Graves of US Federal Soldiers -- Ranger Cemetery, Port Lavaca TX USA - Veteran Cemeteries on Waymarking.com

The Calhoun County Historical Association (CCHA) erected fenceposts and a chain that encloses the area where the Federal soldiers were buried. A small sign reads "Federal Soldiers buried in this area," near the western edge of Ranger Cemetery.

The state historical marker for Ranger Cemetery (also erected by the CCHA) reads as follows:

"RANGER CEMETERY

The oldest known grave here is that of Major H. Oram Watts, The Customs Collector at Linnville and casualty of a Comanche raid on that nearby settlement, Aug. 8, 1840. The site was called Ranger cemetery after the burial in 1850 of Margaret Peyton Lytle, wife of James T. Lytle (D. 1854), the "Poet" of the Texas Rangers. When an epidemic broke out during the Civil War (1861-65), a nearby house was used as a hospital. At least 10 Federal soldiers were among victims buried here. Members of the five families who owned the site are also interred in Ranger cemetery. Last burial was in 1941.

(1975)

Incise on base:

Erected by Calhoun County
Historical Commission

Beneath the marker plate, a Historic Texas cemetery medallion has been affixed to the marker post:

[Historic Texas Cemetery medallion]"

Port Lavaca changed hands several times during the Civil War, beginning with the Union Naval blockade of Matagorda Bay in late 1861, followed by a brief Union occupation in 1862. Confederate artillery bombardment ejected the Union occupiers in 1863, but the Federals returned to occupy the town briefly in 1864, before withdrawing back to their blockade ships until the end of the Civil War. Source: (visit link)

"Although the port of Galveston and the Sabine Pass to the north were the sight of several major operations throughout the war, Matagorda Bay was also the scene of some belligerent activity. . . . During the first months of the war The Star of the West, . . . was on another Federal mission to help evacuate northern soldiers from Texas. The Star of the West, chartered to carry Union baggage and supplies out of Texas, was captured in the waters of Matagorda Bay off Indianola by a small number of troops from Galveston using the vessel General Rusk on the 17th of April (Scharf 1996).

Matagorda Bay was entered by Federal gunboats as there were no real Confederate naval assets to stop them. Union vessels bombarded Indianola which was also briefly occupied and looted in the autumn of 1862. Just days later, Lavaca, a hub of military activity at the western edge of the Confederacy containing a Confederate arsenal and small-arms factory, was bombarded. Hosting several garrisons at various occasions throughout the war and having an active artillery battery, Union forces soon retired from the town.

Late the next year, 1863, Union troops returned to occupy both towns. About six months later, in June of 1864, Federal troops evacuated the Matagorda Bay area (Texas State Historical Association [TSHA] 2012a; TSHA 2012b). In addition to being the scene of minor naval engagements, other activities such as blockade running and commerce raiding took place in and from Matagorda Bay."

Date cemetery was established: Aug 1840 Visiting hours: dawn to dusk daily Website pertaining to the cemetery: [Web Link]

Visit Instructions:
Please submit a photo(s) taken by you of your visit to the location (non-copyrighted photos only). GPS photos are also accepted with the location in the background, and old vacation photos are accepted. If you are not able to provide a photo, then please describe your visit or give a story about the visit.

We would also like to hear about any of your deceased family members who may be laid to rest in the cemetery.

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Date Logged Log User Rating   04/29/2022 Benchmark Blasterz visited it