzie, M.D. 2-10/300 Kendall, Phillips and Co. 2-10/300 Key, John P. 2-10/300 King, R. and Co. 2-10/300 Kingsbury, S.G. 2-10/300 Kirkland, W.H. 2-10/300 Kittredge, E.B. 2-10/300 Koester, Theo. 2-10/300 Lamar 2-10/300 Landa, J. and Co. 2-10/300 Lavenburg and Bros. 2-10/300 Lea, Pryor [2 folders] 2-10/300 Lockhart, R. 2-10/300 Lusk, James A. 2-10/300 McElroy, J. 2-10/300 McMiller, John and Co. 2-10/300 McReynolds, J.B. 2-10/300 Marchbanks, H.D. 2-10/300 Mayer, H. and Co. 2-10/300 Mevin, John 2-10/300 Mills, R. and D.G. 2-10/300 Moore, John M. 2-10/300 Nance and Moffett 2-10/300 Nichols, J.R. 2-10/300 Oliver and Bros. 2-10/300 Osgood and Cavender 2-10/300 Patten, Charles 2-10/300 Peck, Benjamin P. 2-10/300 Perkins and Co. 2-10/300 Pfeiffer, George 2-10/300 Phoenix Iron Works 2-10/300 Pitts, W.C. 2-10/300 Putnam and Henderson 2-10/300 Raker, John M. 2-10/301 Rice, F.A. 2-10/301 Richardson and Co. 2-10/301 Richardson and D. 2-10/301 Roberts, J.F. 2-10/301 Robinson, W.T. 2-10/301 Rogers, M.N. 2-10/301 Root, J.B. 2-10/301 Rowen, William 2-10/301 Rugby, John 2-10/301 Runge, Henry 2-10/301 Ryan, M.K. 2-10/301 Sampson and Henricks 2-10/301 Sappington and Owings 2-10/301 Sawyer, Risher and Hall 2-10/301 Schwarz and Co. 2-10/301 Shepherd, B.A. 2-10/301 Sherrard, Taylor and Co. 2-10/301 Short, Biscoe and Co. 2-10/301 Simpson, J.P. 2-10/301 Sims 2-10/301 Smith, John M. and Co. 2-10/301 Smith, P.R. 2-10/301 Smith, Robert W. 2-10/301 Stachely, J.A. 2-10/301 Stark, J.B. 2-10/301 Sutton and Spring 2-10/301 Sublett, F.B. 2-10/301 Swisher, John M. and Co. 2-10/301 Tanner, N.B. 2-10/301 Texas Powder Co. 2-10/301 Thomas, W.R. 2-10/301 Thomas, W.S. and Co. 2-10/301 Thomason, J.H. 2-10/301 Thomason, W.G. and Co. 2-10/301 Travis Powder Co. 2-10/301 Trinity Mills Mfg. Co. 2-10/301 Tucker, Sherrard and Co. 2-10/301 Tyler Press 2-10/301 Watts, Alex M., Col. 2-10/301 Weber, Juan 2-10/301 Weston, John 2-10/301 Whitescarver Campbell and Co. 2-10/301 White, William H. 2-10/301 Williams, John L. 2-10/301 Williams, W.H. and J.H. 2-10/301 Willis, R.S. 2-10/301 Wilson, J.T.D. 2-10/301 Wilson, James T.D. 2-10/301 Yarbro, J.C. 2-10/301 Young, Alex 2-10/301 Young, George 2-10/302 Nichols, Gen. E.B. 2-10/302 Vance and Bros. 2-10/302 Armstrong, T.C., Col. 2-10/302 Texas Loan Agency: 2-10/302 January 1864 2-10/302 February 1864 2-10/302 March 1864 2-10/302 April 1864 2-10/302 May 1864 2-10/302 June 1864 2-10/302 July 1864 2-10/302 August 1864 2-10/302 September 1864 2-10/302 October 1864 2-10/302 November 1864 2-10/302 December 1864 2-10/302 January 1865 2-10/302 February 1865 2-10/302 March 1865 2-10/302 April 1865 2-10/302 May 1865 2-10/302 Cotton subscription lists 2-10/303 U.S. Texas Indemnity Bonds 2-10/303 State bonds, cotton 2-10/303 State bonds and coupons 2-10/303 Correspondence relative to state bonds 2-10/303 Aids for 8% bonds from citizens 2-10/303 Purchase of cotton correspondence, accounts, receipts 2-10/303 Purchase of cotton correspondence, receipts, accounts, in spec. bonds 2-10/303 Transfer of cotton 2-10/303 Purchase of cotton, bonds correspondence, specie 2-10/303 Transfer of cotton [2 folders] 2-10/303 General cotton correspondence 2-10/303 Cotton - general (not correspondence) 2-10/303 Texas cotton office, W.J. Hutchins 2-10/304 Foundry [2 folders] 2-10/304 Ordnance stores--percussion cap factory [2 folders] 2-10/304 State armory, William Caston 2-10/304 Ordnance-Powder Factory 2-10/304 Ordnance-Metals 2-10/304 Salt 2-10/304 Ordnance-general correspondence [4 folders] 2-10/304 Quartermaster General’s Office 2-10/304 Abney, A.H. 2-10/304 Finnin, Ed., Capt. 2-10/304 Ordnance stores--percussion cap factory 2-10/304 Henricks, Capt. Ben 2-10/304 Miscellaneous material, ordnance, 1862-1863 2-10/304 Securities and bonds 2-10/305 Gunboat Bayou City: 2-10/305 January 9, April 3-30, 1862 2-10/305 May 1-16, 1862 2-10/305 May 17-24, 1862 2-10/305 May 24-28, 1862 2-10/305 May 29-31, 1862 2-10/305 June 1-14, 1862 2-10/305 June 14-21, 1862 2-10/305 June 21-28, 1862 2-10/305 June 28-July 5, 1862 2-10/305 July 5-19, 1862 2-10/305 July 19-August 2, 1862 2-10/305 August 2-5, 1862 2-10/305 August 5-29, 1862 2-10/305 September 1-8, 1862 2-10/305 September 9-30, 1862 2-10/305 October 1-8, 1862 2-10/305 October 8-30, 1862 2-10/305 November 1-26, 1862 2-10/305 December 1-16, 1862, undated 2-10/305 1863 2-10/305 Cotton cards to be interfiled 2-10/305 Cotton and woolen cards to be interfiled 2-10/305 Cotton and woolen cards: 2-10/305 October 1, 1862-December 30, 1863 2-10/305 January 19-April 26, 1864 2-10/305 May 3-June 23, 1864 2-10/305 July 5-December 27, 1864 2-10/305 1864, January 16, 1865 2-10/305 January 23, 1865-May 20, 1865 2-10/305 undated 2-10/306 Adjutant General’s Office (Inspector) 2-10/306 Exam of Military Board 2-10/306 Military Board reports 2-10/306 Legislative Committee Report on the Military Board, November 1864 2-10/306 General receipts 2-10/306 General correspondence and miscellaneous 2-10/306 Appointment of J.S. Holman to Military Board 2-10/306 Administrative expenses of Board 2-10/306 Expense accounts and salaries for agents of Board members 2-10/306 Clothing receipts, accounts [2 folders] 2-10/306 Penitentiary 2-10/306 Legislation 2-10/306 Merchandise and cash accounts, invoices, expense accounts 2-10/306 Abstracts of accounts and disbursements 2-10/306 Balance sheets 2-1/300 Daily cash account book, April-August 1864

[Expense accounts: foundry, cap factory, agents (A.H. Abney), freight, members of the Board; payment for cotton and wool cards; account of Travis Powder Mill Co.]

2-1/302 No. 95

[Texas State Loan Agency correspondence of (General) E.B. Nichols, agent of state to agents in Laredo, San Antonio, Eagle Pass; to firm of Sawyer, Risher and Hall; also incoming correspondence to Governor Murrah and to Nichols from Laredo agent T.C. Armstrong. General correspondence of Laredo Agency.]

2-1/310 No. 96 1862-1864, January 13, 1862-April 1864

[Itemized expenditures; all transactions of Military Board involving payment, including US Indemnity Bonds; purchase of Bayou City from Messrs. House, Hutchins and Shepherd; ordnance contracts with Whitescarver, Campbell and Co.; percussion cap factory; cotton and wool cards.]

2-1/311 Foundry day book No. 98

[Account with state foundry for work performed for Board January 1863-February 1864; salaries of chemists, blacksmiths, laborers; salaries of carpenters, molders, carriage makers, clerks.]

2-1/317 Foundry ledger No. 105

[Accounts of expenditures and supplies, February-May 1865; manufacturer of field batteries, machinery and tools, expenditures for refining copper, same as 2-1/311; crucible, coffee, flour, varnish, firm of Allen and Griffith.]

2-1/318 New Board letter press book, April 28, 1864-March 27, 1865

[Furloughs and exemptions for purposes of Military Board (E. G. Hauling); outgoing correspondence of Military Board-Philip E. Peers, Secretary, and W. B. Pearce, J. S. Holman (Board Members); delivery and purchase of cotton; correspondence to General Nichols; Ball, Hutchins and Co. to Thompson & Co., agents for the state; A.T. Ward & Co., agents manufacture of salt.]

2-1/319 Journal book--new Military Board, April 1864-July 1865, 1867

[Includes statements of auditory (audit?), 1867; statement of balance of books; U.S. 5% Indemnity Bonds sold during old Board to John M. Swisher and Co., T. D. Wilson, James Thorp; sold during New Board to White and Chiles; register of U.S. 5% Indemnity Bonds delivered to: L. Oliver & Bros., James Thorp, George Peabody, Esq., Latimer & Taylor, South Pacific Railroad Co.; bonds belonging to state (in Chancery Court in England); cotton accounts of various firms, 1867.]

2-1/320 Ledger No. 104, receipts and disbursements, April 1864-July 1865

[Indexed by subject: Confederate cash, cotton and wool cards, state warrants, 5% state bonds, cash (specie), profit and loss, interest and premium accounts, foundry, cap factory, A.H. Abney, Ball, Hutchings and Co., State Quartermaster, saline salt works, accounts for various firms: Griffith and Allen, White and Chiles, Bolden Riggs and Walker, Juan Weber.]

2-1/321 Ledger book No. 97, receipts and disbursements, January 1862-April 1864

[Indexed by subject: G.H. Giddings, Pryor Lea, F.R. Lubbock, W.B.P. Gaines, Contingent Fund, U.S. Coupons, R. Lockhart, Premium. Account. P. DeCordova, S.C. Kingbury, purchase of arms, purchase of saltpeter and sulphur, foundry-penitentiary, cotton cards, San Antonio Power Co., various agents, various firms.]

2-1/333 List of personnel assigned to special details, April-August 1864

[Lists dates, names, by whom detailed (firm), for what purpose (e. g., hauling cotton, manufacturing spinning jennies, agent), remarks (cancelled, proprietor, exempt).]

2-1/334 Ledger of consignments, accounts of exportations and of consignments through state agents, June 1864-May 1865

[Indexed by name and subject: cotton accounts, expense accounts, various agents, State Bonds, consignments and firms (e.g. Vance and Bros., Sawyer, Risner and Hall, Smith and Graves), several firms acted as agents.]

2-1/554 Minutes of Board of Investigation, August 1865

[Contains abstract of contracts, amount of cotton to be exported, machinery to be introduced, abstract of cotton sold to Military Board--date, firm, agents, cost of exportation, cost of machinery, remarks.]

2-7/824 Number 101--Record of Proceedings of Military Board of the State of Texas, January 13, 1862-March 24, 1863

[Instructions for ordering cotton and woolen cards for people to use in preparing this for spinning; May 12, 1862; L.G. Kingsbury appointed as general agent, procuring teams for cotton trains and to get the cotton to market with economy and dispatch; Address to the People of Texas setting forth a plan for obtaining arms and war supplies, exchanging 8% bonds for cotton (pp. 21-26); letter to Ryan, February 21, 1862, (pp. 34-36); instruction requiring agents to classify cotton, pay no more than 10 cents per bale highest quality, to prepare cotton for shipment to Brownsville (cf. pp. 57-58 to J.M. Hays); letters: to Pryor Lea on selecting agent in Matamoros, to Rice Maxey (p. 43) suspending orders for cotton in North Texas until transportation could be afforded, to J.M. Hays (p. 57) suspending orders for cotton in South Texas until transportation could be found; (pp. 11-13) 100 U.S. bonds turned over to confederate agent, Giddings was unable to negotiate them; rifle and gun contracts (also found throughout outgoing correspondence of Military Board).]

4-20/406 Old Board blotter, January 1862-April 1864

[Payment in cash, specie, bonds for premiums, salaries, services, purchase of ordnance stores, purchase of tools, wood, coal, stationery, Neat’s Foot Oil, blankets, cotton, cards, payment to firms, foundry and cap and powder factory accounts.]

Strays MB Correspondence, orders, etc., 1860s

[Note: Appears to include some material from other record groups.]

Strays MB Miscellaneous financial documents, 1862-1864

[Note: Found with the unprocessed Adjutant General records.]

Strays MB Abstract of expenditures, 1864

[Note: Found with the Army Papers, ledger 401-1140.]