This two-piece brass badge has relatively even, deep bronze tones, with a few brighter rubbed spots indicating it was likely gilt. The detailing is very good and the reverse of both the pinback top bar and lower badge show the marker’s mark of the Whitehead and Hoag Company in small raised letters, well-known makers of badges for Civil War veterans’ groups. This has an elegant pinback top bar in the form of scrolling foliate bordered dappled panel with a raised five-pointed star at center, certainly signifying Texas in this context, surround by wreath with knot at bottom. The fastening spring pin is in place on the reverse. From this upper bar hangs by a small loop the badge proper with a large, convex five-pointed star with a raised “R” in a circle at center, certainly standing for “Rangers” on this badge, which has a foliate bordered arch at top reading “38 ANNUAL REUNION / TERRY’S TEXAS RANGERS” with a narrow panel at top through which the suspension ring passes reading “1909” in raised numerals.

Texas Civil War material of any sort is scarce and this badge is connected with certainly one of best known Texas units, at least as well known as Hood’s Texas Brigade and for those interested in the western theatre of the war perhaps more so. Organized at Houston in August 1861 by Benjamin Franklin Terry, the 8^th Texas Cavalry, also known as Terry’s Texas Rangers, mustered into Confederate service in early September and took part in wide-ranging campaigns in the western theatre from 1861 to 1865. Some sources credit them with participation in roughly 275 engagements from December 1861 in Kentucky to Bentonville in March 1865, ranging from small skirmishes to major battles such as Shiloh, Perryville, Murfreesboro, Chickamauga, Chattanooga and the Atlanta Campaign, as well as raids with Forrest and attempts to slow Sherman in the March to the Sea and the Campaign of the Carolinas. They took part in a charge at Bentonville and largely skipped surrendering with Johnston in late April, only about 30 appearing on the surrender rolls according to the NPS, with the remainder heading home or trying to join Confederate forces still in the field before also making their way back to Texas individually or in small groups (158 out of 248 survivors in the field according to the TSHA.)

The 1909 reunion took place at Austin on November 22-23, with headquarters at the Driskill Hotel, 46 veterans in attendance, and featured the usual business meeting followed by an hour-long automobile ride around the city and to the country club and a reception by the Albert Sydney Johnston chapter of the Daughters of the Confederacy at the Confederate Women’s Home, with a later “informal reception” at the hotel, with visits to Albert Sydney Johnston’s grave the next day. We show some copies of newspaper accounts of the reunion. [sr] [ph:m/L]

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