Lieutenant Colonel Gouverneur Morris

[Stryker65]

Does anyone have any information on him? Every time I try to look him up, I always end up with the PA Founding Father. This Gouverneur Morris was the commander of the First U. S. Infantry. He appears in the records as commanding the post of Fort Chadbourne, Texas. When Fort Chadbourne was evacuated in March of 1861 after the Twiggs Surrender, the garrison moved to Indianola and then to Saluria, where the garrison was captured. Morris was not captured with them -- in fact, there are no records of him even leaving the fort. The next time he appears is in New York, a few months later.

As a regular army officer, there should be more plentiful records on him, but there is not. He does not appear in Cullum's register, and the U. S. Army Register only reports him as being officially Retired September 9, 1861. My goal is to determine where he was during those months, perhaps on leave, and also find a biography for him that isn't the Founding Father.

 

[Story]

Possible leads, being as it's an uncommon name

Maj Gouverneur Morris (unknown-1868) - Find a...

Veteran of the War with Mexico.

www.findagrave.com

Lieut Gouverneur Morris III (1844-1897) - Find a...

Civil War veteran of Company H, 6th N. Y. H. A. Husband of Henrietta Baldwin. Over 300 burials are said to have buried in the Morris Vault at St. Anne's. See Godey's Magazine Volume 132 Page 72.

www.findagrave.com

Morris, Gouverneur

Battle Unit Name:5th Regiment, New York Heavy ArtillerySide:UnionCompanySoldier's Rank In:First LieutenantSoldier's Rank Out:First LieutenantAlternate name:Film Number:M551 ROLL 100Plaque Number:Notes:none

Soldier Details - The Civil War (U.S. National Park Service)

www.nps.gov

Gouverneur Morris Jr. (1813-1888) - Find a Grave...

Founder of St. Anne's Episcopal Church in 1841 in memory of his mother Ann Carey Randolph of Roanoke, Virginia. He died at Bartow-on-the-Sound. Over 300 burials are said to have buried in the Morris Vault at St. Anne's. See Godey's Magazine Volume 132 Page 72

www.findagrave.com

 

[Story]

This Gouverneur Morris was the commander of the First U. S. Infantry. He appears in the records as commanding the post of Fort Chadbourne, Texas.

Gotta ask, *which* records?

 

[Stryker65]

Gotta ask, *which* records?

OR V1 pp 558

Possible leads, being as it's an uncommon name

Maj Gouverneur Morris (unknown-1868) - Find a...

Veteran of the War with Mexico.

www.findagrave.com

Lieut Gouverneur Morris III (1844-1897) - Find a...

Civil War veteran of Company H, 6th N. Y. H. A. Husband of Henrietta Baldwin. Over 300 burials are said to have buried in the Morris Vault at St. Anne's. See Godey's Magazine Volume 132 Page 72.

www.findagrave.com

Morris, Gouverneur

Battle Unit Name:5th Regiment, New York Heavy ArtillerySide:UnionCompanySoldier's Rank In:First LieutenantSoldier's Rank Out:First LieutenantAlternate name:Film Number:M551 ROLL 100Plaque Number:Notes:none

Soldier Details - The Civil War (U.S. National Park Service)

www.nps.gov

Gouverneur Morris Jr. (1813-1888) - Find a Grave...

Founder of St. Anne's Episcopal Church in 1841 in memory of his mother Ann Carey Randolph of Roanoke, Virginia. He died at Bartow-on-the-Sound. Over 300 burials are said to have buried in the Morris Vault at St. Anne's. See Godey's Magazine Volume 132 Page 72

www.findagrave.com

Most likely it's the first or fourth choices -- the middle two are too young for his rank. Based on what is available, I would think the first one is more likely, as Morris most likely did serve in the Mexican War.

 

[lupaglupa]

West Point shows a Gouverneur Morris in the class of 1823. Others sources say he actually graduated in 1824.

I find records for Morris in Texas from August 1861 to February 1861. That last one shows him being transferred to San Antonio, TX. June of 1861 he's in New York. This is what you already know.

Ancestry shows this Gouverneur Morris mustering out for retirement in September of 1861 and dying in October 0f 1868.

His family seems to have lived at least part of the itme in Saratoga County, New York. His will was probated there and he's listed as living there (occupation "Officer U.S.A") in the 1860 Census.

 

[Stryker65]

West Point shows a Gouverneur Morris in the class of 1823. Others sources say he actually graduated in 1824.

I assumed as much. However, he does not appear in Cullum's Register, which makes his West Point status debatable, based on the completeness of Cullum's work.

I find records for Morris in Texas from August 1861 to February 1861. That last one shows him being transferred to San Antonio, TX. June of 1861 he's in New York. This is what you already know.

!! I did not see all of this! Do you know the date he was transferred in February?

The OR says that he was captured in April or May of 1861, but it does not say where. Were he captured at Saluria, he would have been in command, as he would have outranked Major Caleb C. Sibley, who commanded the surrendered battalion. Were he arrested at San Antonio with the rest of the Department of Texas staff, his statement would have been taken along with Colonel Waite's and Bvt. Major Chandler's. You said he was transferred to San Antonio; could he have been captured in the city at a hotel room or hospital, perhaps?

 

[GELongstreet]

His entry in Military Record of army and civilian appointments in the United States Army (vol 2):

The brother of Gen. William W. Morris was in West Point from 1818 to 1823 (age at admission was 15), the registers showing him repeating a class without any indication why (his class ranking was not good throughout his time there). In 23 he apparently was examined but didn't graduate, since the subject deficiencies or demerits aren't included in the annual registers yet I can't say why.

 

[lupaglupa]

Sorry I haven't gotten back to help - crazy busy weekend. I haven't forgotten this!

 

[lupaglupa]

@Stryker65 - I found the records for Morris at Ancestry in the "U. S. Returns from Military Posts" file. The records for 1861 show him at Camp Verde, but he's listed in the "Absent - Regular Garrison - Detached Duty" section. The note by his name says "Comdg Fort Chasbourne Txs. Relieved in command of the Regt Jany 8.61." The Camp Verde February 1861 post return has him listed under "Transferred" where he and two other men, Carlos A. Waile, Col., and Sidney Burbank, Maj. are noted as "To San Antonio Texas (order not yet received)"

Unfortunately I cannot find the pages for that time period at San Antonio. So I can't check if the men went there next or not.

 

[Story]

Plot twist - I did not do a deep dive on this but the jist I get is that Morris is involved with the Republic of Texas government in extricating Federal troops.

Owing' to a total deficiency of public transportation at this post and the impossibility of procuring any other, the troops here cannot march according to the. agreement made by Gen. Twiggs and your commissioners of San Antonio. Colonel Morris is commanding officer and I as commissioner have stipulated hat he with his command of one company of infantry should hold possession of the post until transportation could be procured from San Antonio, (for which we have both written,) binding himself to keep all things in stah qo, except a sufficient quantity of subsist-once for his command, and further to furnish my command with subsistence until the evacuation of the post, which is to be immediately upon the arrival here of the necessary transportation.

See pg 375 2nd paragraph

https://tarltonapps.law.utexas.edu/imgs/constitutions/files/journals1861/1861_report_6_jnl.pdf

 

[Stryker65]

Plot twist - I did not do a deep dive on this but the jist I get is that Morris is involved with the Republic of Texas government in extricating Federal troops.

Owing' to a total deficiency of public transportation at this post and the impossibility of procuring any other, the troops here cannot march according to the. agreement made by Gen. Twiggs and your commissioners of San Antonio. Colonel Morris is commanding officer and I as commissioner have stipulated hat he with his command of one company of infantry should hold possession of the post until transportation could be procured from San Antonio, (for which we have both written,) binding himself to keep all things in stah qo, except a sufficient quantity of subsist-once for his command, and further to furnish my command with subsistence until the evacuation of the post, which is to be immediately upon the arrival here of the necessary transportation.

See pg 375 2nd paragraph

https://tarltonapps.law.utexas.edu/imgs/constitutions/files/journals1861/1861_report_6_jnl.pdf

Oh, definitely! All of the Federal post commanders were involved with them -- the Texans only wanted the forts, and did everything they could to speed the regulars on their way.

@Stryker65 - I found the records for Morris at Ancestry in the "U. S. Returns from Military Posts" file. The records for 1861 show him at Camp Verde, but he's listed in the "Absent - Regular Garrison - Detached Duty" section. The note by his name says "Comdg Fort Chasbourne Txs. Relieved in command of the Regt Jany 8.61." The Camp Verde February 1861 post return has him listed under "Transferred" where he and two other men, Carlos A. Waile, Col., and Sidney Burbank, Maj. are noted as "To San Antonio Texas (order not yet received)"

Unfortunately I cannot find the pages for that time period at San Antonio. So I can't check if the men went there next or not.

Wow, thanks! So he did not command the fort when it was surrendered, and rather just was a visitor there?

 

[lupaglupa]

I'm not sure, it seems to be the guys at Camp Verde believed he was relieved but the documents from Fort Chad/sbourne still have Morris as the CO. And why is the name different in different records? It is Chasbourne or Chadbourne? They used both terms.

 

[Story]

Oh, definitely! All of the Federal post commanders were involved with them -- the Texans only wanted the forts, and did everything they could to speed the regulars on their way.

I think I remember another thread around here on the Federals collapsing their presence in Texas in early 1861, with a percentage of those troops and their equipment going over to the rebel cause.

 

[Stryker65]

I think I remember another thread around here on the Federals collapsing their presence in Texas in early 1861, with a percentage of those troops and their equipment going over to the rebel cause.

Oh, yes. There were essentially five columns of troops in Texas -- Emory's, in the Indian Territory, which escaped to Leavenworth; Major Oliver L. Shepherd's, from the forts in South Texas, which was the first to escape to New York; Captain Richard W. Johnson's cavalry from the West Texas forts, which also escaped to New York, Major Caleb C. Sibley's eastern/central Texas column, which got captured just as they were embarking for New York, and Lt. Col. Isaac V. D. Reeve's West Texas infantry column, which was unable to reach the coast before being captured. Many of the troops that went over were from the Eighth U. S. Infantry, which had been completely captured -- Companies A and D had been captured with Sibley; C was captured near San Antonio; B, E, F, G, H, I, and K constituted Reeve's command; and the HQ had been captured in San Antonio.

 

[Story]

It is Chasbourne or Chadbourne? They used both terms.

The American Army has been treating the English language like a tossed pile of Scrabble tiles since June 14th, 1776 so just roll with it.

 

[Josh The Lighthouse Guy]

I'm not sure, it seems to be the guys at Camp Verde believed he was relieved but the documents from Fort Chad/sbourne still have Morris as the CO. And why is the name different in different records? It is Chasbourne or Chadbourne? They used both terms.

Keep in mind all these letters were handwritten so much of the inconsistency is probably later transcription errors by people who had no idea as to the correct name of the fort.

Seminole War forts were notoriously spelled multiple ways, often out of ignorance by the author. Not surprised it would also be true of some smaller Western posts as well.