Galveston and the Civil War: An Island City in the Maelstrom

by James M. Schmidt

On the eve of the Civil War, Galveston was a jewel of the Gulf Coast--a booming city with a fine natural harbor and all the commerce, culture and improvements that attended it. Galveston was also home to the largest slave market west of New Orleans and a hotbed of secessionist sentiment. Once the war started, Galveston became the focus of Union efforts to take Texas and Confederate efforts to defend it. Through the voice of its people, this lively book relates the interesting and important role the Island City played during the war, including the story of the Union naval blockade, the dramatic Battle of Galveston, Unionists, dreadful epidemics of yellow fever, the surrender of Galveston as the last major port still in Confederate hands and the bondage and liberation of the island s enslaved African Americans.

Genres: Civil War, History

160 pages, Paperback

First published September 4, 2012

About the author

Hi! My name is Jim Schmidt and thanks for visiting my GoodReads Author Page! I am a chemist by training and profession and currently work for a biotech company near Houston, TX.

But by night (and by lunch!) I am a writer!

I have been writing historical pieces for magazines and newspapers for about 15 years. My work has been published in *North & South*, *The Artilleryman*, *Learning Through History*, *World War II*, *Chemical Heritage*, and *Today's Chemist* magazines. My column, "Medical Department," has appeared regularly in *The Civil War News* since September 2000.

My books include "Notre Dame and the Civil War: Marching Onward to Victory" (2010), "Years of Change and Suffering: Modern Perspectives on Civil War Medicine" (2009), and "Lincoln's Labels: America's Best Known Brands and the Civil War" (2008).

My latest book is "Galveston and the Civil War: An Island City in the Maelstrom" from The History Press, published in September 2012!

You can learn more about my interests by visiting my "Civil War Medicine" or "Notre Dame in the Civil War" blogs or e-mailing me at schmidtjamesm at gmail dot com

Thank You!

Reviews

[Porter Broyles · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a short sweet little book that my wife picked up at the Railroad Museum in Galveston.

It honestly surprises me that I'm giving it 5 stars, but for what it is and what it does, it deserves it.

The book is only 130 pages plus notes, but if you are picking it up, you are probably doing so in Galveston looking for a good primer on the Island during the Civil War.

That is exactly what the book is, a good primer.

It is easy to read, but provides some good information. It presents different aspects of the war (blockade runners, yellow fever, emancipation, the Galveston disaster, etc) in bite sized sections.

It's is informative enough that history buffs like myself will enjoy it, but short enough to interest the passing tourist.

[J Chad · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is truly a well-written and well-researched book. The subject is perhaps a small niche, but one that I believe would interest a great many Texans and probably others who don’t have that advantage. For those with an interest in Texas history, Galveston history, or Civil War history, I recommend this book wholeheartedly.

[Florence Millo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Galveston and the Civil War by James M. Schmidt

I certainly learned a lot about the history of the city where I was born and grew up. It is rather embarrassing that I had given virtually no thought to the fact that Galveston was a prominent slave market. What little I thought about slavery, I thought that it was of little importance in Texas. But that was far from the case. Slavery was a major factor in the economy of Texas, both as a market for the buying and selling of slaves and as the producers of the export products of Texas, namely cotton. As the Civil War approached and began, much discussion was given to whether Texas should join the Confederacy or simply leave the Union and revert to its prior state as an independent republic. And slavery would continue on either path. The citizens of Galveston voted in a referendum overwhelmingly to leave the Union and thereby assure themselves of the continuation of slavery.

Galveston fell to the Union in 1862 but was recaptured by the Confederates on New Years Day, 1863 and remained so for the rest of the war. As the war progressed, first New Orleans fell to the Union and then Mobile, Alabama fell, leaving Galveston the only major port on the Gulf Coast remaining in Confederate hands. Galveston was a major center of blockade running until the very end of the war.

Food and medical supplies became more and more scarce for both soldiers and civilians as the war dragged on. To make matters infinitely worse in the summer and autumn of 1863, Galveston was hit by one of its periodic epidemics of yellow fever.

The war finally ended and on June 19th the slaves were formally emancipated. Juneteenth is still celebrated by African-Americans in Texas. The re-building of Galveston began immediately.

I enjoyed this book because it gave me information on a subject that I really had given very little thought to about my hometown.

[James Hallmark · Rating 4 out of 5]

More interesting than I expected! I picked it up a few months ago at a locally owned bookstore called Galveston Bookshop (formerly famous for "Gus" the cat) but it is available on Amazon and Kindle and elsewhere. Galveston was a major Texas city before the 1900 hurricane and certainly during the Civil War. After Mobile and New Orleans came under Union control, Galveston was the only significant port still controlled by the South. The city and its vital port wound up changing hands several times. There were sieges, smugglers, and a brief land battle. Schmidt does a good job of telling the story specific to Galveston and not getting off on tangents about what was happening elsewhere. My only complaint is that I would have liked some concessions to me as a tourist, like "this battle happened at what is now the corner of Post Office and 19th" or "you can still see the chips in the marble of the such and such building located at...." Otherwise, no complaints. Worth reading (and relatively short, about 140 pages of text).

[Art · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very well written book. The history is clearly told and engaging. Most of what I've known about Galveston has more to do with the 1900 hurricane but this is a picture of the town's antebellum and wartime years that brings the subject to life. A perfect addition to Gulf Coast Civil War history.

[Richard · Rating 5 out of 5]

James Schmidt makes history come alive in this excellent account of Galveston, Texas, during the Civil War. As a native of Houston, nearby Galveston has long been a familiar place to me. The island city has a rich history, but until reading this book, I had no idea how important or vibrant it was in those days. Schmidt's love of Civil War history is clear. His research is well documented, and the book is filled with photos, illustrations, citations and references. Schmidt is also an excellent storyteller. His writing style reads like fine fiction, yet his liberal use of first-hand accounts leaves no doubt that the characters and events are all real. Well done!

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a signed copy of this book as part of a Goodreads giveaway. To the author.....thank you.

Although I'm not a history buff, the book brought this time period to life for me. The author did an amazing amount of research and wrote the book in a way that was interesting with details usually absent in a lot of history books.

I enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend it to others.

[Bob Andrews · Rating 5 out of 5]

As many times as I've been to Galveston in the 45 years I've lived in the Houston area I'm amazed at what I didn't know about the city's history and especially how the Civil War came to the Island.

This was an eyeopening lesson in history for me, and an enjoyable one as well. I'm going to have to add Jim Schmidt's other books to me 'to-read' shelves.