Beef for the Confederacy

Throughout Hays County, 1861-65, as in the rest of texas, beef production for the Confederacy was a major patriotic service. Leading ranchers, called Government Stockraisers, had the duty of supplying the Commissary Department of the Army. Hays County, with its well-established cattle industry, had several men designated as C.S.A. Beef Raisers. These included James M. ("Doc") Day, John W. Day, Wm. H. Day, and their brother-in-law, Jesse L. Driskill; Wm. Washington Moon; and Ezekiel Nance. These men had hazardous work. They had either to fight or detour around Indians, rustlers and enemy patrols. Herds had to swim flooded streams, some with quicksand beds. Wm. H. Day once was almost drowned while swimming a herd across the flooding Brazos. At least two of the Day brothers were in military service as well as supply duty. Moon, a veteran of the Mexican War, and founder of the city of San Marcos, not only was a stockraiser but also joined the 32nd Cavalry. He donated beef to soldiers' families and furnished leather and horse feed to his cavalry company. Beside supplying beef to the quartermasters, Nance manufactured cotton cloth for the Confederacy.

Beef for the Confederacy is a historical marker in Kyle, Hays County, dedicated in 1965. It is one of 124 historical markers documented in Hays County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 184 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 29.9525, -97.8795 near Kyle. The nearest cataloged historic site is Kyle Family Pioneer Cemetery (cemetery), about 1.3 miles away. Others within a short drive include Kyle Cemetery, Skyview Cemetery, and Kyle, Claiborne.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5209010235. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.