Parson's Brigade - 12th Texas Cavalry CSA
History
During the Civil War, Parsons' Brigade earned the reputition as one of the finest mounted units serving in the Trans-Mississippi Department. Much of its well deserved reputation resulted from the commanding fighting record of this cavalry regiment under the leadership of Colonel Parsons.
The men of Ellis County organized a cavalry regiment in August 1861, later known as the Twelfth Texas Cavalry, Parsons' Brigade. Three companies, E. F and H, were mustered into the regiment and when the Nineteenth Regiment was later organized in Dallas County, Ellis furnished two more companies - A and C, this "putting into the field five companies of as good soldiers as ever mounted a horse."
September 11, 1861 was a day of great importance to Ellis County and adjacent areas, as the companies formed under the supervision of W. H. Parsons (by authority of Edward Clark, Governor of the State of Texas) met at Rockett Springs to organize a regiment of cavalry for service to the State of Texas in the then imminent war between the North and south. People began arriving early in the morning and a large crowd quickly assembled to witness this event. At 10 am, at the sound of the bugle, ten companies (comprising about 1200 men) marched to form a hollow square. They then proceeded to elect officers with W. H,. Parsons unanimously elected Colony. [taken from a report read at the Brigade's fourth reunion]
After the War, Parsons went to British Honduras with the idea of establishing a Confederate colony there, but soon returned to Houston, where he edited a newspaper. He served as State Senator in 1870-71, representing Harris, Montgomery, Anderson, Henderson and Van Zandt counties. In 1871 he received an appointment from President Grant as United States Centennial Commissioner and moved to New York. He later lived in Washington . D. C. and Virginia, holding a number of government positions. A widower for some time, his second marriage was in the late 1870s to Myra Berry. He died October 3, 1907 in Chicago, and is buried with his wife in Mount Hope Cemetery at Hastings-on-the Hudson in New York.
The following letter, written from Chicago, some two months before his death, was read at the Brigade's reunion in Hillsboro, Texas in August 1907.
"Leaf by leaf the trees are falling
Drop by drop the streams run dry
One by one beyond recalling
Summer roses droop and die."
"Your letter, dear comrades in arms, finds me still among those who witness the falling leaves, and while I await the bugle call of my Great Commander, I find that it is in strict military order that he who was was your superior officer during those thunderous days from '61 to '65 should remain on the field until the last man utters his response to the earthly roll call."
"Those of us who survived the shock of battle and have since encountered the stings and arrows of outrageous fortune are conscious of Providential care and are correspondingly thankful. When the old guard gather at Hillsboro read them this letter from the man who loves them here, and hopes to join them in the activities of the future life where we are assured there shall be no more night nor tears. Endless day and ceaseless joy shall be the portion of those conscious of duty well performed according to their light,."
"You have from time to time received from my pen words reminiscent of those stirring days of civil strife but I now feel that we should for the remaining years live in the present and contemplate the future. The years are big with promise for our great country, and I have always been among those who, while ready to oppose wrong, yet never uselessly antagonized the inevitable trend and was ready to "accept the situation: as you know I did upon the return from south america just after the war."
"It takes more courage to stand alone than to battle among your fellows, and you recall my stand for reconstruction. The grand old state of Texas flourishes and I am conscious of my part in its present greatness and prosperity. Let the youngest generation join with us in our enthusiasm and say to young and old in the hearing of your voice at the coming reunion of Parsons' Brigade that your old commander still lives and loves."
/s/ W. H. Parsons [Waxahachie Daily Light, Sat. Aug. 10, 1907]
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