MILITARY HISTORY OF THE WEST 1995

Volume 25, No. 1, Spring 1995

Table of Contents

"Augustus Buchel: A Forgotten Texas Patriot," by Stanley S. McGovern, pp. 1-21.

Abstract: Augustus Buchel, trained in military schools in Europe, was an army officer in Spain and the Ottoman Empire before he went to Texas. He arrived in the Lone Star State with other German immigrants and served in the Mexican War, the Texas militia, and the Confederate Army. Although he served Texas without hesitation, he has been overlooked by most historians.
Key Words: Augustus Buchel; German immigrants; Mexican War; Texas cavalry; Civil War

"Brother Against Brother: The Winter Skirmishes Along the Arkansas River, 1864-1865," by Jayme Lynne Stone, pp. 23-49.

Abstract: In 1864-1865 Confederate and Union troops vied for control of the Arkansas River valley between Lewisburg and Fort Smith. These skirmishes involved Federal and Confederate companies recruited from the valley. Federal plans to evacuate Fort Smith would have returned northern Arkansas to Confederate control -- jeopardizing loyal Arkansans and lengthening the conflict in the trans-Mississippi theater.
Key Words: Civil War, Arkansas River valley, Arkansas soldiers, Dardanelle

"America's First D-Day: The Veracruz Landing of 1847," edited by James M. McCaffrey, transcribed by George Sanders, pp. 51-68.

Abstract: The United States Army-Navy assault on Veracruz, Mexico, in 1847 was the first large-scale amphibious landing on a hostile shore ever attempted by American forces. First Lieutenant William Austine, adjutant of the Third U.S. Artillery, was a member of the expedition and here provides an interesting and revealing first-person account of it.
Key Words: Mexican War, Veracruz, amphibious warfare, artillery, Winfield Scott

"Journal of a Wagon Train Expedition from Fort Inge to El Paso Del Norte in 1850," edited by Ben E. Pingenot, pp. 69-105.

Abstract: In June 1850 a large supply train set out from Fort Inge in south Texas to El Paso del Norte in far west Texas. This journal, the earliest first-hand account of a military- escorted expedition over the southern military road, provides new insight into the opening of the Southwest.
Key Words: John T. Sprague, Benjamin F. Coons, military supply, California Trail, El Paso