Four Oaks in Johnston County, North Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)
Texas
The eighth Texas cavalry was engaged with the left wing of Sherman’s Union army on the eve of the Battle of Bentonville. During the battle on March 21, the eighth Texas again performed valuable service in the Confederate attack on Union General Mower’s Division of the Seventeenth Army Corps. Lieutenant-General William J. Hardee commanding a corps in the battle, ordered about 80 men of the eighth Texas commanded by Captain “Doc” Matthews, a mere boy, to oppose Mower’s advance the Texans attacked in conjunction with other cavalry commanded by General Wheeler and Lieutenant-General Wade Hampton and Cumming’s Georgia Brigade. Young “Willie” Hardee, General Hardee’s only son, charged with the eighth Texas and was killed. Under heavy Confederate pressure, Mower soon withdrew his division to its original position. During the Confederate retreat from Bentonville the eighth and eleventh Texas cavalry played a prominent role.
In opposing the Union pursuit from Mill Creek Bridge until the pursuers withdrew at Hannah’s Creek, the Texans were surrendered with the remnants of the Army of Tennessee at Greensboro, North Carolina in May 1865.
Texas units at Bentonville
6th 7th 10th and 15th Texas Infantry
17th 18th 24th and 25th Dismounted Cavalry
8th 11th Texas Cavalry
A memorial to Texans who served the Confederacy
Erected by the State of Texas 1964
Erected 1964 by State of Texas.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: War, US Civil. A significant historical date for this entry is March 19, 1865.
Location. 35° 18.142′ N, 78° 19.234′ W. Marker is in Four Oaks, North Carolina, in Johnston County. Marker is on Harper House Road (County Route 1008), on the left when traveling east. Texas monument is located near the Bentonville Battlefield Visitors Center. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 5421 Harper House Rd, Four Oaks NC 27524, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Bentonville Union Soldiers Memorial (a few steps from this marker); North Carolina Monument (a few steps from this marker); Honoring the Dead of the Battle of Bentonville (within shouting distance of this marker); Confederate Dead Monument (within shouting distance of this marker); Confederate Cemetery (within shouting distance of this marker); North Carolinians at the Battle of Bentonville (within shouting distance of this marker); Bentonville Battlefield Driving Tour (about 500 feet away, measured in a direct line); Union Headquarters (about 600 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Four Oaks.
Related markers. Click here for a list of markers that are related to this marker. One of a set of Texas Civil War Memorials
Additional commentary.
1. Texas Civil War Monuments
This marker is one of 19 monuments placed by the State of Texas on battlefields across the nation, preserving the memories of the contributions made by the state’s military units during the Civil War.
In 1961 the Texas Civil War Centennial Commission and the Texas State Historical Survey Committee initiated this commemorative series of granite monuments by dedicating the first and largest of the original Centennial monuments at Vicksburg National Military Park, Mississippi. Over the next three years monuments were also placed in the towns of Pea Ridge, Arkansas and Anthony, Texas (for the Arizona-New Mexico campaign) and at the following battlefields: Chickamauga, Georgia; Kennesaw Mountain, Georgia; Mansfield, Louisiana; Antietam, Maryland; Bentonville, North Carolina; Gettysburg, Pennsylvania; Fort Donelson, Tennessee; Shiloh, Tennessee; and The Wilderness, Virginia.
Starting in 1998, the Texas Historical Commission continued the work begun in 1961 by the Centennial Commission and the Historical Survey Committee by placing granite monuments at other Civil War battlefields. As of 2017, monuments have been placed at the battlefields of Galveston, Texas (1998); Raymond, Mississippi (2002); Rowlett’s Station, Kentucky (2008); Richmond, Kentucky (2009); Corinth, Mississippi (2010); Gaines Mill, Virginia(2012); and Second Manassas, Virginia (2012).
The Texas Historical Commission plans to place a monument at the battlefield of Glorieta Pass, New Mexico.
(Source: Texas Historical Commission, 2015)
NOTE: The links above will take you the HMdb record for the Texas Monument of that battle or campaign.
— Submitted July 17, 2016, by Duane Hall of Abilene, Texas.
Credits. This page was last revised on May 9, 2023. It was originally submitted on March 8, 2008, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey. This page has been viewed 1,921 times since then and 30 times this year. Last updated on May 9, 2023, by Michael Buckner of Durham, North Carolina. Photos: 1. submitted on March 8, 2008, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey. 2, 3, 4. submitted on August 3, 2010, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey. 5, 6. submitted on March 8, 2008, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey. • J. Makali Bruton was the editor who published this page.