Mary Maverick's Sons

[OldReliable1862]

Charles P. Roland begins his biography of Albert Sidney Johnston by quoting from a letter written to him by someone he refers to simply as "a Texas mother." The footnote reveals this mother to be none other than Mary A. Maverick, the famous diarist of early Texas history. Maverick wrote to Johnston asking that her son be transferred from Virginia to his army, so that the young man might benefit from Johnston's influence. My question is: which son was she hoping to see reassigned?

Mrs. Maverick had five sons: Samuel Augustus (1837-1936), Lewis Antonio (1839-1866), George Madison (1845-1913), William Harvey (1847-1923), and Albert (1854-1947). Of these, Samuel and Lewis seem to be the most likely.

According to Find A Grave, Samuel apparently joined Ben McCulloch's 1st Texas Mounted Rifles - later the 8th Texas Cavalry Battalion, and then the 1st Texas Cavalry Regiment - but is described as being promoted to 2nd Lieutenant in February 1863, "after he swam into the Cumberland River to ignite an enemy gunboat." I've had more difficulty in trying to find what unit Lewis joined, but at the moment I suspect he was the brother serving in Virginia.

 

[ErnieMac]

Lewis Antonio Maverick was attending college in North Carolina when the War commenced. He enlisted as a private in Company D, 1st North Carolina Volunteers (aka the Bethel Regiment). His name appears in the roster of the unit.

Bethel Infantry in the American Civil War

Bethel Infantry in the American Civil War

civilwarindex.com

Ancestry.com records indicate he was mustered out of that unit on August 31, 1861, at which time he was commissioned as a Captain in the 32nd Texas Cavalry.