On Saturday morning, January 25, 2014 the Gillespie Historical Society will sponsor a seminar on Texas during the American Civil War. During this, the sesquicentennial celebration of America’s greatest challenge as a nation, the Gillespie Historical Society will host a series of scholars who will examine Texas’ role in the Confederacy. Dr. John Huddleston, professor of history at Schreiner University, will focus on Texas’ entry into the Confederacy. Dr. Huddleston, the writer/creator of “This Week in the Civil War” which airs weekdays on Texas Public Radio, will examine both support and opposition to secession within 1861 Texas. Kendall, Kerr, and Gillespie counties with their German heritage populations generally opposed both slavery and secession and had little use for Confederate authority. Dr. Huddleston will review the reasons and rationales for and against the southern secessionist movement and comment on Confederate persecution of Unionists within Central Texas from 1861 through 1865. Retired United States Army Two Star General Dan Daniels will review the military record and achievements of many Civil War generals of both the North and the South who shared the unique experience of serving at Fort Mason in Central Texas in the period before the war. Local historian Joseph Luther will then focus on the location of several, little known military camps which existed before and during the American Civil War

Registration will begin Saturday morning, January 25, 2014 at 8:30 am, with the seminar beginning at 9 am. Attendance is open to the public. There will be a registration fee of $25.00 per person to defray the cost of this event and to raise funds to assist your Gillespie Historical Society.