Texans and War

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Military History

Texas History

Western History

Beginning with tribal wars among Native Americans before Europeans settled Texas and continuing through the Civil War, the soil of what would become the Lone Star State has frequently been stained by the blood of those contesting for control of its resources. In subsequent years and continuing to the present, its citizens have often taken up arms beyond its borders in pursuit of political values and national defense.

Although historians have studied the role of the state and its people in war for well over a century, a wealth of topics remain that deserve greater attention: Tejanos in World War II, the common Texas soldier’s interaction with foreign enemies, the perception of Texas warriors throughout the world, the role of religion among Texans who fight or contemplate fighting, controversial paramilitary groups in Texas, the role and effects of Texans’ ethnicity, culture, and gender during wartime, to name a few. In Texans at War, fourteen scholars provide new studies, perspectives, and historiographies to extend the understanding of this important field.

One of the largest collections of original scholarship on this topic to date, Texans and War will stimulate useful conversation and research among historians, students, and interested general readers. In addition, the breadth and originality of its contributions provide a solid overview of emerging perspectives on the military history and historiography of Texas and the region.

CONTENTS

List of Illustrations ix

Acknowledgments xi

Introduction 1

Alexander Mendoza and Charles David Grear

PART I. Texans Fighting through Time: Thematic Topics

1. The Indian Wars of Texas: A Lipan Apache Perspective 17
Thomas A Britten

2. Tejanos at War: A History of Mexican Texans in American Wars 38
Alexander Mendoza

3. Texas Women at War 69
Melanie A Kirkland

4. The Influence of War and Military Service on African Texans 97
Alwyn Barr

5. The Patriot-Warrior Mystique: John S. Brooks, Walter P. Lane,
Samuel H. Walker, and the Adventurous Quest for Renown 113
Jimmy L. Bryan Jr.

6. "All Eyes of Texas Are on Comal County": German Texans' Loyalty
during the Civil War and World War I 133
Charles David Grear

PART II. Wars in Texas History: Chronological Conflicts

7. Between Imperial Warfare: Crossing of the Smuggling Frontier

and Transatlantic Commerce on the Louisiana-Texas Borderlands,
1754-1785 157
Francis X. Galan

8. The Mexican-American War: Reflections on an Overlooked Conflict 178
Kendall Milton

9. The Prolonged War: Texans Struggle to Win the Civil War

during Reconstruction 196
Kenneth W. Howell

10. The Texas lmmunes in the Spanish-American War                                         213
                 James M. McCaffrey

11. Surveillance on the Border: American Intelligence and

the Tejano Community during World War I 227
Jose A. Ramirez

12. Texan Prisoners of the Japanese: A Study in Survival 248
Kelly E. Crager

13. Lyndon B. Johnson's Bitch of a War: An Antiwar Essay 269
James M. Smallwood

14. Black Paradox in the Age of Terrorism: Military Patriotism

or Higher Education? 283
Ronald E. Goodwin

Contributors 297

Index 301

Centennial Series of the Association of Former Students, Texas A&M University

About the Author

ALEXANDER MENDOZA, the author of Confederate Struggle for Command: General James Longstreet and the First Corps in the West (Texas A&M University Press, 2008), teaches at the University of North Texas. CHARLES DAVID GREAR is an assistant professor of history at Prairie View A&M University. He is the author of Why Texans Fought in the Civil War (Texas A&M University Press, 2010).

Reviews

"Texas, perhaps more than any other state in the Union, has a reputation for martial prowess and a history often punctuated with wars and rumors of war. Mendoza and Grear have crystallized this perception into a useful anthology of essays that will prove valuable in the classroom and as a primer to any student of Texas and Texans."--Dr. Donald S. Frazier, professor at McMurry University; editor of The U.S. and Mexico at War

"Stemming from the fertile minds of a new generation of Texas historians, these well-written, imaginatively conceived, and at times provocative essays capture the rich diversity of the Texas military experience better than any single other single work."--Robert Wooster, Regents Professor in the Department of Humanities at Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi

"Many people are familiar with stories of Texans' military prowess, but the editors of this work provide a collection of essays that dig deeper to convey a fuller understanding of the true martial history of the Lone Star State. Armed conflicts can have starkly different impacts on various groups, and this collection makes that abundantly clear. This anthology includes new analyses of such organizations as the Texas Rangers, and it also contains fresh perspectives for historians eager to integrate the experiences of all Texans, regardless of ethnicity or gender, into a broader narrative."--Richard McCaslin, chair for the Department of History at the University of North Texas

“Mendoza and Grear have assembled an excellent collection of essays chronicling elements of Texas military history from the 18th century to the present. All original works, the 14 essays provide a fine introduction to the wide breadth of people and events that make up Texas military history.”—K. J. Volanto, Choice

"Despite its bleak title, Texans and War is enlightening and compelling."--Jane Manaster, Texas Books in Review

"Texans and War is an excellent book, each chapter informative and interesting. It will be well recieved not only by those who love either Texas history or military history, but also by those who life well-researched and well written history." -- James W. Pohl, Texas State University-San Marcos

"The compelling scholarship in Texans and War: New Interpretations of the State's Military History... examines the rich diversity of what military history has now become through the lens of the Texas experience... The fourteen essays cover a broad range of topics, from Native American and Tejano experiences, to Texans in the Spanish-American War, to the assorted roles played by Texas women in various American conflicts... These approaches typify what military history writ large has been doing now for several years, to the benefit of military history and the broader historical profession... War is an undeniable part of the Texas narrative. The Lone Star State's military heritage and continued importance to the armed forces of the United States are important to understanding both Texas history and Texans themselves. Editors Mendoza and Grear have produced an important collection of essays that further explores this diverse story while giving voice to the understudied issues and peoples who have contributed to Texas history... This superb collection... is highly recommended for students and scholars of the Texas experience." —William Thomas Allison, Georgia Southern University

"Loaded with interesting information new to many readers... Overall this is an informative and interesting book." -- Kemp Dixon

"Texans and War... reveals the ever-emerging role and reactions of Texas and Texans to military conflicts. Its fourteen essays offer considerable scope: new perspectives of earlier scholarship or, more revealingly, unexplored cultural, social and political aspects of Texas' military history... A provocative discussion... As enlightening as these essays and as valuable as the authors' contributions are to this book, it is supremely valuable for the extensive footnotes that accompany each eassay... Without question, this compilation of essays helps us understand how wars have affected Texas and how the Lone Star State has affected the history of the United States." --Colonel Gordon Bratz, USA-Ret.

Published by Texas A&M University Press