DUANE
Duane's take
The official marker tells it this way, and I'm just the one bringing it to you on the road. Now, the county you're driving through bears a name with a story behind it — and that story begins a long way from here. Thomas S.
Lubbock was born in 1817, a South Carolinian by birth. He came to Texas in 1835, and once he arrived, he was the kind of man who kept finding himself in the middle of things. Indian fighter.
Soldier. Businessman. When Texas stood at the crossroads of union and rebellion, he was there too — a member of the Secession Convention.
When the war finally came, Lubbock didn't wait for it to come to him. He went to Virginia, hoping to fight for the South in the very first battle of the war. And fight he did — not with a regiment behind him, but alone, out ahead of the lines.
He served as a scout at the First Battle of Manassas, reporting enemy troop positions, and he was commended for that valuable volunteer service. Then came the assignment that would define him. He was sent back to Texas to raise a regiment for the Army of Virginia.
The men they raised and organized became the 8th Texas Cavalry — famed ever after as Terry's Rangers. Those Rangers elected Lubbock their Lieutenant Colonel. They went to Kentucky.
And then — here's where the story turns heavy — Terry was killed. The Rangers, every last one of them, unanimously elected Lubbock their Colonel. That kind of unanimous vote doesn't happen by accident.
These were hard men who'd seen hard things, and they chose him. But typhoid fever doesn't care about battlefield votes. Lubbock fell ill, and he died soon after.
He was buried at Glenwood Cemetery in Houston. Born 1817, gone 1862 — he never saw the war's end. Now the marker doesn't let you forget that Lubbock's story was just one thread in an enormous cloth.
Texas in the Civil War, 1861 to 1865 — the state went all in. A popular vote for secession ran three to one. Ninety thousand Texas troops, famed for their mobility and daring, fought on every battlefront.
A two-thousand-mile frontier and coastline were defended against both Union troop invasion and Indian raids. And behind every soldier, there was a state working itself to the bone. Texas served as the storehouse of the Western Confederacy.
Wagon trains heavy with cotton — called the life blood of the South — crossed the state all the way to Mexico, trading that cotton for medical supplies, clothing, military goods. State and private industry turned out guns, ammunition, wagons, pots, kettles, leather goods, salt, hospital supplies. And at home, it was wives and sons and daughters and slaves who kept it running — growing the corn, tending the cotton, weaving the cloth, raising the cattle and hogs, curing the meat.
Giving much, the marker says, and keeping little for themselves. This marker was erected by the State of Texas in 1964. A man who came to Texas in 1835, died a Colonel before the war was half over — and the county out your window carries that name all the same.
What the marker says
(1817-1862) South Carolinian. Came to Texas 1835. Indian fighter, soldier, businessman. Member Secession Convention. Went to Virginia hoping to fight for South in first battle of war. Commended for valuable volunteer service as scout and reporting enemy troop positions in First Battle of Manassas. Sent to Texas to raise regiment for Army of Virginia. Upon organization, the 8th Texas Cavalry- famed Terry's Rangers- elected him Lieutenant Colonel. Went to Kentucky. When Terry was killed, Rangers unanimously elected him Colonel. Ill with typhoid fever, he died soon after. Buried Glenwood Cemetery, Houston. Texas in the Civil War 1861-1865 -- Texas made an all-out effort for the Confederacy after a 3 to 1 popular vote for secession. 90,000 troops, famed for mobility and daring, fought on every battlefront. A 2,000 mile frontier and coast were successfully defended from Union troop invasion and savage Indians. Texas was the storehouse of Western Confederacy. Wagon trains laden with cotton- life blood of the South- crossed the state to Mexico to trade for medical supplies, clothing, military supplies. State and private industry produced guns, ammunition, wagons, pots, kettles, leather goods, salt, hospital supplies. Wives, sons, daughters, slaves provided corn, cotton, cloth, cattle, hogs, cured meats to the Army, giving much, keeping little for themselves. Erected by the State of Texas 1964.