Civil War

This Week in the Civil War

00000174-b11b-ddc3-a1fc-bfdbb1a20000The Schreiner University Department of History is honoring the sesquicentennial of the American Civil War with a series of short vignettes focusing on events from 1861 through 1865. The Civil War was the most destructive conflict in American history, but it was also one of our most defining moments as a people and as a nation. Let us know what you think about "This Week in the Civil War." E-mail your comments to Dr. John Huddleston at jhuddles@schreiner.edu.Airs: Weekdays at 5:19 a.m., 8:19 a.m., 4:19 p.m. on KTXI and 4:49 a.m., 9:29 p.m. on KSTX.

This Week in the Civil War - 621

Texas Public Radio | By Texas Public Radio

Published July 25, 2013 at 2:20 PM CDT

On Sunday, July 26, 1863 two prominent American statesmen died. In Huntsville, Texas Sam Houston died of complications from pneumonia. Opposing secession in 1861 as governor of Texas, he had been replaced by a Confederate state governor.

Houston opted for quiet retirement; his prior service as a two term president of the Republic of Texas, two term state governor, and the Confederate service of his son, Sam, Junior, earned him that privilege. At Frankfort, Kentucky, John Crittenden, author of the compromise which attempted to hold the pre-war United States together, died of respiratory issues.

Crittenden, a Unionist, opposed many Federal decisions, including emancipation for blacks, while seeing one son enter Union service and another son serve the Confederacy. Both rose to the rank of general during the Civil War.