Civil War spies and intrigue
Civil War spies and intrigue
Written by Larry Willoughby Thursday, 07 June 2007
Political intrigue and military adventures were alive in Austin during the Civil War. Not all Texans supported the Confederacy, and Travis County was split evenly in support of the United States of America and the Confederate States of America.
In fact, the vote in February of 1861 to decide if Texas was to secede was 704 to 450 in favor of staying with the Union. A southerner who opposed secession was called a Unionist, and Austin was a hotbed of Unionist activity.
A well-known Confederate supporter named Amelia Barr said, “I am ashamed to say that Austin is a scandalously Yankeefied Union loving town.”
Much of the Unionist sentiment was centered in the hills northwest of town, extending south throughout the hill country. Rumors abounded during the early years of the war. Some were no more than exaggerated suspicions, but some were grounded in fact. That spies were operating west of town was a common theme, and neighbor suspected neighbor of being on the “wrong” side.
The Unionists had two goals - the first was to stop the shipment of southern cotton to Mexico. Since the U.S. had a naval embargo around the southern states, the easiest method of transporting cotton to Europe was through Mexican ports via the Texas hill country.
The second goal was to destroy the gunpowder factory at Anderson Mill in northwest Travis County. These Unionists in the hills called themselves the Mountain Rangers, but the supporters of the Confederacy called them spies and traitors.
Anderson Mill was located west of Austin along Cypress Creek, a stream that flowed into the Colorado River. The mill was built by Thomas Anderson, a Virginian who came to Texas in the 1850s and settled in the hills west of Austin. His mill ground corn and became a gathering place for nearby farmers.
By 1863, Anderson had converted his gristmill into a gunpowder factory to supply the Confederate army. The numerous bat caves in the area provided a source of bat guano, which was used to make saltpeter, a necessary ingredient of gunpowder.
Anderson’s gunpowder mill was operated by the Texas State Military Board. Armed guards were posted day and night, especially after threats that the Mountain Rangers were planning to sabotage the mill. There were only a few instances when Unionists actually tried to attack the mill, and no record of injuries or fatalities was ever reported. Evidence that there was any organized plot to take over the mill is scant and contradictory.
It is a historical fact that 34 Unionists were hanged by Confederate supporters near Comfort northwest of San Antonio. They had spoken out publicly at their Lutheran church opposing the war and were killed by a vigilante gang of Confederate supporters.
Today the original site of Anderson Mill is covered by Lake Travis. It was rebuilt on a hill above that site by the Anderson Mill Garden Club, and in 1972 the Anderson Mill Museum was opened.
Visit the museum at Volente near Lake Travis on FM 2769 every fourth Sunday of the month from March through October.
Larry Willoughby is an associate professor of history at Austin Community College and has taught there for 28 years. He is the author of four books, including two textbooks on Texas History, a history of Texas music and a history of the city of Austin.
Gov. Sam Houston was forced out of office by the Texas Legislature in 1861. He refused to sign the Ordinance of Secession that brought Texas into the Confederacy. President Abraham Lincoln telegraphed Houston and told him he would send in U.S. troops to keep him in the Governor’s office, but Houston refused saying he didn’t want his opposition to secession to lead to bloodshed.
Editor’s note: Last month’s history article neglected to identify information from John W. Clark Jr. of TSHA online.
0 Comments 