Col. O. M. Roberts, Confederate Military History, a library of Confederate States Military History: Volume 11.1, Texas
Clement Anselm Evans, Ed.

[224]

Biographical.

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Brigadier-General Arthur Pendleton Bagby

Brigadier-General Arthur Pendleton Bagby was born in Alabama, and appointed from that State to the United States military academy at West Point. He was graduated in 1852, and promoted in the army to brevet second lieutenant of infantry, after which he served in garrison at Fort Columbus, New York, 1852-53, and on frontier duty at Fort Chadbourne, Texas, 1853. He resigned in September of that year, and began the study of law. Being admitted to the bar, he practiced at Mobile, Ala., from 1854 to 1858; then moved to Gonzales, Tex., and was living there in 1861, when the war between the States began. He was, during 1861, major in the Seventh Texas, becoming colonel of the regiment in 1862. This regiment was in General Sibley's command in New Mexico in 1862, sharing the hardships and victories of that campaign of varied experiences. On January 1, 1863, having been promoted in the latter part of 1862, he took part in the memorable victory at Galveston, which was of substantial benefit to the Confederate cause. The land and naval forces were under the command of General Magruder, who thus referred to Colonel Bagby's part in the affair: ‘Col. A. P. Bagby, of Sibley's brigade, commanded the volunteers from his regiment for the naval expedition, in which every officer and man won imperishable renown.’ Gen. Richard Taylor, during his operations in West Louisiana in 1863, frequently spoke of Bagby in complimentary terms. Referring to the battle near Berwick bay, he said: ‘Colonel Bagby was wounded seriously, but not dangerously, in the arm, but remained on the field with his regiment until the enemy had been driven back and ceased his attacks.’ So frequently is [225] Colonel Bagby's gallantry alluded to in the reports of both Taylor and Magruder that it is certain that the rank of brigadier-general, which was conferred upon him during 1863, seldom if ever was bestowed upon one more worthy of the honor. During the Red river campaign, before, during and after the battles of Mansfield and Pleasant Hill, his services were very great. The high esteem in which he was held by his superior officers is shown by the fact that after the surrender of Lee and Johnston, but before the final submission of the Trans-Mississippi department, he was in Gen. Kirby Smith's general orders promoted to major-general, May 16, 1865. After the war he went back to his law business, continuing to reside in Texas, his adopted State.

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Brigadier-General Hamilton P. Bee

Brigadier-General Hamilton P. Bee was born at Charleston, S. C., July 22, 1822, the son of Col. Barnard E. Bee. A younger son of the latter bore the father's name and fell at Manassas after giving ‘Stonewall’ Jackson his immortal name. Colonel Bee was one of the earliest and most noted of the Texas pioneers, and his wife and son Hamilton joined him at Galveston in 1837. Two years later Hamilton P. Bee was appointed secretary, on the part of Texas, to the commission which established the line between Texas and the United States, and in 1846 he was elected secretary of the first senate of Texas, but soon resigned to enlist as a private in Capt. Ben McCulloch's company of cavalry. Later he served at Laredo in the rank of first lieutenant. In 1854 he was married to Mildred Tarver, of Alabama. In addition to his public service in the ante-Confederate period, which has been mentioned, he acted as clerk to Governor Lubbock when the latter was comptroller of the Texas republic, and was speaker of the third house of representatives of the State. During 1861 he was in command of State troops on the coast as brigadier-general in the provisional army of Texas, and in March, 1862, when he was commissioned [226] brigadier-general in the Confederate service, he was put in command at Brownsville. In November, 1863, he had but 69 men at this post, but, in the face of 12,000 men, landed by General Banks, he successfully brought off Confederate stores and munitions valued at $1,000,000. During the following winter he commanded a force of 10,000 men on the coast, from Brazos to Matagorda bay: and early in 1864 he took several regiments of cavalry to Louisiana, with three of which he reported to Gen. Richard Taylor in time to participate in the battle of Mansfield. At Pleasant Hill on the afternoon of the next day, at the head of these regiments, he led a splendid charge, had two horses killed under him, and was slightly wounded in the face. After the death of Gen. Tom Green he was in command of the cavalry division on the Red river until the arrival of General Wharton. His next service was with General Maxey in the Indian Territory, where he passed the winter of 1864-65, and he was then assigned to the command of a division of cavalry at Hempstead. After the fall of the Confederate government he resided in Mexico until 1876, when he made his home at San Antonio, where he lived in peace, loved and respected by the community, until his sudden demise, October 2, 1897. He left surviving him his wife, five sons and a daughter. By his request the Confederate flag, which was presented him by the ladies of San Antonio at the outbreak of the war, was buried with him, wrapped about the casket which contained his body.

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Brigadier-General Xavier Blanchard Debray

Brigadier-General Xavier Blanchard Debray rendered his military services, which were of great value and prominence, altogether in the Trans-Mississippi department, which was a large part of the time almost isolated from the rest of the Confederacy. During a part of 186he was aide-de-camp to the governor of Texas. In September of that year he entered the regular Confederate service as major of the Second regiment of Texas infantry. [227] December 5th of the same year he was commissioned lieutenant-colonel of a battalion of cavalry. With this command he was very active in scouting, reporting movements of the enemy, attacking their forces whenever it was advisable, and useful in every way to the commanding general. In the attack upon the Federals at Galveston on January 1, 1863, he was notably active, so that General Magruder in his official report gives special commendation to him in connection with other officers for efficiency and gallantry. Early in 1864 he was ordered to march with his Texans to join Gen. Richard Taylor in the campaign against Banks. The regiment which he was leading had never before been in action, but, under his guidance, behaved with such coolness and bravery as to win the approval of General Taylor in his reports. In the reports of this campaign, including the battles of Mansfield and Pleasant Hill, his name frequently appears, always in connection with honorable service. In the pursuit of