Moss Bluff Rebel

Books / Texas A&M University Press

A Texas Pioneer in the Civil War

By Philip Caudill

So wrote Texas pioneer cattle drover William Berry Duncan in his March 1862 diary entry, the day he joined the Confederate Army. Despite his misgivings, Duncan left his prosperous business to lead neighbors and fellow volunteers as commanding officer of cavalry Company F of Spaight’s Eleventh Battalion that later became the 21st Texas Infantry in America’s Civil War.

Philip Caudill’s rich account, drawn from Duncan’s previously untapped diaries and letters written by candlelight on the Gulf Coast cattle trail to New Orleans, in Confederate Army camps, and on his southeast Texas farm after the war, reveals the personable Duncan as a man of steadfast integrity and extraordinary leadership. After the war, he returned to his home in Liberty County and battled for survival on the chaotic Reconstruction-era Texas frontier.

Supplemented by archival records and complementary accounts, Moss Bluff Rebel paints a picture of everyday life for the Anglo-Texans who settled the Mexican land grants in the early nineteenth century and subsequently became citizens of the proudly independent Texas Republic. The carefully crafted narrative goes on to reveal the wartime emotions of a reluctant Confederate officer and his postwar struggles to reinvent the lifestyle he knew before the war, a way of life he sensed was lost forever.

Moss Bluff Rebel will appeal to history lovers of all ages attracted to the drama of the Civil War period and the men and women who shaped the Texas frontier.

Philip Caudill wrote Moss Bluff Rebel after a thirty-five year career in business and public affairs in the United States and Europe. He holds Master’s degrees in history and journalism and explores Texas from his home in The Woodlands.

What Readers Are Saying:

" . . . . provides an unusual and detailed glimpse into the war years of a junior officer who spent his Civil War service in East Texas and southwestern Louisiana." --Cary D. Wintz, Texas Southern University

"Phil Caudill's skillful interweaving of biography and history has resulted in a fascinating portrait of a Texas cattleman, entrepreneur, Confederate officer, and poker player extraordinaire." -- Deborah Chester, John Crain Presidential Professor at the University of Oklahoma

“Philip Caudill's Moss Bluff Rebel illustrates what can happen when a skilled journalist uncovers a goldmine of robust but underutilized primary sources. This masterfully written and carefully researched biography captures the spirit of Captain William Berry Duncan, a little-known Texas cattleman and businessman who like thousands of other southern pioneers reluctantly swore allegiance to the Confederate cause. A riveting read that both enlightens and entertains, Moss Bluff Rebel will be welcomed by academics and history buffs alike who aspire to understand the ambiguities of this tumultuous era.” --Terry D. Bilhartz, Professor of History at Sam Houston State University

“Moss Bluff Rebel provides an unusual and detailed glimpse into the war years of a junior officer who spent his Civil War service in East Texas and southwestern Louisiana. Using a diary, personal letters, and military records, Caudill traces William Berry Duncan's day-to-day experiences as a captain in a Texas volunteer battalion, where boredom and homesickness were greater threats than the enemy, tainted food and disease the most serious dangers, and business expertise and leadership skills weighed more --Cary D. Wintz, History Department Professor at Texas Southern University

than bravery under fire.” --Cary D. Wintz, History Department Professor at Texas Southern University

“Phil Caudill's skillful interweaving of biography and history has resulted in a fascinating portrait of a Texas cattleman, entrepreneur, Confederate officer, and poker player extraordinaire. Sprightly prose brings alive this pocket of history surrounding southeast Texas during the Civil War and Reconstruction by focusing attention on the day-to-day heroism and integrity of Texas pioneer William B. Duncan. I wish I could have met and known Captain Duncan. Through these pages, I feel as though I have.” --Deborah Chester, John Crain Presidential Professor at Gaylord College of Jour

“Moss Bluff Rebel paints a detailed portrait of a fascination Texan, William Duncan—businessman, county sheriff, cattleman, and Confederate citizen-soldier.” --Col. Matthew Moten, Department of History, West Point

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