Grimes County Greys, the 4th Texas Volunteer Infantry
N 30° 29.306 W 095° 59.188
15R E 213319 N 3376702
The Confederate Memorial Park at 121 S. Main Street, Anderson, TX 77830 in Grimes County TX is at the actual site where enlistments, organizational assignments and recruit training took place for the Grimes County Greys from 1861-1865.
Waymark Code: WM122XM
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 02/12/2020
Views: 6
The Confederate Memorial Park in Anderson, TX is down the street and within sight of the Grimes County Courthouse. This park not only honors the war dead of Grimes County's Confederate sons who died fighting for the cause of the Confederate States of America through its sculpture of a Company "G" enlisted soldier and by flying the Confederate battle flag that originally was hand sewn by the then resident daughter of a Confederate general; but also by maintaining a portion of the actual site where recruitment, enlistment, organizational assignments and initial training of those Confederate soldiers who fought as part of the 4th Texas Volunteer Infantry took place during the Civil War (1861-1865).
Currently, this former US Civil War site significant to the recruitment for and organization of the 4th Texas Volunteer Infantry is managed by the Sons of Confederate Veterans, Camp 924: The Grimes County Greys. Within this memorial park is a set of two plaques describing how this site was part of the actual location where recruitment and the pledging allegiance to Grimes County and to the State of Texas (then part of the Confederate States of America) took place. During the Civil War years, 1,700 men from this county were mustered into the Grimes County Greys and sent out from here as a member of one of four volunteer infantry companies or as part of one of five cavalry companies organized here but sent to fight in a long list of most of the major battles throughout the Civil War. It is calculated that more men from Grimes County died during the Civil War, than did the total of those who died in all other wars in which Grime County men fought.
The set of plaques are discussing the history of this site and the valor of the Grimes County Greys. The information was divided between the two plaques because there was a lot to address. Below is the content of both plaques. The plaque on the right side of the statue of the Company "G" Confederate soldier is referenced below as Plaque 1or 2 and the plaque on the left side of the statue is referenced below as Plaque 2 of 2. The most relevant statement concerning this memorial park being a US Civil War site is found in the middle of the text on PLaque 2 of 2.
TEXT OF PLAQUE 1 of 2:
"This Statue
This statue is a reminder of the hardship and suffering endured by Southern men who in 1861-1865 answered their states' calls, marched to distant fields, endured deprivation, fought against overwhelming odds, winning the admiration of the world for valor, determination and sacrifice.
The Confederate soldier who gave everything defending his home and fledgling nation was not the rich landowner of fiction and film, They came from every walk of life and was self-reliant and independent. As soldiers they developed an unusual loyalty to cause and comrades. Most were devout Christians.
Exposure and lack of food make them more susceptible to disease. Meat was scarce; fruits and vegetables were had only in season. Beans, and peas, along with hardtack and cornbread were the mainstays of their diet. They were ill equipped and paid infrequently. They wore coarse homespun jackets and trousers made by their mothers, wives, and sisters. Clothes were patched and re-patched. When shoes wore out they marched and fought barefoot: blood from bleeding feet marked the line of march over frozen ground. They were soldiers! When an observer noted the tattered clothing on the backs of his Texas troops, General Robert E. Lee responded, "Their ragged clothes make no difference. The enemy never sees their backs."
One in four of these brave men died from wounds or disease. Medicines were scarce. Much of the time nothing was available to relieve suffering from wounds and amputations.
When it was over, tattered and starved, they walked home. Some died by the side of the road and were buried in unmarked graves.
These soldiers fought for the constitutionally guaranteed rights of each state to self-government. This statue was erected in April 2001 in honor of these brave men - the soldiers of the Confederacy."
TEXT OF PLAQUE 2 of 2:
"In 1861 far removed from the places that were soon to become the great killing fields of the War Between the States, yet united in spirit with their compatriots, 1700 Grimes County men left home and family in answer to their new nation's call to duty. Not all troops were sent to other states. Older men and boys were mustered into "Home Guards" and "State Troop" units. These men were mustered for six months service, then rotated with other men. They provided vital "home front" service, doing escort, POW guard duty, and maintaining military order. These units were called "Beats". After a 907 to 9 vet-favoring secession Grimes County raised five companies of cavalry and four companies of infantry for the new Confederate States of America. Men of these units covered themselves with dignity, honor and bravery in bloody fighting at Sharpsburg, Chicamauga, Pea Ridge, Vicksburg, Shiloh, Galveston, The Winderness, Gettysburg, and many others.
Many of these units took their oath of allegiance to Grimes County and the State of Texas in organizational ceremonies held in this site.
More Grimes County men perished in the War Between the States than all other conflicts in which this county has been involved.
One hundred six young men of Grimes County went to Virginia in the ranks of the Grimes County Grays, Company "G" 4th Texas Infantry. Only twenty four were present at Appomattox, VA. at General Robert E. Lee's surrender on April 9th, 1865.
Grimes County Units that served the Confederate States of America:
Co. G, 4th. TX Vol. Inf. Co. C, 5th. TX Cav
Co. A 10th. TX Vol. Inf. Co. H, 21st. TX Can
Deo Vindice
Co. D, 12th. TX Vol. Inf. Co. H,26th. TX Cav
Co. I, 20th. TX Vol. Inf. Co. I, 26st. TX Can
Co. B, Madison's Regiment. Texas Cavalry.
Beat #1 through Beat #7, Texas State Troops."
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