TEXAS TROOPS who fought in the Battle of Corinth, Miss., in 1862 were honored with a monument at Corinth Unit of Shiloh National Military Park last month.

The monument is the third of a series of three memorials as the U.S. approaches the Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War in 2011-2015.

The initial goal of the Texas Historical Commission’s Texas Civil War Monuments Fund was to honor Texas soldiers at Corinth, Miss. and two Kentucky battlefields, Rowlett’s Station and Richmond, with distinctive granite memorials.

Texas forces, including men from East Texas, fought with distinction during the Civil War, and the THC has long been committed to preserving and interpreting their stories.

Continuing the tradition begun in the 1960s by the Texas Civil War Centennial Commission and the Texas State Historical Survey Committee, Texas is commemorating the contributions of Texas’ military units during the war.

“The Texas Historical Commission remains dedicated to saving these real stories of our state’s past,” said THC Executive Director Mark Wolfe.

“By commemorating the impact that Texas troops made during one of our nation’s greatest struggles, we ensure that the mystique of the Lone Star State is preserved for future generations,” said Wolfe.

TO DATE, the THC has provided monuments at key Civil War sites including Vicksburg, Shiloh, Antietam, Gettysburg, Chickamauga, The Wilderness, Bentonville and Mansfield.

Most recently, the agency has placed monuments in Galveston, Texas and at Raymond, Mississippi.

(Bob Bowman of Lufkin is the author of nearly 50 books about East Texas. He can be reached at bob-bowman.com)